born Nov. 29, 1797, Bergamo, Cisalpine Republic
died April 8, 1848, Bergamo, Lombardy, Austrian Empire
Italian opera composer.
He was tutored and guided by the opera composer Simone Mayr (1763–1845). His opera Zoraida di Granata had a successful premiere in Rome in 1822, but it was Anna Bolena in 1830 that made his name internationally. Later successes included L'Elisir d'amore (1832), Lucrezia Borgia (1833), Lucia di Lammermoor (1835), Roberto Devereux (1837), La Fille du régiment (1840), and Don Pasquale (1843). Enormously prolific, he could produce an entire opera in weeks. He completed almost 70 operas, as well as more than 150 sacred works and hundreds of songs. Infected with syphilis, he suffered a severe four-year decline leading to his death. He was one of the foremost Italian opera composers of the early 19th century and a principal master of the bel canto style.