Gioachino Rossini, honoree -- along with leap year -- of a Google Doodle today, had a couple of things in common with Justin Bieber: early musical talent, recognized by his parents, and early ...

Gioachino Rossini was born in Pesaro, a pleasant, small town on Italy’s Adriatic coast, in 1792. His father was a horn player and his mother a singer, and he was inducted into the family band ...