The Castrati

The last post talked about a very popular piece of sacred vocal music.  But, actually, that post was a detour from what I was really interested in exploring: castrati.  (Apologies to any male readers, this may be a, ahem, sensitive subject.)

Castrati aren't around anymore.  Back in "the day" (by which I mean post-Rennaissance Europe) women weren't typically allowed to sing or act or do anything in the theatre beyond perhaps tailoring a costume or watching the action from the balcony.  They were especially prohibited by the Church from participating in sacred performances.  So, the aforementioned Miserere was intended to be performed by males, with all the higher parts (that female voices are much better suited for) sung by castrated men.

A quick physiology lesson: the vocal chords of a child are not fully developed; they are shorter, producing higher voices.  When males reach puberty, a greater supply of the hormone testosterone is released into their bodies (females have testosterone too, but in much reduced quantities) and influence all sorts of interesting bodily changes.  One of which is a voice change in men (again, women too, but to a lesser degree) brought about by the lengthening of vocal chords.  If a boy has an exceptionally fine singing voice, (we're going back in time now.  Please try to keep up.) his parents saw this as a way to escape poverty, so they subjected their son to castration. 

Castration is the removal of the testicles, or at least the severing of the ducts that lead out from the testicles.  (Ovaries provide testosterone in women.)  Testosterone is actually really important to the development of all bodies, not just those with a Y chromosome, but the effects on males is responsible for a whole list of critical developments that need not be discussed too much in a blog that is supposed to be devoted to music.  Additionally, the act of castration can actually be traced back to ancient times, but more for political or social reasons.

Okay, back to 16th and 17th century Europe.  Women weren't allowed to sing all of the pretty, high parts in church, so, often under guise of treating illness or injury, boys were castrated to preserve their high voices.  A few castrati were actually very popular and reached the equivalent of star status.  Most though were relegated to singing in smaller churches or less important services.  Some fell through the cracks of society, and, because they couldn't marry or start their own families or really do much else for society, there were reports of suicide.

But, the really fine castrati, with the voices of boys and the lung-power of grown men were capable of astonishing things and lovely music.  They were superstars in every sense of the word.  They had music written for them in operas and sacred music and many were capable of some brilliant improvisation. 

All things change though, and so do musical tastes, preferences and styles.  With Mozart and the Classical style of music, tenors were soon taking more of the celebrated men's solos.  Female sopranos were given more opportunities.  The heyday of castrati basically came to a screeching halt.  The are no more castrati.  At least not by method of maiming.  (It is possible to produce the same effects chemically.)  There are a few, poor-quality recordings of the few remaining castrati as the remaining, aging individuals entered the recording age.

The practice only truly became condemned in 1878.  The last castrato, Alessandro Moreschi died in 1922.