Part III: Rare and unknown voices - ALESSANDRO MORESCHI

Please open the bar to read more about this artist!

Alessandro Moreschi, Castrato (1858-1922)

Gioachino Rossini PETITE MESSE SOLENNELLE
Crucifixus
(Recorded 1902 and 1904)

My personal opinion: He was often called "The last Castrato", but we know this is a historic untruth: Franz Haböck, a well-known castrato-voice researcher (In 1927 he published a famous book about Castrato-Singing), confirmed that together with Moreschi there were other castratos in the choir of the Capella Sistina: Salvatore, Cesari and Sebastianelli (with whom Moreschi still sang in 1914). But it´s a fact, that Moreschi was the only castrato who left us solo recordings (17 tracks in all; recorded in 1902 and 1904). It´s not easy to get an idea of the artistry of Moreschi based on his sound legacy (when he made the first session, he was already age 44). Some say, his recordings are of little interest and that Moreschi was a mediocre singer. Others say, he was a great artist but unfortunately his work for the producers Gaisberg came too late and he was far past his time. His best known recording is of course AVE MARIA (Bach/Gounod). Wikipedia praises the rendition: "Perhaps only here does Moreschi´s singing approach the type of star quality, that the great castrato performances of the Baroque era must have possessed. There is great fervour in the singing... and Moreschi takes the climatic high B natural without apparent effort". Jürgen Kesting wrote contrary words: "Moreschis´ recordings gave only a pale reflection of the often described pervasive bell-like sonority, which the great castratos once owned." Ida Franca (author of "Manuel of Belcanto") heard Moreschi in 1912, and she remembered, "that she never felt such a blissful delight". Shawe-Taylor said, that the way back to Farinelli (1705-1782) was very, very long. In 1914, Franz Haböck planed some concerts with Moreschi to revive the repertoire of the famous eighteen-century castrato, but these never was realized: Moreschi (now 55 years old) no longer had the soprano range (and he never had a necessary vocal training).
A different kind of artist, obviously also a different kind of man: Haböck said, Moreschi´s appearance was of small stature, and his likeable face was completely beardless, but his chest remarkably broad and powerful. It was the destiny of the castrati, as a result of the castration their body grew not in the normal manner: Limbs often grew unusually long, the body itself tended to corpulence (Corbiaus´ famous film about Farinelli is enjoyable, but not correct in the visualization of his physique). At the end of the 18th century, changes in operatic taste and mainly social attidudes spelled the end for the castrati (Meyerbeer wrote the last castrato-role in 1824, the year of Schubert´s "Miller-Maid" and Beethoven´s 9th Symphony). In the 1940s, the great Alfred Deller initiated the renaissance of the high male voice and the flowering for Countertenors began. Today, with David Daniels and Philippe Jaroussky we have two very successful exponents - far more recognized as Moreschi more than 100 years before.
In March 1913, after more than 30 years as a member of the Capella Sistina Choir, Moreschi retired and lived on in his apartment near to Vatican. At the age of 63 he died of pneumonia. Anyway, with his death an era came to an end.
Here are both versions Moreschi recorded of Rossinis "Crucifixus". The first was made on April 5, 1902. It was Moreschi´s very first recording and he was strung-out. The attempt failed, and Moreschi repeated his rendition two years later. The result is far better.

The complete overview: New link to "All singers in the list"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHJ9YvWjPGM

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Alessandro
• Moreschi
• Castrato

[ferociousgumby]

This guy's voice just gives me the shivers. It's true he has poor control over his vibrato and there is an unevenness in tone, but those high notes have real purity and his higher range is choirboy-like. There are tenor notes in there, too - a definite masculine sound - but his voice can't make up its mind - is this a man or a woman? It's too bad no better examples of castrati exist in recordings, but this does give us a hint of what they could do.

[100Singers]

@ferociousgumby We have some singers, suspected of being "natural born" castrati. Just listen to Ugo Farell, Radu Marian or Jorge Cano - and then make your own judgment. Mike

[triptoheaveandho]

@mradaChris oh my i so agree..... there is a soulful depth there that touches me as welll bless his sweet spirit

[ferociousgumby]

I still think he sounds like Pavarotti on the wrong speed.

[vautour23]

@ferociousgumby Good observation. I do like this type of voice. in fact this voice technique. When we listen to old singers, around the time of Moreschi, we find a similitude in the voice technique the we don't find today or after 1950. They kind of carry the chest voice. That make shivers in the voice. It's unstable but alive.

[ferociousgumby]

@100Singers I have heard Radu Marian who sounds like a boy soprano or a young woman with a lighter, very pure soprano. One wonders what is going on hormonally. And then there are countertenors who seem to have two voices, through training and natural ability. I've also heard Michael Maniaci who is phenomenal and I think calls himself a male soprano. Has a more natural quality than the countertenors who sometimes sound like tenors with tight shorts.

[flon5flon]

One way or the other I was linked to this recording of Moreschi.

I tried again ( I heard him in the early sixties for the first time) to hear something of interest but no. Weird singing and although less off key, a glimpse of Foster-Jenkins. Caruso and many others made also records in 1904 which are still very pleasant to listen to so you cannot blame the recording technique.

[Mrapellicon]

poco sostegno!! i fiati sono corti. Ansima. In questi condizioni c'è poco da valutare. La seconda versione migliore. Ma gli arpeggi discendenti sono un disastro. Notate che le dinamiche sono piatte? Dubito che appoggiasse sul diaframma.

[Dalmata1961]

@andrika1990 Well, when i say our time I mean also 40s and 50s....... it could be recording technique but I speak only oc classical singers and experiencing singers only acoustically, no mikes and such. pop stiles change a lot but classical did not so much last 50 years. I believe it will actually stop changing due to available technology. We can hear how they almost really sounded in 40s and 50s. However baroque singing must have been different as whole baroque was different in everything...

[andrika1990]

But I still beleive regardless of that there is a difference in the style. So everything has its time. And people of each time period are only used to the style of their time. So with opera singers today the style is alot different from past decades like the post World War era and further back and so on. So I the 17th and 18th century style sin voice must have been even more different than we really know

[andrika1990]

@Dalmata1961 I see your point, that is because the era in which people live in now music of past decades is different from today in many ways, style shifts every few decades in popular music, like all the stuff on the radio. But the point is classical music changes style in which the way people sing it, like the 40's opera has a different timber to it than today's opera however you could say its the technology of the time and how sound has more quality today.

[Dalmata1961]

@andrika1990 I tend to agree with GermanOperaSinger about subjective accounts and also very influenced by the taste of the era. To be completely frank this sounds to me like cat whining. If all castrati were sounding like this it is better they stopped with that practice. However this is a very bad recording, alhough I can listen through it I still don't really like it, neither I dig that soulfulness. To be honest I have impression that singers of our time are the best of all periods till now.