Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini (November 3, 1801 - September 23, 1835) was an Italian opera composer. Early biographical documents describe the young Bellini as a child prodigy: he was able to sing an aria before he was two years old and to conduct at three. Bellini was the quintessential composer of the Italian bel canto (term relating to Italian singing) era of the early 19th century and his work has been summed up by the London critic Tim Ashley as: "He also hugely influential, as much admired by other composers as he was by the public. Verdi raved about his "long, long, long melodies". 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." He died of peritonitis or amoebic dysentery in 1835 at the age of 33.