Collection of solfeggi by Carlo Broschi (Farinelli): the artistic top of bel canto’ methodical literature

Abstract

Statement of the problem. In the history of art, there are many figures that over the centuries arouse admiration and encourage research. Carlo Broschi (1704–1782), the Italian opera castrato singer known as Farinelli, is certainly one of them. Despite his widespread fame as an brilliant artist and social figure, Brosky’s own achievements in the field of musical composition, including the arrangement and ornamentation of the works of other celebrated musicians of the era, have not yet received the appropriate scientific understanding. In addition, the practical aspects of the initial period of shaping the bel canto vocal technique are mostly left out of the attention of researchers. Objectives, methods, and novelty of the research. The purpose of the study is to analyze the artistic and methodical value of the collection of Farinelli’s vocal exercises in aspect of reconstructing the practice of set and improvement of the singing voice. For the first time, Farinelli’s collection of 10 solfeggi is considered in terms of its belonging to the system of musical education in the Neapolitan conservatories of the 18th century. A comprehensive approach to the study of the material is applied: the historical-critical method is used to determine the reliability and characteristics of the sources; the comparative-descriptive method is employed to define the artistic significance of Farinelli’s methodical miniatures; the performance analysis is aimed at studying the methodical content of his vocal exercises. The study is related to the works of Ukrainian musicologists on general issues of the genre of vocal exercises (Antoniuk, 2007), the bel canto style (Boiko, 2015; Stakhevych, 2013), as well as on the publications of leading foreign scholars, devoted to the art of castrato singers, the work of Farinelli and problems of singer education in Neapolitan conservatories (Haböck, 1923, 1927; Barbier, 1989, 1994; Gjerdingen, 2007, 2010; Sanguinetti, 2005; Baragwanath, 2015, 2020). For the first time, the Italian musicologist Luigi Verdi (2018) turned to Farinelli’s collection of solfeggi; he published the texts of the vocal exercises in modern notation. However, none of the mentioned scientific sources is the result of practical training on the exercises, which interests us in the first place. Research results. Each of the exercises contains two parts contrasting in character and tempo (Adagio and Allegro). All exercises are written for the range typical of a female soprano, not for a castrato voice. Probably, like other singing teachers, Farinelli was composing exercises for his students (it is possible that he wrote solfeggi for the Duchess of Parma Maria Amalia). The best way to explore the methodological potential of Farinelli’s exercises is to try practicing them. Farinelli’s exercises are extremely difficult for a vocalist. These vocalizations bring up namely the extraordinary qualities of the singer – extreme endurance and full breath control, lightness, mobility, dexterity of the larynx, purity of intonation, a magical way of inventing and performing ornamentation (messa di voce, trills, all kinds of combined embellishments), the ability to easily perform not only coloratura passages, but also leaps to wide intervals. Given the high artistic level of the exercises, it is obvious that Farinelli sought to combine the solution of technical problems with the aesthetic enjoyment of the process of classes, the creative joy of singing. So, Farinelli’s exercises, provided the accompaniment part is reconstructed, can be perceived as full-fledged works of art and become the part of vocal repertoire. Conclusion. The methodical content of Farinelli’s collection of 10 solfeggi should be defined as the high point of a long line of traditional methodical developments of Neapolitan vocal teachers, aimed at the formation of artistic taste within the normative parameters of the «gallant style», at the practical mastering and improvement of vocal technique, development of musical ingenuity, imaginative variety and exceptional expressiveness of performance – that is, of everything that made up the essence of the concept of a bel canto’ virtuoso.