Pierpaolo Polzonetti

Pierpaolo Polzonetti is a Professor of Music at the University of California, Davis, with a PhD in Musicology from Cornell University. His research bridges opera, eighteenth-century music, and interdisciplinary themes like food, social justice, and transcultural exchange.

Research Interests include operatic gastromusicology, the intersection of music and cuisine, eighteenth-century social and gender dynamics in opera, Cuban popular music, and prison music education. He pioneers the study of gastronomic symbolism in operatic works, as seen in his 2021 book Feasting and Fasting in Opera.

His publications reveal a focus on gastronomic codes in opera, political themes in Mozart and Haydn, and cultural identity in Italian opera. Awards include the Lockwood Book Award, Slim Award, and Latina International Prize. He has secured grants from the NEH, ACLS, and Earhart Foundation.

• Scientific Awards:
  • Lockwood Book Award
  • Slim Award
  • Einstein Article Award
  • Latina International Prize in Music Studies
• Grants:
  • National Endowment for the Humanities
  • American Council for Learned Societies
  • Earhart Foundation
  • Cuban Research Institute
  • Kimberly Green Latin American and Caribbean Center
  • Global Affairs UC Davis Seed Grant

Polzonetti's teaching philosophy emphasizes social engagement, notably through programs like Don Giovanni Goes to Prison. His documentary El Sabroso (2024) explores Son music in Havana, aligning with his interests in marginalized cultural expressions.