Castrati At Time Of Mozart / Christofellis

Aris Christofellis, who recorded in the late 1980s and early 1990s, is one of the extraordinarily rare persons who, although he had a normal vocal tessitura for a man, was able to modulate his voice to reach the soprano range. More astoundingly, he could do so with precision and power. He was able to sing the most acrobatic, difficult Baroque arias. Why is all this important? 80% of all operas were written begore 1800, and 70% of the roles were written for male altos and sopranos. To accomplish this, as many as 4,000-5,000 boys per year per altered to preserve their voices. The very best of these gained fame and fortune on the opera stage, singing in private palaces, and occasionally in great churches. Other devoted themselves to singing in churches or to lesser pursuits. Obviously, the world has done away with the practice of alteration; therefore, there are approximately only a half dozen natural, adult altos and sopranos in the world. The alto tessitura largely is covered today by countertenors. To sing higher is even more difficult. A few others have tried and have failed to sing well.

Price: $19.98