Farinelli castrato biography
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Carlo Broschi
Known as Farinelli
(1705 - 1782)
Source: Movie archive from the Sony Pictures Classic website (http://www.spe.sony.com/classics/farinelli/about/ffarinelli.html).
Farinelli was the most famous singer of his century and he is arguably one of the greatest singers of all time. His reputation and fame has lasted despite the disappearance of castrato singers and the unique musical style dedicated to them known as "opera seria."
Farinelli enjoyed a quasi-mythical status, even in his own life-time. The main reason for this was his exceptional voice, although his androgynous beauty clearly contributed. Farinelli was a highly skilled performer, much praised for the beauty of his sound, the breadth of his range, the purity of his intonation and his breath control and agility. It has been recorded that the range of his voice covered more than three and a half octaves. Some accounts of his life state that he could produce 250 notes in a single breath and sustain a note for
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Cecilia Bartoli explores the life of the celebrated Italian castrato Farinelli with new release
Celebrating over three decades on the Decca Classics label, mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli releases a brand new album commemorating the life and career of the most famous opera singer of the eighteenth century: the castrato Farinelli. Set for release on 29th November, the record includes arias by Farinelli’s older brother Riccardo Broschi, and his teacher and mentor Nicola Porpora. It also features a new recording of ‘Alto Giove’ from Porpora’s Polifemo, which celebrates Farinelli’s unique capacity to sing long musical phrases and extraordinary high notes. Cecilia performs with the period ensemble Il Giardino Armonico and its conductor Giovanni Antonini, with whom she first collaborated on her Grammy award-winning Vivaldialbum, and again on Sacrificium, her first castrati album from 2009 which also won the Grammy for Best Classical Vocal Performance.
Many arias included
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Life of the great 18th century singer
Contributor: James Sanderson
Born Jan. 24, 1705, Naples
Died July 15, 1782, Bologna
Related editions available on this site
Farinelli was born Carlo Broschi in 1705 in Naples and was perhaps the most celebrated Italian castrato singer (castrato, evirato) of the 18th century. His name developed by adopting the surname of his benefactors, the brothers Farina.
He studied beneath Nicola Porpora at the Conservatorio in Naples, and at 16 made his debut at Rome in Porpora’s Gli orti esperidi and Eomene. He also sang in Porpora’s Angelico e Medoro. The libretto to all three were by the pivotal librettist Pietro Metastasio (see other article), with whom Farinelli formed a life-long friendship. Farinelli’s reputation spread throughout Italy, and Germany to Vienna and London, and he was admired for his pure, powerful röst, his technical proficiency, his skill in florid embellishment, and his musical expression. The