Derek Lee Ragin, Christophe Rousset, Les Talens Lyriques, Ewa Malas-Godlewska Rinaldo, HWV 7a: Lascia ch'io pianga (1994)
The Italian term “castrato” refers to a male singer who underwent castration before puberty in order to retain a singing voice equivalent to that of a soprano, mezzo-soprano or contralto. Prepubescent castration for this purpose began to wane in the late 18th century. But before that, singers such as Ferri, Senesino, Pacchierotti and Farinelli became superstars, earning enormous fees and garnering hysterical public adulation. Farinelli's story was brought to cinemas in 1994 by Belgian director Gérard Corbiau. To imitate Farinelli’s divine singing, two voices were fused electronically: the singing voices of American countertenor Derek Lee Ragin and Polish coloratura soprano Ewa Małas-Godlewska. The soundtrack of the Oscar-nominated film contains eleven classical pieces, the highlight being Georg Friedrich Händel's delicately melancholic “Lascia ch'io pianga”.
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