Department of Urology, Markus Hospital, Frankfurt, Germany.
J Sex Med. 2012 Sep;9(9):2233-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2012.02844.x. Epub 2012 Jul 12.
The phenomenon of castration is very closely associated with the baroque era. In a period that placed emphasis on pure sensual pleasure, castrati singers, with their angelic voices, were a perverted outcome of this ambition. It was the intention that these castrato voices with their supernatural sound would mesmerize audiences. At that time, it could be said that within certain society circles, an addiction to these voices existed. Equally, they were oblivious to the spiritual side of the lives of the castrati. Farinelli, Caffarelli, and Senesino, three of the most famous castrati, were the first musical superstars of the 18th century. Their voices moved decadent audiences to tears and standing ovations. The price for this fame was, however, high.
The aim of this review is to provide an overview of castrati singers, especially in the baroque era, their sexuality and the effects of castration on their physical development.
A literature search of relevant databases, books, and articles in journals was performed and compared with current data concerning androgen suppression and endocrine aspects of male sexual dysfunction.
The effects of castration on physical development were notoriously erratic. Much depended on the timing of the operation: boys pruned before the age of 10 or so very often grew up with feminine features; smooth, hairless bodies, incipient breasts, infantile penis, and often a complete lack of sex drive.
The peak success of the castrati ended with the end of the 18th century. The last castrato was Alessandro Moreschi, a solo singer in the choir of the Sistine Chapel of the Vatican. Following the ban on castration, Pope Pius X sent him into retirement in 1912, thus putting an end to a very impressive part of the history of music.
阉人歌手的现象与巴洛克时代密切相关。在一个强调纯粹感官享受的时代，阉人歌手以其天使般的嗓音，是这种野心的变态产物。意图是这些具有超凡声音的阉人歌手的声音能够让观众着迷。当时，可以说在某些社会圈子里，存在着对这些声音的沉迷。同样，他们也忽略了阉人歌手的精神生活。法里内利、卡法雷利和塞内西诺这三位最著名的阉人歌手是 18 世纪的第一批音乐巨星。他们的歌声让颓废的观众感动得流泪和起立鼓掌。然而，成名的代价是高昂的。
本综述的目的是概述阉人歌手，特别是在巴洛克时代，他们的性行为以及阉割对他们身体发育的影响。
对相关数据库、书籍和期刊文章进行了文献检索，并与当前关于雄激素抑制和男性性功能障碍内分泌方面的资料进行了比较。
阉割对身体发育的影响是众所周知的不稳定。这在很大程度上取决于手术的时间：10 岁左右之前被修剪的男孩往往会成长为具有女性特征的人；光滑无毛的身体、初现的乳房、幼稚的阴茎，通常完全缺乏性欲。
阉人歌手的巅峰成功随着 18 世纪的结束而结束。最后一位阉人歌手是亚历山德罗·莫雷斯基，他是梵蒂冈西斯廷教堂唱诗班的独唱歌手。在阉割禁令之后，教皇庇护十世于 1912 年将他送进了退休生活，从而结束了音乐史上一个非常令人印象深刻的部分。
