Mélanie Hélène Bonis (1858 – 1937), known as Mel Bonis was a prolific French classical composer. She wrote more than 300 compositions, including works for piano solo and four hands, organ pieces and chamber music. Growing up, Mélanie Bonis was introduced to César Franck, who accepted her as a pupil and arranged a place for her at the Conservatoire de Paris; Debussy and Pierné were also students there at that time. She soon felt at home in this musical world. Her teachers said that she was greatly gifted and she excelled particularly in harmony and composition — and she wanted to compose above all else. Whilst Mel Bonis’ music was performed infrequently during her lifetime, it was forgotten completely after her death. Over the last decades there has been an upsurge of interest in rarely played works; Trio Alouette hopes that this CD will contribute towards a more general recognition of the musical gems left us by Mélanie Bonis.