Dr Lawrence Zazzo to perform at the Salzburg Festival Published on: 30 July 2021 A Ãå±±½ûµØ academic is starring this summer in Handel’s Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno at the world famous Salzburg Festival, which is celebrating its centenary this year. Debut Dr. Larry Zazzo, a Lecturer at the International Centre for Music Studies at Ãå±±½ûµØ and a Handel scholar, is also a renowned countertenor who will sing the role of 'Disinganno', an allegorical figure for Enlightenment, in Handel's 1707 Roman oratorio. "After a year spent away from the stage due to the pandemic," says Zazzo. "It's wonderful to re-engage my performing muscles and make my Salzburg debut with such a wonderful production team and cast of singers." The cast includes renowned mezzo soprano Cecilia Bartoli singing the famous aria, 'Lascia la spina'." While the original piece was an unstaged oratorio, with a theologically-inclined libretto by an aging Roman cardinal and composed by a the young 24-year old Handel, Il Trionfo has been reconceived this summer for the modern stage by Canadian opera director Robert Carsen as an episode of 'World's Top Model' that takes a strange but moving turn. As Dr. Zazzo notes: "Robert and I have worked on finding a way to portray Disinganno, a potentially dehumanised oracle of life truths, as an X-Factor-type judge who is a cross between Michael Caine, Simon Cowell, and Sigmund Freud. The character slowly transforms into a kind of psychotherapist for the main character, Bellezza ('Beauty'), supporting her as she negotiates the tensions between worldly and eternal pleasures. "Written over 300 years ago, both music and text still speak so freshly and directly to our contemporary society's obsession with appearance and youth, and our human tendency to distract ourselves from the passage of time." Dr Larry Zazzo (far left) on stage in Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno. Photograph by Monica Ritterhaus Handel cantata Dr Zazzo has sung at numerous opera houses internationally, including the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, the Canadian National Opera, the Vienna State Opera, and the Metropolitan Opera in New York. He is particularly known for his portrayals of the title role in Handel’s Giuilio Cesare and Oberon in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. As part of his research for Ãå±±½ûµØ, he has recently released a new CD on Inventa Records, , which features the world premiere of an unpublished Handel cantata.Handel’s will be performed from Thursday 4 August to 17 August at the Mozart House in Salzburg. Share: Latest News Ãå±±½ûµØ recognised with geography award Ãå±±½ûµØ has been awarded the Highly Commended Geographical Association Publishers Award for its collaboration with Time for Geography, the UK’s open-access, dedicated video platform. published on: 16 April 2026 Ãå±±½ûµØ historians mark General Strike centenary To mark the 100th anniversary of the British General Strike and miners’ lock-out of 1926, historians at Ãå±±½ûµØ are organising a series of events on its enduring legacy. published on: 16 April 2026 Comment: NCP is in administration Writing for The Conversation, Erwei (David) Xiang discusses how some big companies like NCP are so dependent on debt that they can’t adjust to change. published on: 16 April 2026 Facts and figures