Sacrificium

A specialist in the music of the Baroque and classical periods, Italian mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli is gifted with a versatile voice that allows her to sing soprano as she wishes while possessing a rich, beautiful tone in her lower registers. Her 2009 tribute to the castrati—boys with beautiful voices who were castrated to maintain their singing careers into adulthood—is a fantastic showcase for Bartoli’s talent for interpreting music of the Baroque era. Here, she unearths some rarities and gives us a glimpse into a musical world that saw the castrati celebrated for their extraordinary voices.