The Lost Voice: A History of the Castrato
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John S. Jenkins
ABSTRACT
Under the influence of testicular secretion, the male vocal cords increase in length by 67% in adult men compared with prepubertal boys, whereas in the female the increase is only 24%. This greater length and an increase in vocal cord mass is responsible for the lowering of pitch of the male voice during puberty. From the late 16th century, castration was carried out in Italy to preserve the unbroken male voice into adult life, but the high pitch was accompanied by fully grown resonating chambers and a large thoracic capacity, giving rise to the unique voice of the castrato. The initial stimulus for the production of castrati came from the Sistine Chapel in Rome, to provide singers for the complex church music of the time. The second reason was the coming of opera to Italy at the beginning of the 17th century. Boys were castrated between the ages of 7 and 9 years, and underwent a long period of voice training. A small number became international opera stars, of whom the most famous was Farinelli, whose voice ranged over three octaves. By the end of the 18th century, fashions in opera had changed so that the castrati declined except in the Vatican, where the Sistine Chapel continued to employ castrati until 1903. The last of the castrati was Alessandro Moreschi, who died in 1924 and made gramophone recordings that provide the only direct evidence of a castrato’s singing voice.
© 2014 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin/Boston
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- Titelei
- TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Foreword
- What Happens When Growth Hormone is Discontinued at Completion of Growth? Metabolic Aspects
- Growth Hormone Deficiency and Peak Bone Mass
- Optimal Strategy for Management of Pituitary Disease in the Growth Hormone-Deficient Teenager
- Ethical Dilemmas in Pediatric Endocrinology: Growth Hormone for Short Normal Children
- Evidence-Based Approach to Growth Hormone Replacement Therapy in Adults, with Special Emphasis on Body Composition
- Evidence-Based Growth Hormone Therapy Prediction Models
- New Paradigms for Growth Hormone Treatment in the 21st Century: Prediction Models
- Role of Insulin-like Growth Factor Monitoring in Optimizing Growth Hormone Therapy
- Knockout Mice Challenge Our Concepts of Glucose Homeostasis and the Pathogenesis of Diabetes Mellitus
- Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Children: Pathophysiology and Risk Factors
- Emergence of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Children: Epidemiological Evidence
- Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Children and Adolescents
- Diagnosis of Maturity-Onset Diabetes of the Young in the Pediatric Diabetes Clinic
- Thrifty Genotypes and Phenotypes in the Pathogenesis of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
- Estradiol: A Protective Factor in the Adult Brain
- Estrogen Treatment and Estrogen Suppression: Metabolic Effects in Adolescence
- Estrogen, Bone, Growth and Sex: A Sea Change in Conventional Wisdom
- Route-Dependent Endocrine and Metabolic Effects of Estrogen Replacement Therapy
- Telomerase and the Cellular Lifespan: Implications for the Aging Process
- Human Aging and Progeria
- A Role for the Somatotropic Axis in Neural Development, Injury and Disease
- Hypothalamic Growth Hormone-Insulin-like Growth Factor-I Axis across the Human Life Span
- The Lost Voice: A History of the Castrato
- SELECTED POSTER ABSTRACTS
- GROWTH. FETAL GROWTH. SGA
- SYNDROMES: TURNER. PRADER-WILLI. NOONAN. PHP. OTHERS
- GHD. HYPOPITUITARISM. KIGS
- METABOLIC. GENETIC. ADULT. ACROMEGALY
- GH. IGF. IGFBPs
- GROWTH IN SYSTEMIC DISEASE. CRI. RICKETS. STEROIDS
Articles in the same Issue
- Titelei
- TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Foreword
- What Happens When Growth Hormone is Discontinued at Completion of Growth? Metabolic Aspects
- Growth Hormone Deficiency and Peak Bone Mass
- Optimal Strategy for Management of Pituitary Disease in the Growth Hormone-Deficient Teenager
- Ethical Dilemmas in Pediatric Endocrinology: Growth Hormone for Short Normal Children
- Evidence-Based Approach to Growth Hormone Replacement Therapy in Adults, with Special Emphasis on Body Composition
- Evidence-Based Growth Hormone Therapy Prediction Models
- New Paradigms for Growth Hormone Treatment in the 21st Century: Prediction Models
- Role of Insulin-like Growth Factor Monitoring in Optimizing Growth Hormone Therapy
- Knockout Mice Challenge Our Concepts of Glucose Homeostasis and the Pathogenesis of Diabetes Mellitus
- Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Children: Pathophysiology and Risk Factors
- Emergence of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Children: Epidemiological Evidence
- Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Children and Adolescents
- Diagnosis of Maturity-Onset Diabetes of the Young in the Pediatric Diabetes Clinic
- Thrifty Genotypes and Phenotypes in the Pathogenesis of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
- Estradiol: A Protective Factor in the Adult Brain
- Estrogen Treatment and Estrogen Suppression: Metabolic Effects in Adolescence
- Estrogen, Bone, Growth and Sex: A Sea Change in Conventional Wisdom
- Route-Dependent Endocrine and Metabolic Effects of Estrogen Replacement Therapy
- Telomerase and the Cellular Lifespan: Implications for the Aging Process
- Human Aging and Progeria
- A Role for the Somatotropic Axis in Neural Development, Injury and Disease
- Hypothalamic Growth Hormone-Insulin-like Growth Factor-I Axis across the Human Life Span
- The Lost Voice: A History of the Castrato
- SELECTED POSTER ABSTRACTS
- GROWTH. FETAL GROWTH. SGA
- SYNDROMES: TURNER. PRADER-WILLI. NOONAN. PHP. OTHERS
- GHD. HYPOPITUITARISM. KIGS
- METABOLIC. GENETIC. ADULT. ACROMEGALY
- GH. IGF. IGFBPs
- GROWTH IN SYSTEMIC DISEASE. CRI. RICKETS. STEROIDS
