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From:  velluti@c...
Date:  Tue Jul 11, 2000  6:51 am
Subject:  Re: [vocalist-temporary] Movie about Castrati?


This is, of course, "Farinelli, il castrato"; 1990's early: an
Italian-Franco-Belgian production; it
purports to tell the story of the great castrato Carlo Broschi (Farinelli);
wildly inaccurate in the
main, though a few of the stories are intact; for example, Farinelli's famous
vocal duel with the
trumpeter. The brother mentioned was the composer Riccardo, who was prolific,
and his arias
were used in the film; but nothing is really known about the brothers sharing
sexual favours
with their admirers !!
Farinelli did NOT cause Handel to have a stroke, either.
The film was lavishly staged and "titillating"; and, in order to produce the
castrato sound, two
voices, those of the soprano Ewa Mallas Godlewska and the countertenor Derek
Lee Ragin
were "morphed" electronically. A CD was issued with the film soundtrack.

Do, please, have a look at my new web site: same name, but modified and
enlarged!
Elsa

Elsa Scammell,
Church and Operatic castrati.
http://www.cix.co.uk/~velluti

emusic.com