The Castrato: Reflections on Natures and Kinds Volume 16

by Martha Feldman

Book Overview

The Castrato is a nuanced exploration of why innumerable boys were castrated for singing between the mid-sixteenth and late-nineteenth centuries. It shows that the entire foundation of Western classical singing, culminating in bel canto, was birthed from an unlikely and historically unique set of desires, public and private, aesthetic, economic, and political. In Italy, castration for singing was understood through the lens of Catholic blood...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0520292448
• ISBN13: 9780520292444
• Release Date: August 2016
• Publisher: University of California Press
• Length: 496 Pages
• Weight: 1.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.4" x 6.1" x 8.9"