Real men sing countertenor

[Shana A]

Real men sing countertenor
   
Published 01/20/2011
by Tim Pfaff

http://www.ebar.com/arts/art_article.php?sec=music&article=820

Whether or not Handel was gay – unknown, probably unknowable, but much harder to argue no than yes – the evidence of his 40-plus operas is that he had insights into the feminine granted to few composers of any age, and that he created his most compelling male characters for singers with treble ranges. Great male roles composed for tenors and basses don't figure much in his work before the later oratorios.

Theatrical conventions of his day and the ready availability of castrati (to anyone new to the unique pleasures of early music: yes) to star in his productions move the issue of the degree to which he relished the gender->-bleeped-<- (also unknowable) to the sidelines, but it's clear that it did not inhibit him. In the last quarter-century, over which time his operas have gone from rarities to repertoire staples, we sophisticated moderns have completely accustomed ourselves to the countertenor sound – not in itself Handelian – to the point that even audience members with only a passing knowledge of the field no longer assume that any particular countertenor is gay (no more certain a bet than whether Handel was).