Michael Maniaci - Exsultate Jubilate & Allelujah

[prettycool997]

His voice did not break as a teenager but stayed young :) so all children start out soprano abs change with hormones but for some reason his didn't change and he doesn't have an health issues either it's just his voice didn't change for some reason

[jross247]

Possibly one of the BEST male soprano voices in the world.

[MrJohnAndrewhall]

How fortunate (what chance), that Mr Maniaci was interested/studied music prior to puberty and the hiccup in his voice box development, he might just have been, "That garage mechanic with a high voice".

[BRONXPEPE]

He is known as the best soprano he is Amazing!

[SheenaBrnai]

An ACTUAL Castrato involves...well....snip snip. No way around it. Regardless of his range, his tone is so pure, and his technique so solid, I AM JEALOUS! Performing this this semester. Hope it's as good as him.

[RICARDONATOEDGAR]

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW !!!! AMAZING VOICE !!! HE ITS A SOPRANIST

;)

[SilentSnare]

Just to help out this obnoxious argument: soprano is a vocal range, not a voice type. And I quote from the wikipedia definition: "A soprano is a singing voice with a vocal range (using scientific pitch notation, where middle C = C4) from approximately middle C (C4) to "high A" (A5) in choral music, or to "soprano C" (C6, two octaves above middle C) or higher in operatic music"

[violinistx100]

I'm jealous of all sopranos...those roles are always awesome...

[heikization]

the word soprano is used only for women but this guy can be between that

[primohomme]

@heikization

No. Soprano is a range, tessitura and timbre, not a gender...

In fact, the castrati who sang soprano were not called "male soprano", simply "soprano".

[WrittenOnParchment]

@primohomme Soprano is used to describe woman that can sing at a very high range. But when men can go that high, they are usually called Sopranists (considering most men who sing this high use falsetto and not a modal voice.). But Michael Maniaci is often credited as being a "male soprano" because he uses a modal voice.

[primohomme]

@WrittenOnParchment

Yes, but originally the term soprano refers to a range and a tessitura, not to male or female. In modern times came to be associated only with females, but in medieval and baroque times it was simply a range...and for example to this day we have instruments such as soprano sax, that doesn't mean it's a "female sax" it means it plays at a particular range with a particular timbre.

[WrittenOnParchment]

@primohomme Yes,, in general it is used to describe a higher range. But typically in voice it's used to describe a female hit higher notes~ It's crazy how the word "Soprano" is so controversial now. @_@

[primohomme]

@WrittenOnParchment

Yes, but originally the term soprano refers to a range and a tessitura, not to male or female. In modern times came to be associated only with females, but in medieval and baroque times it was simply a range...and for example to this day we have instruments such as soprano sax, that doesn't mean it's a "female sax" it means it plays at a particular range with a particular timbre.

[heikization]

@primohomme ok i looked for it and you are right, thanks for this correction (sorry for this english, i think i don't express all like i want)

[josephineratzinger]

I can't believe people are so stupid, ignorant, judgemental and are auto-sodomizing themselves since they have their dickheads up in their asses. This singer has a soprano voice, regardless of his gender.It's undeniable that he sounds like a soprano, because he IS a soprano, regardless of his gender. Things happen, some people are born with chromosomical abnormalities, some people may not develop their voices. What's your fucking problem? You stupid, narrow minded sons of a slut.

[MrClasicalone]

I believe this is the best rendition of Mozart's Exultate, Jubilate.

[Tifroggie]

If he and I, a female soprano, sang this together, it would be difficult to tell the difference in our voices. If an alto sang it with him, you would hear the darker tone of the alto voice.It does sound like a countertenor using falsetto, but a falsetto couldn't sing quietly as he does when called for in the piece. I enjoy hearing him sing, and just appreciate the voice for what it is: gloriously rare, perfectly on pitch, and controlled with ease.

[ferociousgumby]

The difference is: Maniaci is an ARTIST! The first time I heard him sing, I cried. Most male sopranos make me wince or shake my head. This man knows how to use that gorgeous instrument of his. I love that warm chest tone, and the indescribable cut-glass vibrato in his upper register. Renee Fleming comes to mind, though of course his voice sits lower. He nails the high notes but doesn't scream over the top of them just to please fans.

The more you listen, the more male he sounds, strangely!

[HerrWarja]

I have just discoverd this man. Very interesting. Never heard a man sing this aria before despite it being written for a man in the first place. In my opinion, this is probably as close you could come to true castratos, without the pain to preform that surgery on a young boy.

[soprana53]

@HerrWarja If you think this to be close to a castratos voice, listen to Radu Marian. He has all the crystall-like clearness and the very fine vibrato in his voice which was demande from those voices, although the power is not the same. Greetings from Germany!

[HerrWarja]

@soprana53 Yes I have heard him. He is also very impressive.

[IlCaroSassone]

BRAVO!

[GoldenAgeSunshine]

Under the technical perspective, it's impressive. However, the color in the middle of the voice is not very round and beautiful. It's somewhat nosy. This being said, it's an astounding instrument.

[TheMathias456]

@GoldenAgeSunshine I noticed that when I listened to him for the first time and I just thought it was because of the poor audio, but I guess that's also because unlike most countertenors, he does not use falsetto which gives a sort of strength and masculinity to his voice which is not found in countertenors

[LohengrinT]

very good looking (love the suit), very moderate singing

[hngltn]

surely "male soprano" sounds better than countertenor from a marketing point of view, but his sound is not soprano though...

[primohomme]

well, if you expect that a soprano has to sound female...it really depends. You must also remember there are many types of sopranos, and the color of the voice is giving not only by the size of the vocal folds but by the whole resonating cavities of the skull which will not sound like that of a female.

[mradaChris]

Precisely. It is still soprano no matter how one thinks it should sound. Beautiful singing.

chris..

[SCharton1972]

@hngltn my thoughts exactly... NOT a soprano.

[primohomme]

@SCharton1972

not FEMALE soprano, but it is a soprano instrument

[SCharton1972]

@primohomme Dude, just because an oboe can play a high C doesn't make it a flute. You're NOT a soprano. You are neither castrato, cambiata, nor woman - therefore you are not what is classified as a soprano. You don't sound like a soprano. At best, you sound like a mezzo. Frankly, with an instrument as special as yours why would you want to be classified as such? Ride your gift as far as it'll take you. Sing Oberon and all of the Castrato roles you can put your hands on and live life.

[SCharton1972]

@SCharton1972 Here's a question... WHY do you have to classify yourself? Michael, it truly is a special gift and obviously such a rare instrument that we don't even know what to call it. Who cares? Careers aren't built on labels. They're built on skills, talents, and politics. Honestly - you hammering over and over again that you're a SOPRANO just makes me think you're annoying. Again, I say, why not just sing and forget trying to label yourself. You could take this to the stratosphere.

[olialto7]

@primohomme Good point!

[TheVoodoovampires]

@SCharton1972 What is it that you do not understand? Vocal ranges have nothing to do with gender, really.

Mr. Maniaci is soprano. Please creep out of that heteronormative shell of yours, it's very 1960...

[SCharton1972]

@TheVoodoovampires Do you know ANYTHING about the voice? More than that, you can read, right? What I said was, WHY does he insist on labeling himself instead of just using his skills? The simple fact is, vocal range DOESN'T have anything to do with gender - nor does it really have anything to do with voice type. Sopranos and Messo sopranos and tenors and basses ALL sing the same middle C. The voice just IS what it is.I'm glad you're proud that you know words like heteronominative but READ!

[TheVoodoovampires]

@SCharton1972 Well, I guess I'm proud of my vocabulary, are you insinuating I shouldn't be? It is a good thing that i can communicate. Okay, forgive that I perhaps, was a little brash. Let us not label him; let us call him "a-guy-that-sings-in-a-quite-h­igh-and-light-quality-of-voice­-and-that-takes-roles-in-opera­-for-the-soprano-voice-range". Yes, very convinient.. No, labeling of the vocal ranges does not have anything to do with gender or sex, so what is the problem of calling him a soprano?

[SCharton1972]

@TheVoodoovampires

The problem with calling him a soprano is that a soprano is something else. Just because my car has a large trunk and I call it a truck doesn't make it a truck. It's a car with a large trunk. Hngltn posted that his larynx didn't develop during puberty. That MIGHT change my opinion, and it would certainly explain a lot. However, it doesn't change my opinion in general. Without MAJOR physiological issues, men are NOT sopranos. Range has NOTHING to do with it.

[TheVoodoovampires]

@SCharton1972 Yes, his larynx is not properly developed and he has a very high speaking voice just as a soprano castrato would've. He is not "something else", he is a male soprano or a sopranista (although I believe that the term sopranista is used for falsettists or counter-tenors). Let's just agree to disagree shant we? But it wasn't nice to you to say I don't know anything 'bout the voice (seeing as I am a singer, I do entitle me to know at least a little) and that I cannot read. :'(

[olialto7]

@SCharton1972 What would you call a castrato singing in the soprano region notes-wise? In order to distinguish him from one singing in the contralto region. A partially academic question as there aren't any about, I realise.

[SCharton1972]

@olialto7 I would call a castrato a castrato. Designations of higher versus lower don't change that just as they don't change when referring to a light lyric tenor or a heldon tenor; a high coloratura soprano and a dramatic soprano.

[olialto7]

@SCharton1972 Designations of higher versus lower DO change. For example: Kathleen Ferrier is a contralto, Joan Sutherland is a soprano. One has a higher range than the other. Farinelli was a soprano-castrato, Senesino was an alto/contralto-castrato. Not all castrati had equal ranges and similar colouration of voice, just as not all women singers have equal ranges and similar colouration of voices. Saying that such and such a singer has the range of a castrato signifies nothing. Which castrato?

[SCharton1972]

@olialto7 Ok, a) comparing a contralto to a soprano has NOTHING to do with this discussion. You might as well be comparing a bassoon to a french horn. And that's my point exactly, a high castrato versus a low castrato - they're still castrati; NOT sopranos... they sound like castrati; NOT sopranos. That's like saying that a cambiata is the same as a soprano - and yet Handel specifically used a to sing the first "Rejoice Greatly"... because it's not the same.

[olialto7]

@SCharton1972 I don't think you're understanding my point. Also, I have no idea what you mean by 'a' cambiata. Yes, a bassoon is unlike a French horn and yes a soprano is unlike a contralto, and probably a contralto-castrato sounded rather unlike a soprano-castrato, don't you think? My point is: Different Castrati Had Different Ranges and Different Types of Timbre that nonetheless could be grouped in much the same way as all female voices can be grouped: Soprano, Mezzo Soprano and Contralto.

[SCharton1972]

@olialto7 I understand your point perfectly. Ok, perhaps bassoon and horn are too big a stretch for you but bassoon and oboe aren't. They're still completely different instruments even if they are both double reeds. And yes, contraltos and sopranos are both types of human voices. However, they have very distinctly different functions and techniques. Here's a decent analogy. I can put a bassoon bocal into a mouthpiece hole of a trombone. I've done it. What is the instrument??

[olialto7]

Oh good, so you agree with me! You're just quibbling over words... Sorry, but its not very interesting to argue semantics...

[SCharton1972]

@olialto7 I don't disagree with SOME of what you say. However, my experience as a voice teacher tells me that classifying him as a SOPRANO is neither accurate nor helpful. It is simplistic, I think. I say again... he doesn't SOUND like a soprano. I'd sooner classify him as a mezzo or a contralto with a good upper register than a soprano, per se.

[olialto7]

@SCharton1972 Its probably more a marketing thing by his recording company than anything else I imagine. Its easier just to say "he's a soprano!!" to create excitement. I find colour and expression in voices much more interesting than their respective ranges anyway, as I imagine you do also. Ultimately it does become a bore classifying voices - Cecilia Bartoli, for example is essentially a mezzo soprano but what she does with her voice and musicianship goes beyond such easy description.

[SCharton1972]

@olialto7 Well, I'd also say that it matters WHY his voice is the way it is. I asked several questions that didn't get answered. Did he have some kind of catastrophic accident that cost him testicular function?? If so, then he's a castrato whether they're still hanging there or not. Is there some other medical reason he didn't go through puberty? Did he go through puberty but his voice is just freaky high?? In classification, I think those things matter.

[olialto7]

@SCharton1972 If you search on YouTube for 'Michael Maniaci talks about his voice' he does give a brief explanation as to why he sings... so high. Basically he had an uncommon condition where he only partially underwent puberty. But there's a specific reason that he's not an actual castrato... Which I forget. The best thing I can find is this other YouTube clip where he's talking to Nick Clapton, a countertenor.

youtube.com/watch?v=E2liGFJFuG­k

[kf9as]

@SCharton1972 His larynx never fully developed during puberty. He may well have normal testicular function, but he never underwent the laryngeal development which results in the "typical" deeper male voice.

[pedrofribeiro]

@olialto7 No, pretty easy. She's a mezzo, with a wide range, that keep thinking she's an assoluta, and as if, she wants to sing everything. But, actually, she has a very poor technique, a beautiful tone and timbre, but still. Bartoli uses coup-de-glote as coloratura technique, and that's not coloratura technique at all.

[olialto7]

@SCharton1972 Anyway, comparing a contralto to a soprano is nothing like comparing a bassoon to a French horn!!! Those two instruments have utterly different ways of making sound, while two female singers with different ranges are using exactly the same sort of technique.

[primohomme]

@SCharton1972

If a man can sing soprano tessitura with soprano timbre in modal voice

HE IS A SOPRANO.

[SCharton1972]

@primohomme the problem with that is that he DOESN'T sound like a soprano. He doesn't have a soprano timbre. You don't call an oboe a flute JUST because it is playing treble C. Have they determined why his voice is this way? Did he even go through puberty? Was he in some accident that destroyed his testicular development? What is the root cause? Do we know?

[51m0n77]

@TheVoodoovampires hehehehehe

[SCharton1972]

@hngltn my thoughts exactly... NOT a soprano. Definitely a high male voice - whatever you call it - and a fine singer... but NOT soprano.

[elenyvon]

@hngltn

Form Wikipedia

"The sole known man who can claim to be a true male soprano by that definition is Michael Maniaci, whose modal voice falls in the soprano range, like a woman's, because his larynx never fully developed during puberty."

[IlBaroneSengir]

@elenyvon

Do you know Radu Marian? He surely has a soprano range.

[soprana53]

@elenyvon It is not necessary to believe EVERYthing that is posted in Wikipedia. Have a look at Radu Marian, as IlBaroneSengur already said, and Javier Medina. This are true Soprano voices.

[SCharton1972]

@elenyvon

If it's true that his larynx never developed during then I MIGHT call him a cambiata. It's certainly an odd case. That would explain a LOT!

[josephineratzinger]

@hngltn I can't believe people are so stupid, ignorant, judgemental and are auto-sodomizing themselves since they have their dickheads up in their asses. This singer has a soprano voice, regardless of his gender.It's undeniable that he sounds like a soprano, because he IS a soprano, regardless of his gender. Things happen, some people are born with chromosomical abnormalities, some people may not develop their voices. What's your fucking problem? You stupid, narrow minded sons of a slut.