Francesca Vanini-Boschi
Encyclopedia
Contralto
Contralto is the deepest female classical singing voice, with the lowest tessitura, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. It typically ranges between the F below middle C to the second G above middle C , although at the extremes some voices can reach the E below middle C or the second B above...
singer of the 18th century. She is best remembered for her association with the composer George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel was a German-British Baroque composer, famous for his operas, oratorios, anthems and organ concertos. Handel was born in 1685, in a family indifferent to music...
, whom she sung for at both Italy and London, though she also sang in operas by Alessandro Scarlatti
Alessandro Scarlatti
Alessandro Scarlatti was an Italian Baroque composer especially famous for his operas and chamber cantatas. He is considered the founder of the Neapolitan school of opera. He was the father of two other composers, Domenico Scarlatti and Pietro Filippo Scarlatti.-Life:Scarlatti was born in...
and Giovanni Bononcini. She frequently sang alongside her husband, the bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
Giuseppe Maria Boschi
Giuseppe Maria Boschi
Giuseppe Maria Boschi was an Italian bass singer - though in modern terms a baritone - of the 18th century. He is best remembered for his association with the composer George Frideric Handel, whom he worked for in both Italy and London.During the first decade of the century he is known to have...
. Her two Handel roles were those of Otho in Agrippina
Agrippina (opera)
Agrippina is an opera seria in three acts by George Frideric Handel, from a libretto by Cardinal Vincenzo Grimani. Composed for the Venice Carnevale season, the opera tells the story of Agrippina, the mother of Nero, as she plots the downfall of the Roman Emperor Claudius and the installation of...
and Goffredo in Rinaldo
Rinaldo (opera)
Rinaldo is an opera by George Frideric Handel composed in 1711. It is the first Italian language opera written specifically for the London stage. The libretto was prepared by Giacomo Rossi from a scenario provided by Aaron Hill. The work was first performed at the Queen's Theatre in London's...
; these roles utilise only a limited range and tessitura. After Rinaldo her voice began to decline, but earlier Giuseppe Felice Tosi
Giuseppe Felice Tosi
Giuseppe Felice Tosi was an Italian composer and organist, and the father of Pier Francesco Tosi, also a successful composer....
had praised her for her ability to introduce "Graces without transgressing against Time".