<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?> <text> <s id="1"> <w id="1.1">In</w> <w id="1.2">the</w> <w id="1.3">mid-16th</w> <w id="1.4">century</w> <w id="1.5">,</w> <w id="1.6">Italians</w> <w id="1.7">were</w> <w id="1.8">captivated</w> <w id="1.9">by</w> <w id="1.10">a</w> <w id="1.11">type</w> <w id="1.12">of</w> <w id="1.13">male</w> <w id="1.14">singer</w> <w id="1.15">whose</w> <w id="1.16">incredible</w> <w id="1.17">range</w> <w id="1.18">contained</w> <w id="1.19">notes</w> <w id="1.20">previously</w> <w id="1.21">thought</w> <w id="1.22">impossible</w> <w id="1.23">for</w> <w id="1.24">adult</w> <w id="1.25">men</w> <w id="1.26">.</w> </s> <s id="2"> <w id="2.1">However</w> <w id="2.2">,</w> <w id="2.3">this</w> <w id="2.4">gift</w> <w id="2.5">came</w> <w id="2.6">at</w> <w id="2.7">a</w> <w id="2.8">high</w> <w id="2.9">price</w> <w id="2.10">.</w> </s> <s id="3"> <w id="3.1">To</w> <w id="3.2">prevent</w> <w id="3.3">their</w> <w id="3.4">voices</w> <w id="3.5">from</w> <w id="3.6">breaking</w> <w id="3.7">,</w> <w id="3.8">these</w> <w id="3.9">singers</w> <w id="3.10">had</w> <w id="3.11">been</w> <w id="3.12">castrated</w> <w id="3.13">before</w> <w id="3.14">puberty</w> <w id="3.15">,</w> <w id="3.16">halting</w> <w id="3.17">the</w> <w id="3.18">hormonal</w> <w id="3.19">processes</w> <w id="3.20">that</w> <w id="3.21">would</w> <w id="3.22">deepen</w> <w id="3.23">their</w> <w id="3.24">voices</w> <w id="3.25">.</w> </s> <s id="4"> <w id="4.1">Known</w> <w id="4.2">as</w> <w id="4.3">castrati</w> <w id="4.4">,</w> <w id="4.5">their</w> <w id="4.6">light</w> <w id="4.7">,</w> <w id="4.8">angelic</w> <w id="4.9">voices</w> <w id="4.10">were</w> <w id="4.11">renowned</w> <w id="4.12">throughout</w> <w id="4.13">Europe</w> <w id="4.14">,</w> <w id="4.15">until</w> <w id="4.16">the</w> <w id="4.17">cruel</w> <w id="4.18">procedure</w> <w id="4.19">that</w> <w id="4.20">created</w> <w id="4.21">them</w> <w id="4.22">was</w> <w id="4.23">outlawed</w> <w id="4.24">in</w> <w id="4.25">the</w> <w id="4.26">1800s</w> <w id="4.27">.</w> </s> <s id="5"> <w id="5.1">Though</w>