Sylvio Lazzari

Sylvio Lazzari (born Josef Fortunat Silvester Lazzari) (30 December 1857 – 10 June 1944) was a French composer of Austrian and italian origin.

Born in Bolzano – then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire – , Lazzari came to Paris in 1882 after studying law in Austria. At the Paris Conservatory, he studied under Ernest Guiraud and César Franck. Encouraged by Ernest Chausson and Franck, Lazzari settled permanently in France and obtained French citizenship in 1896. He held several official positions in Paris, including president of the Wagner Society (from 1894) and choirmaster at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo. Because of dwindling eyesight, he later focused on composition only.

Lazzari's use of cyclic structures was indebted to Franck; he was also heavily influenced by Wagner (especially in his operas) and the impressionists. His best-known opera, La Lépreuse (first performed in 1912), was highly praised for its musical content, but frequently criticised for its naturalistic libretto. Three of his operas, including La Lépreuse, are inspired by Brittany, with Breton plots, also using Breton folksongs as local colour.

Very few of his compositions have been performed since his death, but some of his chamber music is occasionally revived. Lazzari died in Suresnes, near Paris.