Born in
Romano di Lombardia, Rubini began as a
violinist at twelve years of age at the
Teatro Riccardi in
Bergamo. His first appearance as singer was 1814 in
Pavia in ''
Le lagrime d'una vedova'' by
Pietro Generali. After ten years spent in Naples between 1815 and 1825, during which he also scored spectacular successes in France in the 1825/26 season in opera by
Rossini, he moved permanently to Paris, performing in Rossini's
La Cenerentola,
Otello, and
La donna del lago. He divided his time between Paris (in the Autumn and Winter) and London (in the Spring). His special relation with
Vincenzo Bellini began with
Bianca e Fernando (1826) and continued until
I puritani (1835), when he was one of the long-remembered "Puritani quartet" for whose voices the opera was written. The three other members of the illustrious quartet were
Giulia Grisi,
Antonio Tamburini and
Luigi Lablache. The four appeared together again in
Donizetti's
Marino Faliero during the same season, then travelled to London with the Irish composer
Michael William Balfe for a further round of operatic engagements. Rubini was admitted as an honorary member of the
Accademia Filarmonica di Bologna and retired with a great fortune in 1845. He died in his hometown of Romano in 1854, and is buried in the cemetery there, within a large marble monument. ==References==