Gaetano Donizetti

Born into a family of modest means, he received his early musical education at the charitable school established in Bergamo by Simon Mayr, who remained his teacher, mentor and supporter. Mayr arranged further study with Stanislao Mattei in Bologna. Donizetti’s first professional operatic commission, Enrico di Borgogna, was performed in Venice in 1818. Following the success of Zoraida di Granata in Rome, he began working in Naples in 1822, maintaining a demanding succession of commissions while also writing for other Italian theatres.

Anna Bolena established his international reputation in 1830. The following decade brought such enduring works as L’elisir d’amore, Lucrezia Borgia and Lucia di Lammermoor. His writing combines melodic immediacy with a keen understanding of theatrical pace, character and vocal expression. Close collaboration with singers was central to his working methods. Although exceptionally prolific, he continually adapted his musical and dramatic approach to the requirements of different theatres, performers and audiences.

His later career extended to Paris and Vienna, with operas including La fille du régiment, La favorite, Linda di Chamounix and Don Pasquale. Alongside his operas, he composed sacred music, songs, orchestral pieces and chamber works, including string quartets and music for wind instruments. Serious illness curtailed his final years, and he returned to Bergamo before his death in 1848. His elder brother Giuseppe, a military musician who worked in Constantinople, was a different composer.