Marc'Antonio Pasqualini

Marco Antonio Pasqualini (stage name Malagigi; Rome, 25 April 1614 – Rome, 2 July 1691) was an Italian castrato opera singer who performed during the Baroque period. He has been described as “the leading male soprano of his day”. He was also a composer, having written more than 250 arias and cantatas. Despite being historically addressed as a soprano, Pasqualini’s vocal range extended no higher than B5. Thus, he was a mezzo-soprano by modern classification. Life and career Marc’Antonio Pasqualini began his singing career at a very young age. On 1 April 1623, at the age of nine, he entered the choir of the Church of San Luigi dei Francesi in Rome, where he completed his studies with Vincenzo Ugolini. From 1629 he was in the service of Cardinal Antonio Barberini junior. Under the protection of the cardinal he entered the choir of the Sistine Chapel in January 1631, at the age of 17, and in 1655 he was appointed maestro di cappella of the chapel. In 1647 at the invitation of Cardinal Jules Mazarin, Pasqualini stayed in Paris, where he participated in the creation of the opera Orfeo by his composer Luigi Rossi on a libretto by Francesco Buti. In the opera, successfully premiered on 2 M