Elizabeth Hopkinson's Hidden Grove

  Back in February, I wrote a piece for LGBT+ History Month about the castrati singers of the 18th century , and my character Carlo in the forthcoming Cage of Nightingales. In that piece, I said, “It’s impossible for us now to know what the leading castrati really sounded like.” That may still be true. (The intense levels of training they went through from boyhood would probably be illegal now, never mind the actual castration). But just this week, I made a discovery I can’t believe I have not made before. There are real-life male sopranos. True sopranos, as opposed to counter-tenors, who sing in their falsetto range, thereby only using part of the vocal cord. (Imagine plucking a guitar string while holding the string a long way down the bridge, to make the note extra-high). True sopranos sing with all their vocal cord vibrating (unless they go into falsetto, which is extra-extra-high!) Which means you’re going to get a much more resonant sound. Entirely by accident, I saw a news r...

  The Hu onstage at Liverpool’s O2 Academy I’ll admit that things have not been easy for me since my last blog. There’s a lot of (understandable) hurt and anger out there when it comes to cultural issues. And I’m not emotionally robust enough to take it. Which is why it was so restorative this week to finally see one of my favourite bands - The Hu - live onstage in Liverpool. It was my first time at a “proper” rock concert, and my first time in Liverpool, so definitely one for the bucket list. Jaya and Gala fronting the band For those who don’t know them, The Hu are a Mongolian folk-rock band of eight musicians, who combine traditional Mongolian throat singing and instruments such as the Morin Khuur (pictured above, played by Gala) with metal beats and guitars. (It’s called Hunnu Rock). They sing entirely in Mongolian, and the lyrics are mainly about aspects of traditional Mongolian culture, respecting the ancestors and nature. They say their mission is to unite people through musi...