In the summer of 1835, Rossini offered Bellini and Donizetti each a contract to compose an opera, to be produced at the Theatre-Italien in Paris. Bellini composed I puritani, which was a brilliant success with the French public. Its lieto fine and grateful vocal writing appealed the elegant tastes of the French audience. Donizetti chose a typically dark and romantic subject, and he cast his opera in new and original ways. The title role is given to the bass voice, and it is this character, Marino Faliero, who is both the romantic lead and the hero of the work. The prima donna star of the opera does not come into her own until the third act, and is decidedly of secondary importance to the greater dramatic person of Marino. One of the highlights of the opera is not a love duet, but a duet between two low voices, that of the bass and a baritone singer. The score is very imaginative and forward looking, and contains many scenes that anticipate the dramatic writing of Giuseppe Verdi. It was less of a success with the French public at the time than Bellini's opera, but there were many extenuating circumstances, and both composers were made Chevaliers of the Legion d'Honneur because of their works. Donizetti's lesser success gratified the jealous and competitive Bellini, but Donizetti took a more philosophical approach. The two works, he said, are of differing genres, and both, in the end, pleased.

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