Alfredo Napoleão dos Santos (31 January 1852,

Porto Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...

– 20 November 1917,

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

)Nancy Lee Harper.
Booklet notes
' to Hyperion CDA67984 was a Portuguese pianist and composer. He was the youngest of three Napoleão pianist and composer siblings, the others being Arthur Napoleão (1843–1925), and Aníbal Napoleão (1845–1880).

Biography

Their parents were Portuguese, musician Alexandre Napoleão and Joaquina Maria dos Santos. The latter died, when Alfredo was only a year old. The father worked in London, and Alfredo spent his childhood with his maternal grandmother in

, his birthplace. In 1858 he was brought to London to study with a certain Professor Wood. These studies continued up to 1868, when he went to

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, like his two brothers. In 1869 he gave his debut recital in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

, with great success. He made an extensive tour through the country and settled in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

, and then in

Montevideo Montevideo (, ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2023 census, the city proper has a population of 1,302,954 (about 37.2% of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

, where he taught piano. In 1879 he was again in Rio de Janeiro and for some years toured the northern parts of Brazil. At that time he was at the height of his fame. Returning to Portugal in 1882, he gave concerts in

and Porto, then London and Paris. In 1889 he went to Brazil again and made a tour through the entire continent. In 1891 he returned to Porto. Alfredo Napoleão was a great interpreter of

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety of instruments and forms, including the or ...

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

and

Schumann Robert Schumann (; ; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and music critic of the early Romantic music, Romantic era. He composed in all the main musical genres of the time, writing for solo piano, voice and piano, chamber ...

Compositions

Alfredo Napoleão's compositions include four piano concertos, a Polonaise for piano and orchestra, an ''Ouverture symphonique'' for large orchestra, chamber music, piano sonatas and many piano pieces.

List of works (selective)

;For piano *Op.1 - Estrella d'Alva, Polka brilhante *Op.2 - Fantaisie sur '' Les bavards'' de J. Offenbach *Op.3 - Fantaisie de salon sur ''

Le pont des soupirs ''Le pont des soupirs '' ("The Bridge of Sighs") is an opéra bouffe (or operetta) set in Venice, by Jacques Offenbach, first performed in Paris in 1861. The French language, French libretto was written by Hector Crémieux and Ludovic Halévy. ...

'', opera bouffe de J. Offenbach *Op.12 - Grande fantaisie de concert sur le ''Carnaval de Venise'' *Op.29 - Reminiscences de ''

Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is a tragic opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 De ...

'' de

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, Grande fantaisie *Op.36 - Tableaux, Suite de petites piéces caractéristiques (Porto: Costa Mesquita, ca.1882) ::(Les Acrobates; Le Retour du Troubadour; Bonheur supréme; Danse Villageoise; Je t'en supplie; Marche des nobles) *Op.41 - Prelude and Fugue in F-sharp minor (London: Augener, ca.1888) *Op.54 - Trois romances (Un Soir de Printemps; Le Rêve; Exhaussée!) *Op.60 - Diva, Valse (Porto: Raymundo de Macedo, ca.1913) * ''Se sa minga'', opera de Carlos Gomes: Polka ;For piano and orchestra *Op.27 - Andante et Polonaise de concert *Op.31 - Piano Concerto No. 2 in E-flat minor

Discography

* (rec. 2013) Piano Concerto No. 2 –

Artur Pizarro Artur Pizarro (born Lisbon, 1968) is an internationally-acclaimed Portuguese concert pianist.Kennedy, Michael and Joyce Bourne. "Pizarro, Artur" ''The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music''. Oxford University Press: 1996. Designated with the presti ...

(piano),

BBC National Orchestra of Wales The BBC National Orchestra of Wales (BBC NOW) () is a Welsh symphony orchestra and one of the BBC's five professional radio orchestras. The BBC NOW is the only professional symphony orchestra organisation in Wales, occupying a dual role as both ...

Martyn Brabbins Martyn Charles Brabbins (born 13 August 1959) is a British conductor. Biography The fourth of five children in his family, he learned to play the euphonium, and then the trombone during his youth at Towcester Studio Brass Band. He later studi ...

(conductor) – Hyperionbr>CDA67984

References

1852 births 1917 deaths Brazilian composers Musicians from Porto Brazilian pianists 19th-century Portuguese people 19th-century pianists {{Composer-stub