Franco Alfano by Teatro Grattacielo in the fall of 2013. In "Fanfare" 's issue of September/October 1998-99, it was asserted that Alfano's reputation suffers because of several things. Firstly, that he should not be judged as a composer on the basis of the task he was given in completing "Turandot" (La Scala, 25 April 1926). Secondly, that we almost never hear everything he wrote for "Turandot" since the standard ending heavily edits Alfano's work. Thirdly, [...]it is not his conclusion that is performed in productions of "Turandot" but only what the premiere conductor Arturo Toscanini included from it... Puccini had worked for
Giacomo Puccini particular characters and emotions, which have been compared to Wagnerian leitmotivs, and some contemporaries saw Puccini as thereby adopting a new musical style influenced by Wagner. Others viewed the work differently. Rejecting the allegation that "Tosca" displayed Wagnerian influences, a critic reporting on the 20 February 1900 Torino premiere wrote: "I don't think you could find a more Puccinian score than this." On 25 February 1903, Puccini was seriously injured in a car crash during a nighttime journey on the road from Lucca to Torre del Lago. The car was driven by Puccini's chauffeur and was carrying Puccini, his future