A classical musician by training and a conservative by inclination, Rossini none the less broke the mould of the old Italian operatic order, and laid the foundations for a new generation of romantically inspired music-dramatists. One of the most influential of nineteenth-century composers, in touch with many leading musicians of his day, Rossini was also the most complex of men - a mixture of affability and reserve, industry and indolence, wit and melancholy. This detailed biography also includes a survey of Rossini's choral works, and the vocal and solo piano music written during the last decade of his life.