Gaetano Donizetti, born Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti on November 29, 1797, in Bergamo, Italy, was a prominent Italian Romantic composer renowned for his significant contributions to the bel canto opera style. He was the youngest of three sons in a modest family, with his father working as a caretaker and his mother as a weaver. Despite his family's financial struggles, Donizetti's musical talent was recognized early by Simon Mayr, a German composer and director of music at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Bergamo. Mayr provided Donizetti with a scholarship to study at a charitable music school he had founded, where Donizetti received a comprehensive musical education.

Donizetti furthered his studies at the Bologna Academy under Padre Stanislao Mattei, where he honed his compositional skills. His first opera, Il Pigmalione, was composed in 1816, though it was not performed during his lifetime. His official debut came with Enrico di Borgogna in 1818. Donizetti's career gained momentum with the success of Zoraida di Granata in 1822, leading to a long association with the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, where he composed numerous operas.

Throughout his career, Donizetti composed nearly 70 operas, ranging from comedies like L'elisir d'amore (1832) and Don Pasquale (1843) to serious works such as Lucia di Lammermoor (1835). His operas were pivotal in the transition from the styles of Rossini to Verdi. Donizetti faced censorship challenges in Italy, prompting him to work extensively in Paris from 1838, where he found greater artistic freedom and prestige.

Donizetti's later years were marred by illness, and he was confined to a mental institution by 1846 due to neurosyphilis. He returned to Bergamo, where he died on April 8, 1848. His legacy endures through his operas, which continue to be celebrated for their melodic richness and emotional depth.