*** Résumé en anglais seulement ***
In addition to his operatic achievements, Franco Alfano composed an impressive body of chamber and instrumental works, including the little-known music for piano heard on this recording. His early career as a virtuoso pianist is reflected in works ranging from the Quatre Pièces, with their tributes to Schumann and Mendelssohn, to the Danses napolitaines, inspired by the Neapolitan canzone, the neo-classicism of the Cinq Danses de Cléo de Mérode and the quirky rhythms of the Danses roumaines. Recordings of Alfanos chamber music can be heard on Naxos 8.570928 and 8.572753. His opera Cyrano de Bergerac, with Plácido Domingo in the title rôle, is available on Naxos DVD 2.110270 and Blu-ray NBD0005.