Ugo Farell- A Castrato or?

[kizahakan (imported)]

Lovely All,

Pls check out this link, a magnificent performance from Ugo Farell, a french tenor but his voice is unimaginable as if he has been castrated to keep his voice as it is...

http://video75.com/F2N59iNgG54/ugo-farell-preces-meae/

So what r thoughts? Can he be an eunuch or is it again a magic of nature to able a man such an unimaginable voice?

Cheers from istanbul the mighty constantinople...

Dorian Gray

[Hash (imported)]

He sounds as though he could have been castrated before puberty, however, he doesn't seem to have all the distinguishing features of a eunuch castrated before puberty, but it's a close call. He might be a freak of nature somewhat like Caster Semenya, who looks and sounds like a man, but has female genitalia. Some boys are born with small genitalia & small testicles, perhaps that explains it. Low testosterone levels reduce the effects of testosterone on the body, including the vocal chords. But, he has trained for years too, so perhaps with much voice training, he's able to sing as high as he does. Note the following:

A subject of castration who is altered before the onset of puberty will retain a high voice, non-muscular build, and small genitals. They may well be taller than average, as the production of sex hormones in puberty—particularly testosterone—stops long bone growth. The person may not develop pubic hair and will have a small sex drive or none at all. Castrations after the onset of puberty will typically reduce the sex drive considerably or eliminate it altogether. Also castrated people are automatically sterile, because the testes (for males) and ovaries (for females) produce sex cells needed for sexual reproduction. Once removed the subject is infertile. The voice does not change. Some castrates report mood changes, such as depression or a more serene outlook on life. Body strength and muscle mass can decrease somewhat. Body hair sometimes may decrease. Castration prevents male pattern baldness if it is done before hair is lost; however, castration will not restore hair growth after hair has already been lost due to male pattern baldness. [16] Castration eliminates the risk of testicular cancer.

Historically, eunuchs who additionally underwent a penectomy reportedly suffered from urinary incontinence associated with the removal of the penis, and they had their own specialist doctors. [17]

Without Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT), typical symptoms (similar to those experienced by menopausal women) include hot flashes; gradual bone-density loss, resulting in osteopenia or osteoporosis; potential weight gain or redistribution of body fat to the hips/chest. Replacement of testosterone in the form of gel, patches, or injections can largely reverse these effects, although breast enlargement has also been reported as a possible side effect of testosterone usage [18

[Paolo]

Dunno.

He's got some facial hair and he's not macroskeletal (long arms/legs).

Probably a very well trained falsetto.

[jeffinic (imported)]

He's beautiful, physically, and that voice! Castrato or not, WOW!!

[JesusA (imported)]

Ugo Farell is most likely a very skilled falsettist, using his falsetto voice much more skillfully than does the popular singer Prince, for example. There are a number of other falsettists who are currently recording, such as Aris Christofellis, Jörg Waschinski, and Ghio Nannini.

There are also a number of counter-tenors, who sing in a slightly lower range, such as Nicholas Clapton, a professor of music who curated a wonderful exhibit at the Handel House in London on the several castrati who resided there to perform for Handel. Clapton was also featured in a British television documentary on the castrato voice.

There are a few “natural” castrati who have physical anomalies, such as Kallman Syndrome, which keep their voices from changing at puberty. Jorge Cano and Radu Marian seem to fit this category. Some claim that Paulo Abel do Nascimento fit this category, though others claim that he was a real castrato. It is said that his family refused to allow a physical examination to settle the issue after his early death.

The only acknowledged real castrato singing today is Javier Medina, who lost both testicles to medical malpractice at the age of 12. It was, unfortunately, only when he was much older (and completely without HRT), that he realized that he had a future in music. He did not have the intensive voice training that was part of the life of Italian castrati, though his vocal range is, of course, that of a proper castrato.

Javier is a kind and gentle soul. He has been an active and very helpful member of the Castrati History group. I have enjoyed a home-made CD of his singing a variety of songs from opera to Mexican pop.

There are some rare individuals with incredible vocal range, encompassing the treble/soprano, such as the Turkish popular singer Cem Adrian. He’s definitely male, with beard and mustache to prove it. The nude photo of him on the cover of his record album “Emir” shows that he is definitely male. You can see him in performance of one of the songs from the album, Yagmur (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7jNQJQXc0k), on Youtube.

The castration of males before puberty to preserve their boyish treble voices as they develop adult lung power probably began about 4,000 years ago. It is now thought that the Sumerian “gala” (praise singers to the gods) were castrati.

The idea of castrati singers probably spread from the city of Lagash in the years following 2100 BCE and the idea can be traced back to this single origin. There were castrati singers in the Imperial court in China, in the royal court in Java, and in the Byzantine choirs. They seem always to have been rare, however.

They do, however, seem to have been part of the culture in Moslem Spain, which was also a source of eunuchs for North Africa and the Middle East. Some Spanish boys were castrated (e.g., Judar Pasha, a blue-eyed Spanish eunuch general who conquered the Kingdom of Songhai for the Moors), but most of those sold on to the Moslem world were Slavic boys who had been castrated in French Verdun. Slavic eunuchs were so common that the Arabic word for “Slav” is sometimes used as a synonym for “eunuch,” just as a corruption of “Slav” became “slave” in English.

The use of castrati in the Vatican choir and their spread to more popular music in Europe began with a couple of Spanish “falsettists” in the 16th century, whom many music historians think were probably actually castrati.

[Quillman (imported)]

No, he is nothing like a Castrato but is singing falsetto or male alto (counter tenor) which is interesting, but nothing very remarkable really!

Quillman UK

He sounds as though he could have been castrated before puberty, however, he doesn't seem to have all the distinguishing features of a eunuch castrated before puberty, but it's a close call. He might be a freak of nature somewhat like Caster Semenya, who looks and sounds like a man, but has female genitalia. Some boys are born with small genitalia & small testicles, perhaps that explains it. Low testosterone levels reduce the effects of testosterone on the body, including the vocal chords. But, he has trained for years too, so perhaps with much voice training, he's able to sing as high as he does. Note the following:

A subject of castration who is altered before the onset of puberty will retain a high voice, non-muscular build, and small genitals. They may well be taller than average, as the production of sex hormones in puberty

—particularly testosterone—

stops long bone growth. The person may not develop pubic hair and will have a small sex drive or none at all. Castrations after the onset of puberty will typically reduce the sex drive considerably or eliminate it altogether. Also castrated people are automatically sterile, because the testes (for males) and ovaries (for females) produce sex cells needed for sexual reproduction. Once removed the subject is infertile. The voice does not change. Some castrates report mood changes, such as depression or a more serene outlook on life. Body strength and muscle mass can decrease somewhat. Body hair sometimes may decrease. Castration prevents male pattern baldness if it is done before hair is lost; however, castration will not restore hair growth after hair has already been lost due to male pattern baldness. [16] Castration eliminates the risk of testicular cancer.

Historically, eunuchs who additionally underwent a penectomy reportedly suffered from urinary incontinence associated with the removal of the penis, and they had their own specialist doctors. [17]

Without Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT), typical symptoms (similar to those experienced by menopausal women) include hot flashes; gradual bone-density loss, resulting in osteopenia or osteoporosis; potential weight gain or redistribution of body fat to the hips/chest. Replacement of testosterone in the form of gel, patches, or injections can largely reverse these effects, although breast enlargement has also been reported as a possible side effect of testosterone usage [18

[kizahakan (imported)]

Thnx for all ur replies fellas,

yeah a castrato or one more using the falsetto technique, he sounds lovely and if he is using the falsetto technique he should have really worked hard to control his voice in such mannners,

Cheers from istanbul the mighty constantinople

Dorian Gray

[JesusA (imported)]

Maybe a better example of Cem Adrian’s voice would be this rendition of “Summertime”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=

6Y2T6sYxjdI

The Youtube site says that he has a vocal range of seven octaves. It sounds reasonable with what he demonstrates here. This makes him the male equivalent of Yma Sumac, who became world famous for her vocal range.

Since Cem Adrian is Turkish, I would hope that Kizahakan would comment on how he and his singing voice are perceived in Turkey.

[DeaconBlues (imported)]

Here is one of my favorite "falsettist" or if you prefer to believe then call him castratti, but I think he is just VERY well in control of his falsetto voice, which to me sounds wonderful.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=

gFaZyHxQGYQ&NR=1

You need to listen to at least the first minute to hear him go into the falsetto which sounds VERY well controlled and woman like.

I like Klaus Nomi not only for his voice but for his showmanship, something like Liberace, or Prince, when you hear him sing that's one thing, then you actually SEE the show and that is yet more entertaining.

[jeffinic (imported)]

There are some rare individuals with incredible vocal range, encompassing the treble/soprano, such as the Turkish popular singer Cem Adrian. He’s definitely male, with beard and mustache to prove it. The nude photo of him on the cover of his record album “Emir” shows that he is definitely male.

Well, the photo shows that he is definitely MASCULINE. That GORGEOUS!! photo of him doesn't show his genitalia...he could be a full nullo, for all we know. Even eunuchs and full nullos can have facial hair and completely masculine appearing bodies, if they're on HRT.

Just an observation. Based on his performance and amazing vocal range, I don't believe he's a castrato, I'm just saying that LOOKS can be deceiving.