Caffarelli sang other composers' operas in London, as did Farinelli, who liked to demonstrate the extraordinary dynamic range between his bi- nnissimo and foitissimo.'° Farinelli's /ortissimo must have been of consider- able size. A story making the rounds during his stay in London reported that Farinelli had drowned out a trumpeter in the pit to whom he had taken a dislike. Whether the story is true or not is of no importance.The point is, there was no doubt he coxld have done so. Senesino, of course, was an alto castrato, and his voice would not always have been as reliable in high notes as that of a soprano castrat whether or not on a good night he could reliably make such ascents. Similarly, however, as a well-trained alto castrato he could presumably go lower than what was written for him, probably even lower than the soprano castrato. The other characteristics sampled above for other castrati were probably also true of him; there is ample evidence of the volume of his voice.