The Dog’s Meow: The Countertenor Voice in the 21st Century
Tuesday 2nd July 2024, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM (London Time)
Dr. Lawrence Zazzo, an accomplished operatic countertenor and Handel scholar, will give an overview on the reception of the countertenor voice, reflecting on early modern views on the erotics of the castrato and contextualising the modern reception of countertenor performances of both Baroque and new music within the context of his own 30 year career as a performer, teacher and scholar, with some reflection on his ongoing creative practice research projects.
His talk will be followed by a Q&A session.
Dr. Lawrence Zazzo
Dr. Lawrence Zazzo is an internationally recognised countertenor as well as historical musicologist. Currently Head of Performance and Senior Lecturer at Newcastle University, he was formerly a vocal professor at both the Royal College and Royal Academy of Music in London and continues to perform in concert halls and opera houses throughout the world.
Attend this course for as little as £22 as part of the Voice Professional Training CPD Award Scheme.
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We have plenty of upcoming short courses coming soon. See details of some of them below or look at the full list of short courses.
Tuesday 5th May 2026
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
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Voice pedagogy has advanced significantly in the last decades in relation to knowledge of the vocal apparatus (anatomy and mechanics), acoustics, and performance psychology (to name just a few subfields) – this is a wonderful thing! Nonetheless, musicianship and the foundations of music theory are still relevant to the teaching and coaching of singers and this course aims to empower voice teachers and coaches with skills to support the fundamental musicianship development of their students.
Thursday 14th May 2026
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Friday 15th May 2026
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
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Two part course! Vocal health principles are inextricably and symbiotically linked with singing and acting voice pedagogy: Good vocal health allows the singer and actor to more easily and effectively achieve their technical and artistic goals, and good teaching reinforces vocal technique that diminishes the risk of vocal injury. We now also recognize the necessity for singers and actors to understand how their instruments work, how to take care of their voices, and what to do when something goes wrong. Singing and acting teachers are indeed on the front lines of vocal health!
Tuesday 19th May 2026
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
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Kourtney Austin
Historical vocal pedagogy, voice science, voice health, and performance practice come together in this presentation from Kourtney Austin! The session addresses the historical context for teaching the onset as a fundamental skill, along with a review of a recent publication examining the acoustic effects of different types of onset, and practical studio implementation of onset training. The aforementioned publication is the first known research to objectively measure the acoustic implications of the coup de la glotte, and delineate it from the hard glottal attack.