Graindelavoix
Becoming Moreschi: the Last Castrato
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Livestream from TivoliVredenburg / Grote Zaal on 3 September 2026 at 20:00
A scenic lighting plan is used for this concert
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About this concert
In 1902, a scratchy recording captured something that actually shouldn't be heard anymore: the voice of Alessandro Moreschi, the last castrato. No deep fake or echo, but flesh and breath – too close for comfort.
Graindelavoix starts from that unease and explores the great vocal secret of early music. Polyphony from the Sistine Chapel, Byzantine fragments, and Mediterranean sound rituals trigger a sensory trip into a hidden past. For what if the voice we long for simultaneously repels us? What if the past comes too close and refuses to disappear again? Becoming Moreschi is not a concert, but a confrontation with the strange body of the voice, with history that continues to haunt, and with music that clings to the skin like cold sweat after waking up.
Programme
-
Plainchant / Alessandro Moreschi
Incipit Lamentatio Jeremiae Prophetae
1858-1922 -
Giovanni Pierlugi da Palestrina
La crudia mia nemica
1525/26-1594 -
Traditional
Kyrie igapisa euprepeian
SantousItalo-Greek -
Guillaume Dufay
Lamentatio Sanctae Matris Ecclesiae Constantinopolitanae
Balsamus et munda cera
Salve flos Tuscae gentis1397-1474 -
Josquin Desprez
Nimphes, nappées
c1450/55-1521 -
Tomás Luis de Victoria
Popule meus (Improperia)
1548-1611 -
Giovanni Pierlugo da Palestrina
Sanctus Missa Pape Marcelli
-
Constanzo Festa
Miserere mei Deus
c1485/90-1545 -
Traditional
Miserere mei Deus
Sardinia -
Gregorio Allegri / Tommaso Bai
Miserere mei Deus
Programme subject to change1582-1652 / c1650-1714
Musicians
- Teodora Tommasi, Florencia Menconi, Flor Paichard soprano
- Andrew Hallock, Razek François Bitar altus
- André Pérez Muiño, Albert Riera, Marius Peterson tenor
- Tomàs Maxé baritone
- Arnout Malfliet bass
- Luís Neiva narrator
- Björn Schmelzer musical direction
- Dominik Boiy sound design & manipulation
- Margarida Garcia, Björn Schmelzer concept & dramaturgy
About the performers
Graindelavoix is a Belgian vocal ensemble founded by Björn Schmelzer, dedicated to Renaissance and early music. Known for its experimental and expressive approach, the group challenges conventional ideas of vocal blend and purity. Drawing on historical research and artistic intuition, Graindelavoix creates intense, richly textured performances that explore the emotional depth of early repertoires, offering a distinctive and thought-provoking perspective on historically informed performance today.
Björn Schmelzer is a Belgian musicologist, performer, and artistic director, best known as founder of Graindelavoix. Specializing in medieval and Renaissance music, he combines scholarly research with a radical artistic vision. His work questions established aesthetics of early music performance, emphasizing individuality and expressive depth. Through concerts, recordings, and writings, Schmelzer has become an influential and provocative voice in the field of historically informed performance internationally today.