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| Vincenzo Bellini |
“You are a genius, Bellini, but you will pay for your great gift with a premature death. All the great geniuses die young, like Raphael and like Mozart.” – Heinrich Heine: to Bellini, at a dinner party, 1835.
With those unintentionally prophetic words, the German-Jewish poet Heine (who was never known for his tact or his couth) cursed Bellini to an early grave. Scarcely several months after hearing these words, Bellini would sadly prove Heine correct by joining Raphael and Mozart among the greats who died too young.
Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini was born in the city of Catania, Sicily in what was then the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies on November 3rd, 1801. A child prodigy from a family of musicians, legend has it that Bellini could sing an aria of Valentino Fioravanti at the tender age of only 18 months. His father schooled the boy in piano lessons, and by the age of five he could play quite well. At the age of six he composed his first piece, Gallus cantavit, and subsequently began studying composition with his grandfather.
By the time he reached his teens, Bellini had composed parti sacre that were being heard in churches throughout Catania while his ariettas and instrumental works were being played in the salons of Sicilian aristocrats and patricians. Having learned all he could from his grandfather, in June of 1819 he left Sicily to study at the Conservatory in Naples. By 1822 he was in the class of the director, Nicoló Zingarelli. Here he wrote his first opera semiseria, Adelson e Salvini which was produced in 1825. Its success led to a commission from the Teatro San Carlo. It was here he produced his next opera, Bianca e Gernando, whose success garnered him a commission from the impresario Barbaia to produce an opera at the prestigious La Scala in Milan.
It was this opera, Il pirata, that put Bellini “on the map”, so to speak, of musical composers. It was such a resounding success, it, and the works to follow, guaranteed that Bellini would be able to live the grand lifestyle he so desired solely from his opera commissions. It also began his long and fruitful collaboration with librettist and poet Felice Romani, as well as cementing his friendship with the famous Lombardian tenor Giovanni Battista Rubini. Rubini, Bellini’s favored tenor, had earlier sung in Bianca e Gernando.
Between the years 1827 and 1833 Bellini lived mostly in the city of Milan. It was during this time his creative genius was in high gear. In 1829 he composed La straniera, which was even more successful than Il pirata. However, his other opera, Zaira, composed that same year, was considered a failure. He regained his momentum the following year in Venice with his production of I Capuleti e I Montecchi , an opera based on the same sources William Shakespeare used to write Romeo and Juliet.
1831 saw Bellini produce two of the three operas considered his greatest works: La Sonnambula and Norma; the last universally considered both his greatest work and the finest example of the Bel canto tradition of opera ever composed. His fame as an opera composer was now on an international scale.
1833 saw Bellini compose Beatrice di Tenda, a problematic work that was saved by the excellent performance of the legendary Lombardian soprano, Giuditta Pasta. Public reaction had been initially hostile due to the horrific subject matter. It was the only one of Bellini’s operas to be published in full score in his lifetime. Sadly, differences of opinion during production led to a breakdown in the glorious relationship that had previously existed between Bellini and Romani.
The same year saw Bellini forced to flee Italy due to a “dalliance” with the wife of a prominent landowner and silk manufacturer. Finding refuge in London, Bellini saw great success with the performance of four of his operas at the King’s Theatre and Drury Lane. Moving on to Paris, France, he was commissioned by the Théâtre-Italien to produce what was to become his last opera: I puritani. It was at this time he formed a close bond with Rossini and got to know Chopin.
The rousing success of I puritani in January, 1835 saw new honors heaped on Bellini. He was appointed a Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur. Deciding to remain in Paris, he began work on new projects when he fell ill in August, 1835 and died on September 23rd, 1835 in Puteaux, France of a severe inflammation of the intestines (now believed to have been caused by amoebic dysentery). His death was viewed as a national tragedy in England, France and across what is now Italy. Initially buried in the cemetery of Pére LaChaise in Paris, his remains were eventually removed to the Cathedral of Catania, Sicily in 1876.
At the time of his death and for some time afterwards, Bellini’s fame was enormous! Sadly, his works eventually fell into neglect. After World War II, however, interest was renewed in them, especially his masterpiece, Norma. Bellini’s contribution to opera cannot be understated. He was the greatest musical composer in the Bel canto tradition of opera. It was this tradition, begun in Italy during the Middle Ages and reaching its zenith in the early part of the 19th century with the works of Rossini, Donizetti and of course, Bellini, that stressed the use of florid vocals over the weightier, more powerful and speech-inflected style of singing that came to characterize the operas of composers such as Verdi and Wagner.
Subsequent to Bellini’s passing the Bel canto tradition fell out of favor. This is not without reason, to be sure. Bel canto operas, by their very nature, place a great demand on the voice, especially the operas of Bellini. In 1973 Andrew Porter wrote in the ‘The New York Times’ that “Norma remains one of the ‘most demanding parts in opera, both vocally and dramatically. It calls for power, grace in slow cantilena; pure, fluent coloratura; stamina; tones both tender and violent; force and intensity of verbal declamation; and a commanding stage presence. Only a soprano who has all these things can sustain the role. There have not been many such sopranos.”
Indeed, since the end of World War II, many opera aficionados claim only three sopranos have truly done the titular role in Norma justice: Dame Joan Sutherland, Rosa Ponselle and “La Divina” herself: Maria Callas! It should be mentioned that Richard Wagner, that most bitter critic of Italian opera, was impressed by Norma (and by extension, Bellini himself).
One final note: in addition to being a legendary opera composer, Vincenzo Bellini was known to be an epicure. His favorite Sicilian dish was “Pasta alla Norma,” named in honor of his greatest work. Should you ever have the opportunity to dine on this luscious culinary creation, raise a glass of wine in memory of the maestro and smile. After all, great food and music should bring a smile to one’s face, shouldn’t they?
Famous quotes about Bellini:
“Bellini’s music comes from the heart and it is intimately bound up with the text.” – Richard Wagner, 1880.
“…there are extremely long melodies as no one else had made before him.” – Giuseppe Verdi, 1888.
Further reading: Rosselli, John, The life of Bellini, Cambridge, England; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996.
