Romanticism and realism intertwine in many of the works in Lawrence Zazzo’s recital. The American countertenor moves from Britten’s realisations of songs from Purcell’s Harmonia Sacra to works by Musorgsky, including settings of Tsar’ Saul, based on Byron, and The Seminarist, a comic portrait of a would-be priest preoccupied with thoughts of his mentor’s daughter.

The American countertenor Lawrence Zazzo is one of the most outstanding singers of his generation. A native of Philadelphia and a graduate in both English and Music from Yale University and King’s College, Cambridge, Lawrence made his operatic debut as Oberon A Midsummer Night’s Dream to great acclaim while completing his vocal studies at the Royal College of Music, London.

He has since appeared in many of the world’s finest opera houses and concert halls.  His opera roles include the title role in Giulio Cesare(Metropolitan Opera New York, Paris, London, Brussels, Seville, Bilbao),  the title role in Gluck’s Orfeo (Toronto, Oslo, Netherlands), Oberon A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Rome, Lyon, Toronto), FarnaceMitridate (Munich), the title role in Radamisto (English National Opera), Arsamene Serse (Theatre des Champs-Elysees, English National Opera), Goffredo Rinaldo (Berlin Staatsoper, Zurich, Opéra de Montpellier); Ottone Agrippina (Brussels, Frankfurt, Theatre des Champs-Elysees), Endimione La Calisto (Munich, Brussels, Paris), Ottone L’incoronazione di Poppea (Berlin, Brussels, Munich, Vienna), Ruggiero in Orlando Furioso (Frankfurt), and the title roles in Handel’sSosarme (Sao Carlos, Lisbon) and Alessandro (Karlsruhe).

Simon Lepper was educated at King’s College, Cambridge and the Royal Academy of Music. He is currently professor of piano accompaniment at the Royal College of Music and teaches at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. He is an official accompanist for the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World Competition.

As a student, Simon won several awards for piano accompaniment including the Gerald Moore Award, the Geoffrey Parsons Award as well as the accompanist prizes in the Kathleen Ferrier, Maggie Teyte, Richard Tauber and Royal Overseas League competitions.

*Commissioned by Wigmore Hall with the support of André Hoffmann, president of the Fondation Hoffmann, a Swiss grant-making foundation