Counter Tenors

Glens of Antrim

Wammer
Wammer
Jul 25, 2005
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Norn Iron, , United
Just sitting here, supposedly revising! and listening to BBC Radio 3's In Tune programme. They had a counter tenor singing Dowland songs & it just confirmed my prejudice that CTs are the creepiest sound in classical music. Why? They sound like a cross between soprano & tenor, without the glory of either - just weirdness & strangeness. I dislike CTs in their natural Baroque home too; I'd prefer to hear the castrati roles song by women.

Discuss?

GofA

 

JANDL100

Wammer
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Dec 5, 2006
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Forest of Dean, Glos
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Jerry
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Well, yeah, often as not their idiot-piping irritates the hell out of me.
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The honourable exception is Alfred Deller - not only a fine CT, but a great artist too.:note:
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Ears

Wammer
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Apr 12, 2006
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Unfortunately many are as you describe, getting more air / CD time than they deserve as the record companies jump on the band-wagon drawn by the good ones. However, listen to Andreas Scholl in almost anything or David Daniels in, say, Vivaldi's Stabat Mater and you realise that there are glories which neither a soprano (or mezzo) nor a tenor can match.

 

Gilman

Wammer
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Apr 11, 2007
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Andreas Scholl was the artist singing John Dowland. He has exceptional tonal quality and control - his test piece is Umbra ma fui - which is fantastic. Gofa's reference to female castrati is lacking in taste, especially in the light of the ritual mutilation of women in some parts of the world. Lets keep to comments that have some real intellectual merit, please.

 

JANDL100

Wammer
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Dec 5, 2006
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Forest of Dean, Glos
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Jerry
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Gilman wrote:

Gofa's reference to female castrati is lacking in taste
Errr ... but he didn't say that.

He just said he preferred castrato roles to be performed by (presumably, and merciifully, intact) women.

 
G

Guest

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Agree with Ears. Andreas Scholl and David Daniels are excellent CTs. I would also add James Bowman to this list.

 

tones

Wammer
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Apr 10, 2006
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Add Paul Esswood, who did much of the counter-tenor work for Nicky Harnoncourt's Telefunken Bach cantata series. In addition, what I think is the very best version of "And who shall abide?/For He is like a refiner's fire" from "Messiah" is by Esswood for Mackerras, especially the hard edgethe voice acquires when he goes from "And who shall abide?" to "refiner's fire", something that I don't think a contralto could do. The most thrilling version I've ever heard.

 

SSM

Wammer
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Jul 20, 2005
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There are some fine counter-tenors around who have put out some nice CDs. But they are no subsitutes for the real thing, however barbaric: castrati. Wish I could be transported back to the time of Farinelli & Co.

just for a night - to hear them sing the roles that were written for them. That could be an ear-opener!

SS

 

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