Dover Books on Music: Sins of Old Age : Piano Selections from "Péchés de Vieillesse" (Paperback)

Highlights from Rossini's 14 unpublished volumes of vocal and solo piano pieces include Mon Prélude Hygiènique du Matin, Ouf! Les Petits Pois (Oh! Those Little Peas), and Un Rêve.

The composer of The Barber of Seville and William Tell ceased to write operas at the height of his career, and at the age of 37 retired into two decades of seclusion.

In 1855 Gioacchino Rossini began to compose again, this time in the form of chamber works, performed privately in his Paris salon for the cream of society.

These works were not published until after the composer's death, and have since come to be known as Sins of Old Age.

A graceful combination of sophistication and naivety, the 150 vocal and solo piano pieces from this period influenced later composers such as Saint-Saëns and Satie.