Alfredo Napoleão (1852-1917)

[promusician]

Alfredo Napoleão dos Santos (31 January 1852, Porto – 20 November 1917, Lisbon) 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).

This composer has been mentioned before in an RPC recording but most of his other works remained obscure and other 2 piano concertos has not been found yet! In hope of reviving the search, I opened this thread.

We start off with a conversation with the late Daniel Cunha (who did research on Napoleao for several years)

RP: What do we know of the two remaining two Piano Concertos that he wrote?

DC: Napoleão composed two more concerti, the op. 52 and 55, which are sadly lost for the moment. His opus 52 was premiered, by the composer himself, in Rio de Janeiro in 1896. On the following year he plays it in Buenos Aires. He had wonderful reviews on both cities. In 1900 he played it in Lisbon as well. His last piano concerto, the op. 55, was considered by the composer to be his most important composition and it was also praised by the critics. Unfortunately, it was never premiered with a full orchestra. He performed it in Lisbon, together with a string quartet in 1914.

RP: Chopin also appears very prominently in his Andante and Polonaise de Concert Op 27, which I see from your notes was premiered in Rio de Janeiro in 1879. Like the Chopin piece it is so clearly inspired by, you play it in the solo piano version, rather than the concertante original.

DC: Unfortunately, the orchestral part of the concertante version of the Andante et Polonaise de Concert op. 27 is lost, but I still think it is very effective. Curiously, the solo score is very informative regarding the orchestration, so a reconstruction of the orchestral score could be possible, in my view, since it seems to be a bit sparse. The piano score of his op. 27 is a very unusual edition of the work (published at the time by his brother Arthur's company Narciso, A. Napoleão e Miguéz), which you could use if you would play either with orchestra or the solo version. It is made for both situations, two in one, which makes the score a bit confusing at times.

I think the Andante et Polonaise de Concert op. 27 is a piece full of character, with beautiful melodic material and full of contrasts, charm and brilliance. Also here Napoleão uses a musical form technique that he would later use in his next concertante work, the 1st Piano Concerto op. 31, which is the cyclical form technique. He uses this to unify the work. The first motive of the introduction of the Andante, with its mysterious and dramatic character, appears once more at the coda of the Grand Polonaise, ending with bravura.

Chopin's influence, present in this piece without a doubt, stays strong in his later years, including the Fantasie et Grand Polonaise op. 59 which was one of his last works. It is sadly lost, but based on its title we can see that the influence of Chopin is still there. I know that he performed it at least twice in Lisbon. At first he played the solo version in 1912 (the year that he finished the orchestration of the work) and in 1914 when he played it with an orchestra, under the baton of the Spanish composer and great violinist Francisco Benetó, achieving good reviews from the critics.

RP: How many pieces do we think Napoleão wrote, compared to the number of surviving scores?

DC: The Portuguese art critic Alfredo Pinto (Sacavém), a very close friend of Alfredo Napoleão during his last years that he spent in Lisbon, published in his book of interviews to different Portuguese composers Horas d'Arte (1913) a list of Napoleão's works. Alfredo Pinto thought that this list was the most complete to date. It contains 62 opus number but most of them are lost. Alfredo Napoleão died in 1917 and this list is from 1912, so I'm not sure if he composed more works between these dates.

This list points out which works from his output were published during his lifetime. The published works were the ones I managed to gather after few years of research. I found scores in libraries and archives in Portugal, France, Brazil and Argentina. I managed to recover 16 opus works that were published in his time, with the exception of the score of the Piano Concerto op. 31 which was published in the modern era by Renascimento Musical Editors lda, a Portuguese publishing company no longer trading. Now I am working with AVA Musical Editions, also a Portuguese publishing company, in order to publish some of the scores of this composer. There is one that was published already, the Lenda da Beira (Légende) op. 39.

Going back to the works that are lost, among them are the two Piano Concertos and the Fantasie et Grand Polonaise for piano and orchestra; many works for piano solo, including three Piano Sonatas, a collection of Etudes, but also orchestral overtures, piano trios, songs for voice and piano, etc.

[promusician]

Recording of solo piano works by Alfredo Napoleão
Daniel Cunha - Solitude
https://www.amazon.com/Rondo-Op-47/dp/B07KR9W1N5
Tracklist:
1      Soupirs Du Tage (Caprice-Etude) Op.38
2      Rondo Op.47
3      Prelude And Fugue Op.41
4      Légende (Lenda Da Beira) Op.39
5      Andante Et Polonaise De Concert Op.27
6      Trois Romances Op.45 Nº 1 - Un Soir Du Printemps
7      Trois Romances Op.45 Nº 2 - Le Rêve
8      Trois Romances Op.45 Nº 3 - Exhaussée!

[promusician]

Finally, a comprehensive list of his works compiled from a book (translated), works published in his lifetime are marked (*)

Alfredo Napoleão Worklist
Op 1 'Estrella d'Alva' Polka Brillante (Narcizo) (*)
Op 2 Fantaisie sur 'Les Bavards' de Offenbach (*)
Op 3 Fantaisie de Salon sur 'Le Pont des Soupirs' opera bouffe de Offenbach (*)
Op 4 Valsa de Salão
Op 5 Valsa
Op 6 Grande Marcha de Rovina for 6 Pianos
Op 7 Grande Marcha de Propheta for 4 pianos
Op 8 'Recuerdo' Valsa
Op 9 Marcha Triumphal
Op 10 'Confidences' Nocturne
Op 11 Grand Fantaise sur Verdi's 'Rigoletto'
Op 12 Grande Fantaisie de concert & Variations sur le 'Carnaval de Venise' (*)
Op 13 Caprice Valse
Op 14 Marcha do Club das Regatas do Rio de Janeiro
Op 15 'Lusitania' Grand Valsa No. 1 for Orchestra
Op 16 'União' Capricho for Two Pianos
Op 17 Caprice Impromptu
Op 18 Petit Trio for Piano, Violin, Flute or Cello
Op 19 'Hymno Nacional Argentine' Capricho de Concerto (*)
Op 20 'Etoile d'Orient' Polka de Concerto No. 1
Op 21 'Les Sirénes' Grande Polka for Piano & 4 hands
Op 22a Argentine National Anthem - Grand Fantasy Concert [AVA]
Op 22b 'Llora Llore Brutan' Aria for Voice & Piano
Op 23 Trez Grandes Estudes
Op 24 Marcha Funebre
Op 25 Grande Trio for Piano, Violin & Cello (L'Allegro)
Op 26 'Radieuse' Polka de Concerto No. 2
Op 27 Andante et Polonaise de Concert for Piano & Orchestra – arr. Two Pianos (*)
Op 28 Les Huguenots [transcription]
Op 29 'Reminiscences de Aida de Verdi' Grande Fantaisie (*)
Op 30 Mazurca de Concerto
Op 31 Piano Concerto No. 1 in Eb minor + arr. Two Pianos (fs manuscript)
Op 32 'Cintra' Grande Valsa
Op 33 'Stellato è il ciel' Aria for Voice & Piano
Op 34 Il Ritorno del Esule
Op 35 Nocturno Romantico
Op 36 'Tableaux' Suite No. 1 de petites piéces caractéristiques (Porto: Costa
Mesquita ~1882) (*)
1. Les Acrobates
2. Le Retour du Troubadour
3. Bonheur supréme
4. Danse Villageoise
5. Je t'en supplie
6. Marche des nobles
Op 37 Ballade – Peça de Concerto
Op 38 'Soupirs du Tage' Caprice-Etude (Choudens) (*)
Op 39 'Lenda of Beira' Legend (*)
Op 40 Esquisses [Sketches] – Suite No. 2 (*)
Op 41 Prelude & Fugue in F-sharp minor (Augener ~1888) (*)
Op 42 Fantasia Caprice
Op 43 Souvenirs – Suite No. 3 (*)
Op 44 Barcarolla
Op 45 Grande Sonata No. 1
Op 46 Grande Sonata No. 2
Op 47 Rondo (Moreira) (*)
Op 48 Doze Estudos Artistico
Op 49 Allegro de Concerto for Violin & Piano
Op 50 Ouverture Symphonica for Orchestra
Ouverture Symphonica for Orchestra – arr. Two Pianos
Op 51 Suite [Sonata] for Flute & Piano [or Violin]
Op 52 Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor
Op 53 Duas Mazurkas Brillhantes
Op 54 Trois Romances (author Porto)
1. Un Soir de Printemps
2. Le Rêve
3. Exhaussée !
Op 55 Piano Concerto No. 3 in D major
Op 56 'Pele-Mele' Suite No. 4 (Andre) (*)
1. Bagatelle
2. 'Sur le Tage' Ballade No. 2
3. Marche de Noches
4. Enfant Dô! Berceuse
5. Valse-Caprice
Op 57 Fantaisies
Op 58 Grande Sonata No. 3 in A major
Op 59 Fantaisie et Grand Polonaise for Piano & Orchestra
Op 60 'Diva' Valse (Raymundo de Macedo ~ 1913) [AVA]
Op 61 'Salvé, oh ! Patria' Marcha Solemne for Orchestra
Op 62 Hymno for Chorus & Orchestra
Polka from the opera by Gomes 'Se sa minga' – arr. Piano solo
'Lendas da Deira' Legende
'O Remorso Vivo' Overture for Orchestra
'O Remorso Vivo' Overture for Orchestra – arr. Piano solo (Narcizo)

[promusician]

Translation of a biography of him:

Alfredo Napoleão 

His life and compositions were filled with hours of melancholy. 

A mere glance at his body of work is enough to appreciate the artistic value of Alfredo Napoleão, who holds such a respected place in our musical world. 

He was born in Porto on January 31, 1852. In 1866, he left for Brazil to pursue a career in commerce, working at a piano dealership. However, his soul never lost its love for music, nurtured by lessons he had taken in London under his father, who lived there. Constantly studying, he eventually made his public debut in a concert at the Lyric Theatre, where he achieved great success. His temperament, inclined toward the beauty of sound, could not reconcile with commercial life, so he left his job and embarked on an artistic tour through various provinces of Brazil. He spent six years in Buenos Aires and Montevideo dedicated to teaching. In 1882, he gave several concerts in Porto and Lisbon before traveling to Paris and London, where he was widely applauded in various recitals. He returned to Rio de Janeiro multiple times before finally settling in Porto in 1905. Today, he lives in our capital, dedicating himself to teaching and concerts. He is the brother of the renowned artist Arthur Napoleão, who resides in Rio de Janeiro, and of Annibal Napoleão, also a composer, who passed away in Lisbon in 1880. 

We may regard this distinguished Portuguese musician both as a pianist and as a composer. 

Modest in character, he cherishes solitude, wishing only to live for his music. His life of continuous study has made him a pianist of magnificent technique, performing the works of Bach and Beethoven with profound understanding—the latter being his favorite composer. He also possesses a masterful knowledge of Liszt's compositions, interpreting them with brilliance. 

A critic from Buenos Aires wrote in his newspaper in 1897: 

*"It may be said that Alfredo Napoleão is a truly extraordinary case, worthy of attention anywhere in the world. No one who has not heard him can grasp the vigor and brilliance of his technique. His scales, arpeggios, and cadenzas possess the inexorable speed of lightning."* 

As a composer, his works—whether for piano or orchestra—are inspired pieces that reveal the author's remarkable depth of knowledge. A tireless worker, his musical output is extensive, and while some compositions may fall short in inspiration or craftsmanship, others reveal immense talent, worthy of a place in concert halls worldwide! Yet, Alfredo Napoleão is Portuguese—and that, unfortunately, is enough for many of his works to remain buried in obscurity for years on end. It is sad to say, but it is the truth!