Composers Datebook

A fiery horse with the speed of light, a cloud of dust, and a hearty "Hi-yo, Silver!" Generations of American kids — and kids at heart—first associate Rossini's "William Tell" Overture with the Lone Ranger. Then comes the day we learn there is no Santa Claus, and perhaps later on that our beloved Lone Ranger theme actually comes from an overture by an Italian composer written for a French opera about a Swiss archer, which was adapted from a German play. Ah, the complexities of adulthood! Rossini's "William Tell" was first heard in Paris, on today's date in 1829. Based on a stage play by the German Romantic poet and writer, Friedrich Schiller, Rossini hoped "William Tell" would be considered his masterpiece. Ironically, the complete opera is only rarely staged these days. The "William Tell" overture, however, was an instant hit in 1829, and has remained a favorite concert showpiece to this day. Unfortunately, the overture has become SO familiar as to become something of a musical cliché, and even parodied and quoted in cartoons. The Russian composer Dimitri Shostakovich gave a dark 20th-century spin to Rossini's overly familiar theme, when he quoted the "William Tell" overture in the opening movement of his Symphony No. 15. In the context of Shostakovich's enigmatic final symphony, Rossini's jaunty little theme comes off like a forced smile, and audiences are free to read whatever political subtext they wish into its rather sinister context.