Those 18th-Century Castrati Got All the Money and, Yes, Girls

New York Times: "Anyone who has heard a boys’ choir sing “Ave Maria” or “Silent Night,” even in recording, knows the angelic beauty of the prepubescent male voice. In 18th-century Italy a delicate operation sought to preserve that vocal purity for life, and “Monsters and Prodigies” by the Mexican company Teatro de Ciertos Habitantes gives a zany account of the century of music ruled by castrati."