Senesino, or Francesco Bernardi, *31 October 1686 Siena, †27 November 1758 Siena, Italian alto singer (castrato). His beginnings in music education are associated with the choir of the Cathedral of Siena. He was castrated at the age of 13. His pseudonym originated from the name of his hometown. After numerous opera performances in Italy, from IX 1717 to II 1720 he was a member of the Italian opera ensemble of the Polish King August II the Strong in Dresden, where he took part, among others, in performances of A. Lotti’s operas. He was one of the leading singers in Händel’s opera company in London in 1720–1733 (with a break for a stay in Italy from 1728 to 1730), and later, after his conflict with the composer, he initiated the formation of Porpora’s rival group (the so-called Opera of the Nobility). He returned to Italy in 1736, where he performed for several years for instance in Rimini, Turin, Florence, and Naples. He had a sonorous, clear voice, his vocal range from g to f’’, technical mastery and perfect intonation; he kept restraint in the use of ornaments. While Bernardi’s acting abilities may not have matched his vocal talents, he gained legendary fame and was compared to Farinelli, a representative of the next generation, with whom he performed on stage.
Literature (selection): M. Fürstenau Zur Geschichte der Musik und des Theaters am Hofe zu Dresden, Vol. 2, Drezno 1862, reprint Leipzig 1971; E. Avanzati The Unpublished Senesino, published in: Handel and the Castrati, London 2006; D. Vickers C. Vitali, Senesino, published in: The Cambridge Handel Encyclopedia, Cambridge, New York et al. 2009; M. Bucciarelli Senesino’s Negotiations with the Royal Academy of Music: Further Insight into the Riva–Bernardi Correspondence and the Role of Singers in the Practice of Eighteenth-Century Opera, „Cambridge Opera Journal” 27 (2015), No. 3; R. Scotting Unknown Senesino: Francesco Bernardi’s Vocal Profile and Dramatic Portrayal, 1700–1740, dissertation, Royal College of Music, London 2018.
