Tempetuous, uh? The duel of the composer & the performer. One has it in their head, the other in their heart! Combined - a unique & powerful performance! Viva la musique!
Exactly. Many things in this film were not perfect, but it was all the same a beautiful film. And it was a real hapiness to hear for the first time what a castrat's voice could be. The blended voices were a great idea, and indeed, this is not a countertenor's voice, but a true soprano's voice, with somethings masculine besides. And I never heard this anywhere other than in this movie.
Maravillosa película, una de mis preferidas junto a "les Choristes", no me canso de verla y gozar su música, ojalá se produjeran mas filmes de esta clase !
I'd like to suggest that everyone get back to thinking about the beauty of Baroque vocal music and the pleasure of the prize-winning film. The full arias from the soundtrack CD are very pleasing to me even though I am aware of other voices that would have been more beautiful. I look forward to some interesting comments.
LA PELICULA ME ENCANTO.Y LA TENGO.Y ES UNA PRECIOSIDAD CINEMATOGRAFICA.EL SONIDO ES BUENISIMO....Y LA VOZ LOGRADA ES Y MAS EN UNA PELICULA...ESPECTACULAR....PERO NADA QUE SE COMPARE A LA REALIDAD.....LA REALIDAD ES SUPERIOR.....ALUCINANTEMENTE SUPERIOR.....EL SIGLO XVIII FUE LA HOSTIA...A PESAR DE SUS MISERIAS...PERO YA SABEMOS LO QUE OCURRE CUANDO LOS RICOS HACEN LO QUE LES DA LA GANA....ALGO PARECIDO A LA ACTUALIDAD.......NO HA CAMBIADO EL MUNDO MUCHO MAS QUE LO QUE VEMOS EN LA PELICULA...
not much has fascinated me quite as much as castrati singers! especially Farinelli! the thought of that I will never hear what he sounded like makes me tear eyed! for all we now, he might've sounded like the singer in Moonspell for all we know! It's all just hearsay but I choose to believe in the rumours!
The very best voices of the 20th century that should have been used for the soundtrack were Gundula Janowitz and countertenor Andreas Scholl, but the film makers did not understand enough about castrati voices to choose them. The closest voices we have today are rare, natural sopranos like (especially) Radu Marian, Michael Maniaci, Randall Wong, Jorge Cano, plus two others with lesser voices.
I don't understand a word of italian but I've watched this film over 6 times it is just so amazing and sad and the brutality of maiming boys all for entertainment just hypnotizes you with the brutality and yet it's like a traffic accident you can't stop looking. I know it sounds sick but I cried and cried for the guy when his brother/friend shouted 'castrato'at him.
I simply don't believe that any computer on the earth could forge human voice completely. Yes, some stuff has been put through a programme, but the substance - a real human vocie - is behind. That's the point. These songs are NOT computer-made. Ewe has got such a gift of nature.
The last known castrato was Alessandro Moreschi (1858-1922). He had some recordings made in like 1902 or something. It is interesting to hear what they might have sounded like.
Hello my Finnish friend! (I had to look that one up. :-D) I'll look into that movie. Also, I checked out your page and I see you like the King's Singers, too. I love them, especially the bass and the countertenors! Em
It seems the voice of the original castrati was so pure and yet so hard to recreate, that the filmakers had to resource to a digital generated voice for the character of Farinelli in this movie.
Clarifications: Most parts of the movie that you found disturbing were made up for the film. They had nothing to do with the real Carol and Riccardo. Whereas literally thousands of males now days are castrated for reasons other than singing (Indian Hijra, transgenedered, medical, etc.), none are done so soley for singing. But we do have a few full-voice male sopranos because of endocronological reasons.
This female was Ewa Małas Godlewska. Farinelli voice was made from a mixture of soprano (Ewa Małas-Godlewska) and contre-tenor (Derek Lee Ragin); because it was impossible for one person only to sing like that.
Coincido contigo, esta película me encanta, es una mezcla de casi todo lo que me gusta en una película, que sea sobre música clásica (ópera barroca mejor aún ^__^); que sea ambientada en el siglo XVIII, por el vestuario, la arquitectura; que es drama; que el protagonista sea un actor simpatico jajaja.... Y bueno, si... es bien dramática la escena en la que canta el aria lascia chio pianga... a ver si la subo dentro de un rato jeje...
If you notice throughout the film, there are a great number of codeswitches between the brothers and with other people. What I took from it is that Carlo prefers to speak French to show how important he is while Ricardo speaks Italian to invoke the fraternity that Carlo doesn't really want anymore.
corellandude76-- As a matter of fact, my brother worked on the soundtrack of this movie. The voice was created by mixing male & female voices. On the credits, it lists both singers. It wasn't digitally created, but where the two voices overlapped, those notes had to be blended using software.
EL PARECIDO ENTRE JOAN Y LOS CASTRADOS...ES LAS GANAS DE DAR LO MEJOR DE SI MISMOS PARA REPARTIR FELICIDAD..APARTE DE UNA VANAGLORIA INDIVIDUAL POR DEMOSTRAR LO QUE LOS DEMAS NO PUEDEN HACER....SI BIEN SUTHERLAND NOS DIO LA GLORIA DE SU VOZ.....NO POCOS CRITICOS TUVO EN SU CONTRA..LOS CASTRADOS IGUAL..DESPOJADOS DE SU NATURALEZA MASCULINA..DIERON LA GLORIA DE SU CONTRAPUNTO..LA BELLEZA DE LA VENGANZA DEL SER HUMANO...Y CAUSARON LA ENVIDIA Y EL AMOR DE TODOS....APARTE DE CORRER RIOS DE TINTA.
@DoggieAngel12345 I am glad that you understood clearly. Actually English is my second language so it was hard to expain. Yes, in the beginning of the movie, he was taking something. I saw this movie about over 20 times but that was a few years ago. I hope to see Farinelli again as a Baroque music lover.
Bravi, Monsieur Corbiau, Derek Lee Ragin & Vivica Genaux… the cast & the crew! Excellent! One of my all-time favourites along with Barry Lyndon (Kubrick), The Pianist (Polanski), Un Amour à Taire (Christian Faure)… One thing I do strongly dislike is, obviously, the use of fur, the pheasant & the swan, the horses… If the film production were more animal-friendly… the one thing I find extremely abhorrent in the otherwise very entertaining Allo-Allo.
@SLuMberMoOn7 no, the voice is not the actor's one. It's modifyed using some computer program to make him reach the highest octaves and sound in the way probably Farinelli used to sing. That's what my theatre teacher at the university told us when we saw this video!
Yes but the 'soul' of their music does. We haven't forgotten yet. I often feel like I was born in the wrong era. (Er, I'm female.) Mind you, I dont' wish it on young men but the result must be beyond extraordinary if we can attest to it's magnificence thru written acclamation (historical) alone!
I am like a ship shaked by many rocks amid the waves it is confused (it gets lost) and furrows frightened the high sea. Sorry, translation is not so euphonic, but it gives you a general meaning.
not only that but by the time they got a recording it was so past the times of castrati that he wasn't able to be properly trained, there are no castrati anymore, only countertenors. I have a recording of a castrati, i don't know if there is more than that one, and it is very old, crackly and hard to hear as well.
@indgiu I was wondering the same thing.. I mean, Carlo and Riccardo are Italian, so they are supposed to speak their native language between them.. They usually use French to communicate with foreign people, because French was considered the common language in Europe.. Maybe Farinelli liked French best :)
Unfortunately there's alot of fans of Cecilia Bartoli who think that because several songs within her wide repetoire are songs within Farinelli, that she hence sang for it. As wonderful as she is, this is not Cecilia Bartoli!
@thebackgroundartiste Because (in English) The Institute For the Study of Farinelli hopes to learn some about the physical attributes of Farinelli. So far, 6-feet 3-inches tall, relatively healthy, but with some long-term inner-cranial effects from his hypogonadism.
@askim925 Oh, I think I didn't write details. Farinelli got his baby through his brother and Allexandra(I can't remember right spelling). You know Farinelli was castrated so he doesn't have the function in his body as a man. So he borrowed his brother to get a baby.
@askim925 haha alright thanks. i thought he had taken a poison or something in the beginning of the movie. so again, thanks for not just replying but also making things clear to me. =)
@Northenger : Of course it's not Cecilia Bartoli! Everybody knows in this film the voice is made with Derek Lee Ragin's and Ewa Godelewska's voices. By the way, even if you didn't know that, you could realize that the voice of this video is not a mezzo's voice...!
@DanielAlexis17 They digitally blended the voice of a male tenor and a female soprano to get the voice. Farinelli died in the 18th centry -- long before recording was invented. Lots of letters and detailed notes speak of his talent, and when his body was exhumed in 2006, they were able to verify that he was exceptionally tall (for the time) and very well cared for. Hadn't heard of him? Now you know the name of the modern world's 1st "mega singing star".
I think he doesn't use their mother toungue in order to make his brother realize that his castration can't be considered a common fate and fortune of the two brothers. He speaks the lg of the society to keep a distance from Ricardo. He won't play the game that Ricardo invented.
Tempetuous, uh? The duel of the composer & the performer. One has it in their head, the other in their heart! Combined - a unique & powerful performance! Viva la musique!
I love this film!!! The voice is sooo beautiful!!!
@Lovetodance069: The voice is easily the equal of Maria Callas!!!!
he's been gone for generations. but never forget the Great Farinelli ! Viva Farinelli !
he's magic. sing farinelli, make the sun come back!
Exactly. Many things in this film were not perfect, but it was all the same a beautiful film.
And it was a real hapiness to hear for the first time what a castrat's voice could be.
The blended voices were a great idea, and indeed, this is not a countertenor's voice, but a true soprano's voice, with somethings masculine besides.
And I never heard this anywhere other than in this movie.
this is an awesome movie i wanna see it!!
Maravillosa película, una de mis preferidas junto a "les Choristes", no me canso de verla y gozar su música, ojalá se produjeran mas filmes de esta clase !
Les choristes is a super rare! It's rare to see someone talk about it especially on UA-cam
The film is beautiful, the actor seems to have embodied the farinelli spirit!
I'd like to suggest that everyone get back to thinking about the beauty of Baroque vocal music and the pleasure of the prize-winning film. The full arias from the soundtrack CD are very pleasing to me even though I am aware of other voices that would have been more beautiful. I look forward to some interesting comments.
.oix.merci à VOUS.J
Admirable,grandiose,le rêve. Je regarde le film souvent et j écoute dans l extase .merci à vous .Jocelyne.
This movie is wondeful... and the actors who plays Farinelli and his brother... They are very handsome ;-)
Maravilhosa interpretação de Stefano e esta voz é linda! Um grande filme!
I've been an exta in this movie! I loved it!
I love this movie.
That is one aria that you will never hear on American Idol !
stefano dionisi looks the best in this part, when he's eating dinner and fanning himself. he's so freaking gorgeous.
so handsome !!!!
God! I love Farinelli!!!
Thank you so much tonykeywest. I love this movie too.
LA PELICULA ME ENCANTO.Y LA TENGO.Y ES UNA PRECIOSIDAD CINEMATOGRAFICA.EL SONIDO ES BUENISIMO....Y LA VOZ LOGRADA ES Y MAS EN UNA PELICULA...ESPECTACULAR....PERO NADA QUE SE COMPARE A LA REALIDAD.....LA REALIDAD ES SUPERIOR.....ALUCINANTEMENTE SUPERIOR.....EL SIGLO XVIII FUE LA HOSTIA...A PESAR DE SUS MISERIAS...PERO YA SABEMOS LO QUE OCURRE CUANDO LOS RICOS HACEN LO QUE LES DA LA GANA....ALGO PARECIDO A LA ACTUALIDAD.......NO HA CAMBIADO EL MUNDO MUCHO MAS QUE LO QUE VEMOS EN LA PELICULA...
I HAVE TO SEE THIS MOVIE!
Fantástico, Fuera de serie. En verdad una gran película
Fantástica .
Me too =). Stefano Dionisi looks good in this movie.
not much has fascinated me quite as much as castrati singers! especially Farinelli! the thought of that I will never hear what he sounded like makes me tear eyed!
for all we now, he might've sounded like the singer in Moonspell for all we know! It's all just hearsay but I choose to believe in the rumours!
The very best voices of the 20th century that should have been used for the soundtrack were Gundula Janowitz and countertenor Andreas Scholl, but the film makers did not understand enough about castrati voices to choose them. The closest voices we have today are rare, natural sopranos like (especially) Radu Marian, Michael Maniaci, Randall Wong, Jorge Cano, plus two others with lesser voices.
was Gundula still in good voice when the movie was made?
One God,One Farinelli!!!!
I will check him out!
so do I... what a pitty, that in that time the records didn't exist
very beautiful voice... it impressed me
one god, one Farinelli !!!
Moreschi was 44 and 46 respectively at the time of recording.
i love this video ahah I 'm a fan the farinelli (stefano dionisi
Dang, thats hard cord tone change and right on the pitch each time!
Brilliant, thanks for posting
I don't understand a word of italian but I've watched this film over 6 times it is just so amazing and sad and the brutality of maiming boys all for entertainment just hypnotizes you with the brutality and yet it's like a traffic accident you can't stop looking. I know it sounds sick but I cried and cried for the guy when his brother/friend shouted 'castrato'at him.
I simply don't believe that any computer on the earth could forge human voice completely. Yes, some stuff has been put through a programme, but the substance - a real human vocie - is behind. That's the point. These songs are NOT computer-made. Ewe has got such a gift of nature.
este video me encanta...es la mejor parte de la pelicula.
Yes! That's Händel! :)
bravo!!!!
J'adore sa voix de kastrate.
Merci +5*
The last known castrato was Alessandro Moreschi (1858-1922). He had some recordings made in like 1902 or something. It is interesting to hear what they might have sounded like.
Amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!
~Elena~
Hello my Finnish friend! (I had to look that one up. :-D) I'll look into that movie. Also, I checked out your page and I see you like the King's Singers, too. I love them, especially the bass and the countertenors!
Em
excelente !
the movie voice is a blend of a male and female singer...
His voice is like a bird! so free flowing
este video me encanta muchisimo
It seems the voice of the original castrati was so pure and yet so hard to recreate, that the filmakers had to resource to a digital generated voice for the character of Farinelli in this movie.
qu'elle belle voix française !!!
Clarifications: Most parts of the movie that you found disturbing were made up for the film. They had nothing to do with the real Carol and Riccardo.
Whereas literally thousands of males now days are castrated for reasons other than singing (Indian Hijra, transgenedered, medical, etc.), none are done so soley for singing. But we do have a few full-voice male sopranos because of endocronological reasons.
This female was Ewa Małas Godlewska.
Farinelli voice was made from a mixture of soprano (Ewa Małas-Godlewska) and contre-tenor (Derek Lee Ragin); because it was impossible for one person only to sing like that.
Coincido contigo, esta película me encanta, es una mezcla de casi todo lo que me gusta en una película, que sea sobre música clásica (ópera barroca mejor aún ^__^); que sea ambientada en el siglo XVIII, por el vestuario, la arquitectura; que es drama; que el protagonista sea un actor simpatico jajaja.... Y bueno, si... es bien dramática la escena en la que canta el aria lascia chio pianga... a ver si la subo dentro de un rato jeje...
If you notice throughout the film, there are a great number of codeswitches between the brothers and with other people. What I took from it is that Carlo prefers to speak French to show how important he is while Ricardo speaks Italian to invoke the fraternity that Carlo doesn't really want anymore.
STREPITOSO
Time for us to win the lottery, get together, and make a whole new movie!
corellandude76--
As a matter of fact, my brother worked on the soundtrack of this movie. The voice was created by mixing male & female voices. On the credits, it lists both singers. It wasn't digitally created, but where the two voices overlapped, those notes had to be blended using software.
Yes the woman was ewa małas-godlewska a polish soprano. The countertenor was Derek lee Ragin.
EL PARECIDO ENTRE JOAN Y LOS CASTRADOS...ES LAS GANAS DE DAR LO MEJOR DE SI MISMOS PARA REPARTIR FELICIDAD..APARTE DE UNA VANAGLORIA INDIVIDUAL POR DEMOSTRAR LO QUE LOS DEMAS NO PUEDEN HACER....SI BIEN SUTHERLAND NOS DIO LA GLORIA DE SU VOZ.....NO POCOS CRITICOS TUVO EN SU CONTRA..LOS CASTRADOS IGUAL..DESPOJADOS DE SU NATURALEZA MASCULINA..DIERON LA GLORIA DE SU CONTRAPUNTO..LA BELLEZA DE LA VENGANZA DEL SER HUMANO...Y CAUSARON LA ENVIDIA Y EL AMOR DE TODOS....APARTE DE CORRER RIOS DE TINTA.
@DoggieAngel12345 I am glad that you understood clearly. Actually English is my second language so it was hard to expain. Yes, in the beginning of the movie, he was taking something. I saw this movie about over 20 times but that was a few years ago. I hope to see Farinelli again as a Baroque music lover.
No guys the voice is of Cecilia Bartoli a famous mezzo-soprano from Rome
The voice is Ewa Malas Godlewska (soprano) and Derek Lee Ragin (Countertenor) diggitally mixed to attempt to recreate the sound of a castrato.
Bravi, Monsieur Corbiau, Derek Lee Ragin & Vivica Genaux… the cast & the crew! Excellent! One of my all-time favourites along with Barry Lyndon (Kubrick), The Pianist (Polanski), Un Amour à Taire (Christian Faure)…
One thing I do strongly dislike is, obviously, the use of fur, the pheasant & the swan, the horses… If the film production were more animal-friendly… the one thing I find extremely abhorrent in the otherwise very entertaining Allo-Allo.
@rossinianodoc
L'aria è tratta dall'opera "Artaserse" di Riccardo Broschi (fratello di Farinelli)
:)
GEANDE FARINELLI..
@SLuMberMoOn7 no, the voice is not the actor's one. It's modifyed using some computer program to make him reach the highest octaves and sound in the way probably Farinelli used to sing. That's what my theatre teacher at the university told us when we saw this video!
Bravo Derek Lee Ragin!!!
me encanta!!!
Yes but the 'soul' of their music does. We haven't forgotten yet. I often feel like I was born in the wrong era. (Er, I'm female.) Mind you, I dont' wish it on young men but the result must be beyond extraordinary if we can attest to it's magnificence thru written acclamation (historical) alone!
I am like a ship shaked by many rocks
amid the waves
it is confused (it gets lost) and furrows
frightened the high sea.
Sorry, translation is not so euphonic, but it gives you a general meaning.
please help me!! i need the notes !!! i completly fall in love with it!!
No se casi nada de esta musica, pero para mi esta version es la mejor de todas si acaso en segundo lugar Simone Kermes
not only that but by the time they got a recording it was so past the times of castrati that he wasn't able to be properly trained, there are no castrati anymore, only countertenors. I have a recording of a castrati, i don't know if there is more than that one, and it is very old, crackly and hard to hear as well.
@indgiu
I was wondering the same thing.. I mean, Carlo and Riccardo are Italian, so they are supposed to speak their native language between them.. They usually use French to communicate with foreign people, because French was considered the common language in Europe.. Maybe Farinelli liked French best :)
@ondhacero It's a polish soprano and a counterteno blended toghether.
ich liebe diesen Film....Stefano Dionisi ist fantastisch- der ganze Film natürlich ! Aber wer singt das?
DEUS PASSOU POR AQUI!!E CANTOU!!
@BillyBobKumar In fact, the blended a soprano and a countertenor (Ewa Mallas-Godlewska & Derek Lee Ragin). The best for you :o)
Unfortunately there's alot of fans of Cecilia Bartoli who think that because several songs within her wide repetoire are songs within Farinelli, that she hence sang for it. As wonderful as she is, this is not Cecilia Bartoli!
the conductor is his brother
@thebackgroundartiste Because (in English) The Institute For the Study of Farinelli hopes to learn some about the physical attributes of Farinelli. So far, 6-feet 3-inches tall, relatively healthy, but with some long-term inner-cranial effects from his hypogonadism.
Also recordings exist of Alesandro Moreschi, the last castrati.
@askim925 Oh, I think I didn't write details. Farinelli got his baby through his brother and Allexandra(I can't remember right spelling). You know Farinelli was castrated so he doesn't have the function in his body as a man. So he borrowed his brother to get a baby.
Me gustaría saber de que acto de la opera Artaserse es esta aria. Gracias
I agree it is computer made, but was indeed two voices, Ewa Malas and a countertenor, Derek Lee Ragin.
@askim925 haha alright thanks. i thought he had taken a poison or something in the beginning of the movie. so again, thanks for not just replying but also making things clear to me. =)
NO SE PORQUE ALGUNOS CREN QUE LA VOZ ES DE CECILIA BARTOLI'S SI YA TODOS SABEMOS QUE ES DE EWA GODLEWSKA Y DEREK LEE RAGIN
why one of them speaks in french and the other in italian? I never understood that...
@Northenger : Of course it's not Cecilia Bartoli! Everybody knows in this film the voice is made with Derek Lee Ragin's and Ewa Godelewska's voices.
By the way, even if you didn't know that, you could realize that the voice of this video is not a mezzo's voice...!
@DanielAlexis17 They digitally blended the voice of a male tenor and a female soprano to get the voice. Farinelli died in the 18th centry -- long before recording was invented. Lots of letters and detailed notes speak of his talent, and when his body was exhumed in 2006, they were able to verify that he was exceptionally tall (for the time) and very well cared for. Hadn't heard of him? Now you know the name of the modern world's 1st "mega singing star".
I think he doesn't use their mother toungue in order to make his brother realize that his castration can't be considered a common fate and fortune of the two brothers. He speaks the lg of the society to keep a distance from Ricardo. He won't play the game that Ricardo invented.
voice: Ewa Małas-Godlewska :)
DonKristoffo Ewa and Derek Lee Ragin countertenor
omg i want shoes like his
pls excuse me...who original sang this song in the movie???? definitley not Farinelli "himself"
Stefano Dionisi es tan bello!!
i haven't seen this movie but is the guy with the viewing glass supposed to be newton?
@aalexmary Where would one find a castrato to ask these days?
is this voice the one of mallas gowdlesca in the particular? or is it the male castrato?
piu bello!!!!
@DoggieAngel12345 Farinelli got his baby through his brother and his brother left him and went the army to give a freedom for Farinelli.
Bah. I'd kill to hear the actual Farinelli.