ROME -- The popular Italian singer-songwriter Lucio Dalla has died in Switzerland during a European concert tour. He was 68.

Dalla's company, Ph.D srl Music Management in Bologna, said the singer died, apparently of a heart attack, after eating breakfast Thursday morning in his hotel in Montreaux, Switzerland. He had given a concert there the evening before.

Dalla wrote songs for himself and others, as well as for films.

His song "Caruso" sold 9 million copies worldwide. The late opera great Luciano Pavarotti sang "Caruso" with Dalla at a 1992 Italian concert.

Dalla toured abroad frequently, including in the United States. He sometimes toured with another famed Italian folksong writer, Francesco De Gregori. Italy's president said many generations of Italians loved Dalla.