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Origins and family
Farinelli, the pseudonym of Carlo Maria Michelangelo Nicola Broschi, was born in Andria on January 24, 1705, and died in Bologna on July 15, 1782. He is considered the most famous castrato singer in history and one of the most legendary figures of eighteenth-century musical theater.
He was born in the Kingdom of Naples into a wealthy family of the local nobility of the robe. His father, Salvatore Broschi, held important feudal administrative positions and was a great music enthusiast. For this reason, he wanted to direct both of his sons toward a musical career: the elder, Riccardo Broschi, was set on the path of composition, while Carlo was destined for singing.
Castration and musical training
After the death of his father in 1717, it was likely his brother Riccardo who decided on castration for Carlo, a practice then widespread to preserve the high-pitched voice in young singers before pubertal development. The procedure allowed for the maintenance of the soprano or alto range but left the lung capacity and physical development of an adult unchanged, thereby creating a vocal instrument of extraordinary power and breath endurance.
The young Carlo was sent to Naples to study singing with the great master Nicola Porpora, one of the most prestigious vocal pedagogues of the era. Under his guidance, he began a grueling training process that lasted several years, aimed at developing an absolutely perfect vocal technique.
Selected video insights from the ItalianOpera channel:
Studies with Porpora
The preparation of singers in the Neapolitan school was extremely rigorous. The student had to master solfeggio, impeccable intonation, the ability to vary the rhythm of the musical phrase, and above all, the art of embellishments and improvised variations—fundamental elements of Baroque virtuosity. Farinelli's voice possessed an extraordinarily wide range: it could descend to notes typical of a deep contralto and rise, in vocalizations, to the heights of a soprano.
According to accounts of the time, the daily study program was very strict. In the morning, students dedicated hours to the most difficult vocal exercises, the study of reading, and controlling expression in front of a mirror to learn to master stage gestures. The afternoon was reserved for musical theory, improvised counterpoint, reading librettos, and breathing exercises, which were essential for developing the extraordinary lung capacity that made the castrati famous.
The origin of the name Farinelli
Like many singers of the time, Carlo Broschi soon adopted a stage name. In the world of eighteenth-century musical theater, a pseudonym was almost a distinctive brand that helped build the artist's public image. The origin of the name Farinelli has been the subject of several hypotheses.
According to one theory, the name derived from his father's presumed profession as a miller (farina means flour), but this explanation seems implausible. Another hypothesis links him to the Farinel family, French violinists active in Italy, but there is no evidence of a direct relationship with the singer. The most accepted interpretation today links the name to a powerful Neapolitan family of lawyers, the Farina family, one of whom reportedly protected and financed the young singer during his years of study with Porpora. Farinelli himself recounted this episode to the celebrated theorist and musician Padre Giovanni Battista Martini.
Debut and early successes
Carlo Broschi's debut took place in Naples in 1720 in the serenata Angelica e Medoro by Nicola Porpora. The work was performed during a celebratory evening dedicated to the Empress of Austria and featured some of the most important performers of the time, including Marianna Benti Bulgarelli (known as la Romanina), the soprano Domenico Gizzi, and the contralto Francesco Vitale. The libretto was the first theatrical effort by Pietro Metastasio, who on that very occasion formed a lifelong friendship with Broschi, documented by a rich correspondence.
The debut was met with great favor, and the young singer's subsequent appearances helped spread his fame rapidly. The audience was struck by the extraordinary vocal ease and expressive power of Porpora's young pupil.
Roman triumphs
In the Carnival season of 1722, Farinelli made his theatrical debut in Rome at the Teatro Alibert, singing in the dramma per musica Sofonisba by the Bolognese composer Luca Antonio Predieri and in Porpora's Flavio Anicio Olibrio. On this occasion, he again shared the stage with Domenico Gizzi and Francesco Vitale.
In the following years, he returned several times to the papal capital for Carnival seasons, achieving increasingly sensational successes. In 1723, he sang in Porpora's Adelaide and in 1724 in Leonardo Vinci's Farnace, works that helped consolidate his reputation as one of the most extraordinary virtuosos of the new generation of singers. From that moment, his activities quickly extended to other European cities: Rome, Vienna, Venice, Milan, and Bologna became regular stops in his career.
An increasingly vast fame
Farinelli's fame grew rapidly, also thanks to his ability to tackle the most extreme technical difficulties required by Baroque virtuosity. Chronicles of the time emphasize the purity of his timbre, the extraordinary range of his voice, and the precision of his embellishments. In 1725, during a performance of Johann Adolf Hasse's Marc'Antonio e Cleopatra in Naples, the famous flutist and composer Johann Joachim Quantz was deeply impressed by the young singer and publicly praised his sound quality, the perfection of his trill, and his extraordinary agility.
In 1727, in Bologna, the young Broschi came into contact with Antonio Bernacchi, one of the most famous castrati of the era. Although the press of the time spoke of a competition between the two singers, there was never any true personal antagonism: Bernacchi, much older, was in fact generous with advice and suggestions for the young artist.
Admission to the Accademia Filarmonica
In 1730, Farinelli was admitted to the Accademia Filarmonica of Bologna, one of the most prestigious musical institutions in Europe. This recognition officially sanctioned his status as a leading artist in the musical life of the time and confirmed a fame that had spread throughout the peninsula.
The challenge with the trumpeter
The eighteenth-century audience was fascinated by displays of extreme virtuosity and often organized actual challenges between musicians. One of the most famous involves Farinelli himself. In Rome, the young singer found himself competing with a famous German trumpeter on holding a very high note. The two musicians began a sort of sonic duel: first, each held their note to demonstrate lung strength, then they performed a long crescendo and a trill maintained at the interval of a third together. The audience followed the contest with growing tension. In the end, the trumpeter, by then exhausted, was forced to surrender, while Farinelli managed to prolong the sound for a few moments longer. The episode contributed enormously to his fame and transformed the young singer into a true legend of Baroque virtuosity.
London triumph
In 1734, Carlo Broschi moved to London, where he joined the Opera of the Nobility, a theater company that performed at Lincoln's Inn Fields. The company was directed by Nicola Porpora and included among its main performers Francesco Bernardi, known as Senesino. During those years, London was the stage for a famous rivalry between two musical factions: on one side, the opera directed by George Frideric Handel, supported by King George II; on the other, the rival enterprise supported by the Prince of Wales and the English nobility.
Farinelli debuted in the English capital in the opera Artaserse, much of the music for which had been composed by his brother Riccardo Broschi. The success was immediate and extraordinary. The Prince of Wales and the entire court welcomed him with enthusiasm, and his fame reached exceptional levels. In the three years spent in England, he earned over five thousand pounds, an enormous sum for the time. Despite his contribution and the fervor of the audience, however, the Opera of the Nobility company failed to definitively prevail in the competition with Handel.
The long stay at the Spanish court
In 1737, tired of the rivalries and tensions of the London theatrical world, Farinelli accepted the invitation of Queen Elisabeth Farnese and went to Spain. During the journey, he also stopped in France, where he had the honor of singing before Louis XV. The Queen of Spain had summoned him to the court of Madrid for a specific purpose: King Philip V suffered from deep crises of melancholy and neurasthenia, had abandoned state affairs, and lived isolated from public life.
According to tradition, the singer's first performance had a surprising effect on the sovereign. Farinelli's voice managed to deeply move Philip V, who asked to hear him every evening. The musical "cure" consisted of always singing the same eight or nine arias, including Pallido il sole from Artaserse by Johann Adolf Hasse. Gradually, the singer was brought closer and closer to the King's room, eventually performing behind the door of his chambers. According to the story handed down, Philip V gradually began to take an interest in daily life again, eventually leaving his room, washing, and being shaved.
The grateful sovereign commanded Farinelli to remain at the Spanish court with an annual salary of two thousand ducats, on the condition, however, that he would no longer sing in public.
Influence at the court of Madrid
At the Spanish court, Farinelli progressively assumed an increasingly important role. Having become a criado familiar (family servant/intimate) of the sovereigns, he was very influential, especially during the reign of Ferdinand VI, who conferred upon him the title of Knight of the Order of Calatrava, an honor usually reserved for members of the ancient nobility.
During this period, the singer exercised considerable cultural and political influence. He handled the organization of court spectacles and contributed to the development of Italian opera in Madrid, persuading the King to provide stable support for musical theater. He also collaborated with Domenico Scarlatti, who was also residing in Spain. Farinelli's letters remain one of the primary sources of information today regarding the life and activity of the great Neapolitan composer.
His privileged position lasted until 1759, when Charles III ascended the throne. The new sovereign, likely distrustful of the influence the singer wielded over the court, decided to dismiss him from Spain.
Harpsichords named after painters
Farinelli was not only the most famous singer of his time; he was also a refined collector of musical instruments. In his house, he owned numerous harpsichords built in various European countries and had the habit of naming each of them after a great painter. Some were named Titian, Raphael, or Correggio. For him, music and painting belonged to the same world of harmony and beauty. Guests who visited his villa in Bologna spoke with wonder of these instruments "baptized" like paintings, the mark of an artist who saw music as a form of sonic painting.
Retirement in Bologna
Dismissed from the Spanish court, Farinelli retired to Bologna in the sumptuous villa he had built in anticipation of his retirement. Here he led a relatively quiet life, surrounded by a very rich art collection and precious musical instruments.
His fame, however, continued to attract illustrious visitors from all over Europe. Among those who went to pay him homage were the young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Emperor Joseph II of Austria. Despite the honors and wealth, the final years of his life were marked by a certain melancholy and growing loneliness.
Death and legacy
Farinelli died on July 15, 1782, in Bologna, a few months after the passing of his great friend Pietro Metastasio. At his death, he left an extraordinary collection of artworks and musical instruments, unfortunately largely dispersed by his heirs, including a precious violin built by Antonio Stradivari.
Before he died, when friends suggested he write his memoirs, he replied with simple words that reveal his character: he said it was enough for him that it be known he had held no prejudice against anyone, and that his regret of not having been able to do all the good he would have wished be remembered. He was buried in Bologna, in the city's Certosa, where his tomb is still located today.
The mystery of the voice studied by DNA
For centuries, Farinelli's voice remained a legend. No recording can truly tell us how that timbre sounded, capable of combining power, range, and extraordinary agility. In 2006, scholars attempted to approach this mystery with modern tools: scientific analyses were launched on the singer's remains preserved in Bologna, in an attempt to extract genetic and anatomical information about his voice. DNA and bone examinations allowed for the study of the famous castrato's physical structure and a better understanding of how the particular physiology of castrated singers could produce an uncommon respiratory capacity and vocal range. Even more than two centuries after his death, Farinelli continues to be a subject of research, as if modern science were still trying to decipher the secret of the most famous voice of the eighteenth century.
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