Castrato
Singer whose boyish voice was preserved by castration; flourished in the 17th/18th century.
What it means
A castrato was a singer whose childlike, high voice was permanently preserved by castration performed before puberty. Since the voice did not break, he had a soprano or alto range combined with the fully grown lung and chest capacity of a man, giving it a particularly powerful and carrying sound.
Musical use
Castrati had their heyday in the 17th and 18th centuries, especially in Italian opera, where they often sang the leading male roles. Famous castrati such as Farinelli achieved fame across Europe and exceptional fees. In Catholic church music too, where women's voices were long not admitted, castrati sang the high parts. The practice was increasingly condemned in the 19th century and disappeared entirely around 1900.
The castrato should be distinguished from the countertenor, who reaches the high range without physical intervention, solely through head voice or falsetto, and from the soprano or alto, whose voice rests on natural female anatomy. Today's performances of castrato roles are usually taken over by countertenors or, in historically informed practice, by women's voices.
Performance practice
When listening to historical roles originally written for castrati, note the combination of high range and powerful carrying tone that made these voices special. In today's performances with countertenor or female voice, the aim is to recreate this character as convincingly as possible with the voices available today.