Alberto Franchetti (born 18 September 1860, Turin; died 4 August 1942, Viareggio) was an Italian opera composer. A nobleman of independent means, he studied first in Venice, then in Dresden under Draeseke, and finally at the Munich Conservatory under Rheinberger. His first major success occurred in 1888 with his opera Asrael. His operatic style combined Wagnerianism and Meyerbeer with Italian verismo. During his life, critics sometimes referred to him as the "Meyerbeer of modern Italy." His most popular opera was "Germania" (1902) and it clung to the general operatic repertoire until the First World War, since then lapsing into obscurity. Recent revivals of Germania (Berlin Oper 2006/7) and Cristoforo Columbo show his work to be of genuine quality with a fine ability in orchestration and use of the chorus, symphonic in style. These traits, along with a tendency for two dimensional characters was recognised early: "Egli non ha forse l?indole por