In a message dated 3/27/2001 9:33:44 AM Eastern Standard Time, sopran@a... writes:
<< They may not have produced the same extraordinary volume or long breath, but without the castrati's unnaturally enlarged chest cavity, neither could the ungelded males of the day. >>
i fail to see what an enlarged chest cavity would contribute to either power or long breath. long breath is due far more to good breath management than to size of lungs. and in regard to resonance, 'chest' resonance is just a mirage. that said, the singer with the loudest voice i have ever heard was richard cassilly, a former teacher of mine and a fine gentleman. my wife is only 5'2" and being a jokster, mr. cassilly used to call her some german slang term for 'little dwarf'. when i told her what the nickname meant, she said "when he dies, i can make a house out of his ribcage!", much to his amusement. one of the other earthquake causing voices is my sister who does not have a large ribcage. there are plenty of tall, lanky basses who have had no problem in the power department or the long breath department, that have had near 'serpentine' ribcages. i wonder how much of what has been written about castrati is folklore.
mike
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