It took more than 50 years for George Frideric Handel to complete this oratorio in three parts when he began in 1707 with Il Trionfo del Tempo e Disinganno. He finished the second part, Il Trionfo del Tempo e della Verità thirty years later, then the third part was translated and reworked into English as the Triumph of Time and Truth in 1757. This piece focuses on the first installment which features the concepts of Beauty, Pleasure, Time and Counsel. The plot follows Beauty as she questions whether she will always remain beautiful, Pleasure says she will while Time and Counsel know better. The oratorio was Handel's very first and it was one of the seminal works which continued to influence him throughout his life.
