William Tell (opera)

Guillaume Tell (English: William Tell, Italian: Guglielmo Tell) is an opera in four acts by Gioachino Rossini to a French libretto by Étienne de Jouy and Hippolyte Bis. Based on Friedrich Schiller's play William Tell, which drew on the William Tell legend, the opera was Rossini's last, although he lived for nearly forty more years. The overture, in four sections and featuring a depiction of a storm as well as a vivacious finale, the "March of the Swiss Soldiers," is often played.

Charles Malherbe, archivist at the Paris Opéra, discovered the original orchestral score of the opera at a secondhand book seller's shop, resulting in its being acquired by the Paris Conservatoire.

Performance history

It was first performed by the Paris Opéra at the Salle Le Peletier on 3 August 1829, but within three performances cuts were being made and after a year only three acts were performed. The opera's length, roughly four hours of music, and casting requirements, such as the high range required for the tenor part, have contributed to the difficulty of producing the work. When performed, the opera is often cut. Performances have been given in both French and Italian. Political concerns have also contributed to the varying fortunes of the work.

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William Tell

William Tell (in the four languages of Switzerland: German: Wilhelm Tell; French: Guillaume Tell; Italian: Guglielmo Tell; Romansh: Guglielm Tell) is a folk hero of Switzerland. His legend is recorded in a late 15th-century Swiss illustrated chronicle. It is set in the time of the original foundation of the Old Swiss Confederacy in the early 14th century. According to the legend, Tell—an expert marksman with the crossbow—assassinated Gessler, a tyrannical reeve of Habsburg Austria positioned in Altdorf, Uri.

Along with Arnold von Winkelried, Tell is a central figure in Swiss patriotism as it was constructed during the Restoration of the Confederacy after the Napoleonic era.

The legend

Several accounts of the Tell legend exist. The earliest sources give an account of the apple shot, Tell's escape, and the ensuing rebellion. The assassination of Gessler is not mentioned in the Tellenlied but is already present in the White Book of Sarnen account.

The legend as told by Tschudi (ca. 1570) essentially follows the account in the White Book, but adds further detail, such as Tell's given name Wilhelm, his being from Bürglen, and the precise date of the apple-shot of 18 November 1307.

William Tell (1960 film)

William Tell (German: Wilhelm Tell) is a 1960 Swiss adventure film directed by Michel Dickoff and Karl Hartl and starring Robert Freitag, Wolfgang Rottsieper and Alfred Schlageter. It is based on the traditional folk story of William Tell. The film was entered into the 2nd Moscow International Film Festival.

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William Tell (aerial gunnery competition)

William Tell is a biennial aerial gunnery competition with fighter aircraft held by the United States Air Force in every even-numbered year. In the competition, teams representing the various major commands of the USAF compete in live-fire exercises, using towed banner targets for gun engagements, and obsolete fighters converted into unmanned target drones (currently QF-4 Phantoms) for air-to-air missile engagements. The competition occurs during even-numbered years, while Gunsmoke occurs during odd-numbered years.

The William Tell competition in 1972 was held at Tyndall AFB in Florida. There were twelve teams competing in total: three F-101 Voodoo teams, three F-102 Delta Dagger teams, and six F-106 Delta Dart teams. 1972 was also when the first "Top Gun" award was won. It was won by a Canadian team from the first French-Canadian fighter squadron, the 425 All Weather Fighter Squadron "Les Alouettes". The recipients were Capt. Lowell Butters (Pilot) and Capt. Douglas Danko (Navigator). They were flying the McDonnell CF-101 Voodoo.

William Tell (1923 film)

William Tell (German: Wilhelm Tell) is a 1923 German silent adventure film directed by Rudolf Dworsky and Rudolf Walther-Fein and starring Hans Marr, Conrad Veidt and Erich Kaiser-Titz. The film portrays the story of the legendary Swiss national hero William Tell. The sets were designed by Rudi Feld.

Cast