Farinelli biography of michael

Italian castrato singer (1705–1782)

For the 1994 biopic about this singer, see Farinelli (film).

"Carlo Broschi" redirects here. For the opera of this name, see La part du diable.

Farinelli (Italian pronunciation:[fariˈnɛlli]; 24 January 1705 – 16 September 1782)^[a] was the stage name of Carlo Maria Michelangelo Nicola Broschi (pronounced[ˈkarloˈbrɔski]), a celebrated Italian castrato singer of the 18th century and one of the greatest singers in the history of opera.^[1] Farinelli was a soprano castrato, with a range from approximately F3-D6.

Early years

Broschi was born in Andria (in what is now Puglia, Italy) into a family of musicians. As recorded in the baptismal register of the church of S. Nicola in Andria, his father Salvatore was a composer and maestro di cappella of the city's cathedral, and his mother, Caterina Barrese, a citizen of Naples.

The Duke of Andría, Fabrizio Carafa, a member of the House of Carafa, on