Vincenzo Bellini

Vincenzo Bellini, portrait byPietro Lucchini

Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini (; 3 November 1801 – 23 September 1835) was an Italian opera composer, who was known for his long-flowing melodic lines for which he was named "the Swan of Catania". Many years later, in 1898, Giuseppe Verdi "praised the broad curves of Bellini's melody: 'there are extremely long melodies as no-one else had ever made before'."

A large amount of what is known about Bellini's life and activity comes from surviving letters which were written, except for a short period, throughout his lifetime to Francesco Florimo, whom he had met as a fellow student in Naples and with whom he maintained a lifelong friendship. Other sources of information come from correspondence saved by other friends and business acquaintances.

Bellini was the quintessential composer of the Italian ''bel canto'' era of the early 19th century, and his work has been summed up by the London critic Tim Ashley as:
... also hugely influential, as much admired by other composers as he was by the public. Verdi raved about his "long, long, long melodies such as no one before had written." Wagner, who rarely liked anyone but himself, was spellbound by Bellini's almost uncanny ability to match music with text and psychology. Liszt and Chopin professed themselves fans. Of the 19th-century giants, only Berlioz demurred. Those musicologists who consider Bellini to be merely a melancholic tunesmith are now in the minority.


In considering which of his operas can be seen to be his greatest successes over the almost two hundred years since his death, ''Il pirata'' laid much of the groundwork in 1827, achieving very early recognition in comparison to Donizetti's having written thirty operas before his major 1830 triumph with ''Anna Bolena''. Both ''I Capuleti e i Montecchi'' at La Fenice in 1830 and ''La sonnambula'' in Milan in 1831 reached new triumphal heights, although initially ''Norma'', given at La Scala in 1831 did not fare as well until later performances elsewhere. "The genuine triumph" of ''I puritani'' in January 1835 in Paris capped a significant career. Certainly, ''Il pirata'', ''Capuleti'', ''La sonnambula'', ''Norma'', and ''I puritani'' are regularly performed today.

After his initial success in Naples, most of the rest of his short life was spent outside of both Sicily and Naples, those years being followed with his living and composing in Milan and Northern Italy, and—after a visit to London—then came his final masterpiece in Paris, ''I puritani''. Only nine months later, Bellini died in Puteaux, France at the age of 33. Provided by Wikipedia
Showing 1 - 20 results of 67 for search 'Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835,', query time: 0.19s Refine Results
1
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1976

Audio
2
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1975
Other Authors: ...Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835...

Audio
3
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1969
Other Authors: ...Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835...

Audio
4
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1953
Other Authors: ...Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835...

Audio
5
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1957

Audio
6
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1971
Other Authors: ...Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835...

Audio
7

Musical Score Book
8
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1965

Audio
9
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1967

Audio
10
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1978

Audio
11
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1901

Musical Score Book
12
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1980

Musical Score Book
13
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1961
Other Authors: ...Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835...

Audio
14
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1995

Audio
15

Book
16
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1900

Musical Score Book
17
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 2010

Unknown
18
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1975

Book
19
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1900

Book
20
by Bellini, Vincenzo, 1801-1835
Published 1953

Book