La pietra del paragone (The Touchstone), a story of three rival women and their pursuit of marriage to Count Asdrubale, is unique in the sense that no other opera of Rossini’s has been so highly praised in the literature on the subject and yet so seldom performed. The better known Il barbiere di Siviglia brought a series of stage successes without comparison, and so shaped the fate of La pietra. That it could not be counted among the first rank of Rossini operas meant that for nearly two centuries it had no place, not even a modest one, on the stage. It does, however, thorougly deserve its reputation and marks a unique phase of Rossini’s development as a master of opera buffa. His genius for melody and sparkling, witty orchestration are already apparent in this relatively early work.