Castrati
It is sadly impossible for us to know exactly what a castrato at the height of his powers sounded like. We must rely on written accounts, attempted computer reconstructions and the recording of the last living castrato, Alessandro Moreschi, made in 1904. Unfortunately, Moreschi was well past his best and the nature of the early recording process strips out the very high tones that made the voice so special. All we know is that it was something distinctive, unlike the voices of a boy treble, a woman soprano or a male countertenor, something uniquely skilled and beautiful, even otherworldly.
It has been estimated that during the period of the castrati’s popularity, over 100,000 boys were castrated for the sake of music. Of these, only a tiny handful achieved the fame and wealth they were all aiming for. Cut and then trained from earliest childhood, their voices whilst retaining the high tones of a boy could yet be projected with the full throat and lungs of a man. They could achieve feats of control that today seem miraculous. But for the rest, if they even survived the initial procedure, they were condemned to ridicule, physical deformity, the early onset of osteoporosis and of course lifelong sterility.
The Cathedral
English cathedrals generally follow a standard cruciform ground-plan. The long body of the cross is the nave (flanked by two aisles), the two side-arms are the transepts and the head piece is the chancel. In the centre of the chancel, just above the crossing point, is a semi-enclosed inner space, the choir, where the high alter is found. This is also where the choristers sit in their choir-stalls (hence their name).
Most cathedrals currently have chairs in the nave, but some late nineteenth century photographs of interiors show wooden bench pews, for example Wells c.1890.
For a vampire trapped in a cathedral, the west end of the nave, furthest from the altars, would feel the safest and most secular, and this is indeed where the pamphlets for tourists are generally kept. I have also never been in an English cathedral that didn’t have a sheet-covered pile of builder’s equipment somewhere inside.
It is very rare to have the school for the choristers inside the cathedral itself, but it was not unheard of, especially in the late Victorian period when many choir schools were just finding their feet after a period of neglect. The description and feel of St Michael’s school are based on the school in St Michael’s loft, above the Lady Chapel in Christchurch Priory, Dorset. St Michael was of course an archangel.
Entemology
Interest in lepidoptery first began in the mid eighteenth century. Two of the most notable and common British butterflies then were the yellow Brimstone, one of the few butterflies regularly seen in winter, and the brilliant golden Clouded Yellow, the original butter-coloured-fly, hence the early lepidopterists called themselves ‘Aurelians’ from the word ‘aurelia’ something that shines like gold.
- Camberwell Beauty (Nymphalis antiopa) – The Camberwell Beauty is a large and striking butterfly only seen as a rare migrant in Britain. It is named after its first reported sighting in Britain, near Camberwell in south-east London, in 1748.
- Grayling (Hipparchia semele) – ironically the Grayling is a rather unremarkable butterfly when seen at rest, where its grey colouring makes it well camouflaged in its native heathland, but most distinctive in flight when the pale upper wings are visible.
- Harmonia is of course Latin for harmony, ‘a pleasing concordance of sounds’, it also happens to be the first part of the name of the Harlequin ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) a voracious predator of other insects, including butterflies.
- Pedrolino is the Italian form of Pierrot. A Pierrot is a particularly spectacular butterfly, not normally found in England.
- Cotesia, is a genera of parasitic wasp, many of which predate on butterflies.
- The Browns and the Whites are two large groups of common and rather undistinguished butterflies.
The Moon Covering the Devil
Friday, 29th February 1884: the moon occulted Venus between 15.02 and 16.16 GMT. Venus is the Morning Star, otherwise known as Lucifer, the fallen angel.
Music
Give the Boy a Chance. Words by C. Ernst Fahnestock, music by C.T. Lockwood, 1870. Most late Victorian popular songs are irritating in their ability to sentimentalise the most mundane things, but this is a particularly annoying example of the form, about the importance of giving a young man the opportunity to prove himself.
‘Va tacito’ from Handel’s Giulio Cesare in Egitto is one of the most famous arias written for the castrato voice, requiring great technical accomplishment from the singer. It does indeed require a horn accompaniment.
Silently and stealthily the cunning hunter moves
When he is eager for prey.
And he who is disposed to evil does not wish the deceitfulness
Of his heart to be seen.Hear My Prayer Felix Mendelssohn, 1844. A piece admirably suited to a solo treble and the rather sentimental taste of the late Victorians. In the prayer the petitioner calls upon his Lord to protect him from his enemies. Best known for the final section:
O for the wings of a dove!
Translations
Nihil obstat quominus imprimatur…
Nothing hinders the work from being published.
This phrase is normally found printed on the title page of a work to show that it has been passed by the Censor of the Roman Catholic Church, meaning that it is free from any doctrinal or moral error. It must just be a coincidence that Will thought it was the start of one of the Aurelian Incantations.Evivva Il Coltello!
Long live the knife!
The shout of approval with which Italian audiences would greet a renowned castrato.- Evirato
- an insulting Italian slang name for a castrato.
Ehilà, non fate così!
Don’t do that!
Vi prego, non fatemi del male. Per favore, Signore.
Please, do not hurt me. Please sir.
Sei sveglio?
Are you awake?
Sissignore.
Yes sir.
Bene.
Good.
Vi prego, Signor Angelus, Vi supplico…
Please, Mr Angelus, I beg you…
All Italian dialogue translations kindly provided by Superplin.