Rossini, Gioacchino. (1792-1868) [Stoltz, Rosine. (1815 - 1903)] [Carjat, Étienne. (1828–1906)]
Portrait Caricature cooking Spaghetti - Inscribed to Rosina Stolz
Albumen photograph of a highly amusing caricature of the composer, signed and inscribed by Rossini to the important French Mezzo-soprano, Rosine Stoltz (creator of Ascanio in Berlioz's Benvenuto Cellini, Marguerite in Auber's Le lac des fées, the title role in Marie Stuart, and two Donizetti heroines, Léonor in La favorite and Zayda in Dom Sébastien): 'Offert à ma brillante Interprete et aimable amie Rosine Stoltz, Gioachino Rossini, Paris, 26 Nov 1858" ("Offered to my brilliant interpreter and beloved friend Rosine Stoltz"). Ink inscription to mount below albumen print of the caricature by Étienne Carjat, depicting the composer cooking spaghetti. The print somewhat faded, some soiling and glue residue, else fine. Sheet measuring 8 x 12 inches (30.5 x 20.5 cm).After his early successes in Paris, Rossini retired to Italy in 1836 but returned to the French capital in 1855 and spent the rest of his life there, enjoying an agreeable existence as a celebrated host and gourmet. As he grew older, Rossini’s gastronomic excesses were reflected in his girth and supported by his ample purse. Today, the composer’s legacy lives on in not only in his music, but in the rich haute cuisine dishes laden with truffles and fois gras (think Tournedos Rossini) that bear his name. About the pleasures of consumption, Rossini didn’t mince words. “I know of no more admirable occupation than eating,” he wrote. “Eating, loving, singing and digesting are, in truth, the four actors of the comic opera known as life; and they pass like the bubbles of a bottle of champagne. Whoever lets them break – without having enjoyed them – is a complete fool.”
Born "Victoire Noël" in Montparnasse, Paris, the future Rosine Stoltz became quite a slippery character. After an unsuccessful foray into vaudeville, she showed up in Antwerp and Amsterdam as Mademoiselle Héloïse. She then migrated to the Monnaie in Brussels under the name of Mademoiselle Ternaux in 1832, starting in secondary roles. She graduated to leads in Rossini’s Il barbiere, Tancredi, and Otello in Lille in 1833, and in 1834 Stoltz sang Alice in Robert le diable in Antwerp. In 1835 she returned to the Monnaie as Madame Stoltz (a variation of her mother’s maiden name, Stoll), where she reprised Alice. The name Rosine, by which she is now principally remembered, was probably appropriated because of her success in Rossini's Il barbiere, adding to the wonderful association of the present photograph. (23286)
Signed Photograph Opera