Before I start on the list, I feel that I should advise that a couple of the items here are quite horrific and I would recommend that those who are weak of heart or who have a nervous disposition avoid them. The items I am referring to are marked in the text. The items are not in any particular order as it is very hard to rate the historical importance versus the just plain weird value.
NOTE: If you click the “download the MP3″ link, it should (for most modern browsers) open in your browser and stream.
1. Alessandro Moreschi The only recorded true castrato Wikipedia
The Castrati were men who were forcibly castrated at an early age in order to ensure that they would not experience the hormonal changes of puberty that lead to the lowering of the male voice. This meant that as adult men they sang like a modern soprano (they retained their boy soprano voices). After the Catholic Church ensured that all nations banned the practise, Pope Leo XIII took the remaining Castrati into the care of the Sistine Chapel Choir to guarantee them a quiet life (at the time they had become the subject of ridicule). Moreschi is the only castrato to be recorded solo. In this recording he is over 50 years old and had lost much of the quality of his voice – nevertheless the resulting recording is incredibly eerie. You can read more about Moreschi and Castrati in general at the Cogitz article Castrati: Castrated for the Love of Music.
2. Mado Robin Stratospheric Coloratura Wikipedia
This amazing French singer has one of the highest recorded notes in classical music. You must listen to the whole song – the last note is unbelievable! Put your crystal in a safe place! I have done some research and various sources give her highest note as either a B above Top C, or a D above top C, which, if I recall my theory classes correctly, would be B7 and D7 respectively. This is the last octave on a classical piano and is only three octaves lower than G10 (dog whistle pitch), the point at which humans can no longer hear the note. The highest recorded singer is Georgia Brown who is reported (by the Guiness Book of Records) to have reached G10.
3. Florence Foster Jenkins Worst singer Wikipedia
Believe it or not, Florence managed, despite being famously awful, to sell out an entire concert at Carnegie Hall. She had many admirers (among them Enrico Caruso). This has to be heard to be believed. As a particular point of interest, after she recorded this song, she told the sound engineer that no second try was needed as it was perfect. See for yourself. (She is singing Queen of the Night by Mozart, incidentally).
4. Pope Leo XIII First recorded Pope – 1903 Wikipedia
Pope Leo XIII (patron of Moreschi) was the first Pope in history to be recorded. He was the 256th Pope and reigned from 1878 – 1903 and is probably most famous as the Pope who declared Anglican religious orders invalid (ie, he said Anglican priests and Bishops are laymen). He also strongly promoted the study of the Bible in the home and was known as the Pope of the People. In this recording he chants the Ave Maria (Hail Mary).
5. Lord Hawhaw (William Joyce) Executed for treason Wikipedia
William Joyce (or Lord Hawhaw has he more well known) was a fascist politician who worked for the Nazi’s during the war as a propagandist. His distinctly “posh” English accent is the cause of him receiving his mocking nickname. Joyce broadcast propaganda from radio stations in Berlin, Hamburg, and Luxembourg. Whilst it was not illegal to listen to his broadcasts in England, it was frowned upon. Nevertheless his recordings were very popular with the public as a source of amusement. He became a hated and ridiculed figure. He escaped after the war but an English soldier overheard him talking at a cafe and recognised his voice. He was arrested and executed for treason. This recording is a snippet of one of his propaganda broadcasts and it begins with his signature “Germany calling, Germany calling”.
6. Number Stations Wikipedia
Number Stations (shortwave radio stations of unknown origin) have been reported since World War I and continue to this day. No one knows what their reason is though many people suspect they are coded messages used for espionage (though no country has admitted this). The broadcasts are usually a female voice (though male voices have been heard) and they generally broadcast streams of numbers, words, or letters. They are sometimes apparently random, and other times organised. In the 90′s, amateur radio enthusiasts tracked the source of one number station to a US military base. The FCC refused to comment. You can read a much more indepth article on number stations here.
7. Florence Nightingale Inventor of modern nursing Wikipedia
Florence Nightingale was the first person to recognise that hygiene and food were important in the care of patients (up until her time, hospitals did not worry about hygienic conditions). She is considered to be the mother of modern nursing. She lived from 1820 – 1910. She is also sometimes referred to as the Lady of the Lamp. This recording is one of three she made in 1890 to people she had known during her work in the war effort.
8. Russian Exorcism WARNING! Cogitz
Exorcism is the ritual used by the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church to cast devils out of a possessed person. Throughout this Russian exorcism you can hear the voice of the priest reciting the prayers of the ritual while the afflicted (I can not tell if it is a male or female) person screams in a variety of voices. It is quite horrifying to listen to and I would not advise it for people who have a nervous disposition. You can find more audio, videos, and images of exorcisms here.
9. Jonestown WARNING! The last 30 minutes Wikipedia
Jim Jones was the American founder of the People’s Temple group. The group became infamous after the November 18 1978 mass suicide/murder in Guyana where the group had moved after rising tensions in the USA. Nine-hundred-and-nine people drank cyanide after Jim Jones ordered his men to kill visiting Congressman Leo Ryan and numerous members of his entourage. In this horrifying recording you hear the last 30-45 minutes of Jones directing his followers to poison their children and then themselves. At one point one of the female voices on the tape is heard to say “It’s okay – they aren’t crying because of pain – it is just because of the bitter taste). Some of the bodies found had died of forced cyanide injection or gunshots. Jones was found dead of a gunshot wound to the head. Discretion is advised in listening to this recording. If the recording piques your interest, I would recommend buying the excellent recent documentary on the tragedy called Jonestown – The Life & Death of Peoples Temple
10. First recording On a Phonograph Frank Lambert Wikipedia
Frank Lambert was a French – American inventor. Lambert was born in Lyon, France and then moved to the United States in 1876 and became a citizen in 1893. Lambert is currently in the Guinness World Book of Records for the oldest playable recording on a machine called the Phonograph. Lambert was also famous for inventing the modern typewriter. This is the first recording of a human voice in history from 1878.
11. The Sounds of Hell Siberia Wikipedia
Okay, I know this is a top ten list, but there has been so much demand from reddit to add the Sounds of Hell recording that I have added it. The background is that a group of Russian scientists were digging in Siberia when their drill started spinning wildly (usually indicative of hitting a pocket of air). They lowered microphones into the hole (apparently this is normal as the sounds can help to determine what the physiological makeup is of the area they have drilled to). When they listened to the resulting recording, it appeared to be sounds coming straight from Hell. This is, in fact, a hoax. It has gained great popularity on the internet and does have some basis in fact – but the bit about hell is, well, not true. Read the Wikipedia article for more information.
The exorcism is quite interesting. It’s unlike anything I’ve heard, but not that creepy. The video would be better, but worse.
I am not sure that video would improve the experience – sometimes listening makes you really pay attention – without distraction. However, if you go to youtube and look up exorcism, there are quite a lot of videos if that is more your cup of tea
To be honest, the exorcism and the Jim Jones audio really made me uncomfortable – I listened to the exorcism all the way through, but I had to stop listening to the Jim Jones audio when you could tell they were starting to take the cyanide because I felt sick.
Florence Foster Jenkins – I found this recording to be the most insane thing I’ve heard in a long time. And as an opera fan -I find it simply amazing that Carnegie Hall would ever allow such a voice within its confines. Simply AMAZING! And very funny = Thanx for the sharing!
Jacquii.
Jacquii: you’re welcome. I believe her Carnegie Hall concert was so popular that people were scalping tickets! She was actually a very kind lady who gave huge amounts of her money to charities throughout her life.
wow, this was some good stuff, although i was too scared to listen to the exorcism. lol
WOW…
the jones town… wow… i think i am actually going to throw up… you could hear children crying for god sakes…
that man was a sicko… i cant believe his followers actually listened to him…
i have very thick skin… but those children crying and him telling the parents to calm there children and remind them of the rewards they will be getting… its freaking sick…
*chills*
but great list… its just freaky…
My mother grew up in the same small town in east-central Indiana as Jones. She was six years older than he and often babysat him. In the early 50s, his divorced mother nearly married my divorced grandfather which would have made him an uncle by marriage. My mother passed away in 1973, prior to the Jonestown incident but she always talked of Jones as a disturbed and bizarre kid. I’m told that I met Jones while I was still quite young but I really don’t remember it. The only people crazier than Jones were the idiots who followed him.
Last sentense was not kind and insensitive to those who didn’t understand or couldn’t get out of Jonestown before it was too late.
For new fans of Florence Foster Jenkins who want MORE: Naxos put out a relatively cheap and high-quality CD of her entire output…definitely worth the investment.
I would also add to this list the Ghost Orchid EVP recordings. Debatable to their authenticity, but definitely bizarre and interesting.
I know I’m a terrible pedant but this caught me.
“The background is that a group of Russian scientists were digging in Siberia when their drill started spinning wildly (usually indicative of hitting a pocket of air)”
Contrary to popular belief, the drill in this sort of drilling does not spin. Only the bit right at the bottom moves and that’s because of the heavy mud that’s being pumped down there.
Thorn: thanks for pointing that out – the whole story does seem a little too good to be true I think
Lee R. I am not sure my ears could stand it!
The castrati audio was pretty disturbing to me, i mean a 50 yo man with a voice of a child …
The exorcism wasnt THAT creepy but for some strange reason i felt kinda sick…
What piece is the Mado Robin soundclip from? Lakmé?
I would like to know thanks. Please Email me if you happen to know.
Innervisions: to be honest I am not sure which opera it is from. I will do some research tomorrow to see if I can track it down.
I started playing number 3, the Florence Jenkins recording, and my parrots started screaming louder than the music. And the Castrati was unbelievably creepy.
Yeah, the Castrati recording was a lot creepier than the exorcism or the recording of hell. Then again, maybe that’s just because I’m 50 and still attached to my ‘boys’…
Mado Robin’s is not the highest recorded note. A girl I was at music college with could sing a fifth above that.
Highest recorded note is not the same as highest note ever sang.
is it just me…or was anyone creeped out by the castrato thing?
Stu – unless you can prove it – Mado is the world’s highest singer
the jonestown recording… disturbing as it is, it should be required listening for any society that truly cherishes freedom: This is what happens when you don’t think for yourselves, when you trust “leaders”.
A society that cherishes freedom should not force its citizens to listen to such things; it should be optional.
That was an amusing catch, Tom. But "requirement" doesn't equal "force". "To Kill a Mockingbird" may be required reading in grade school, but that just means it's one of many conditions to graduate, not that children were restrained with lids held open a la "A Clockwork Orange". I think oh no makes a good point. I'd like to see much more exposure to the skill of critical thinking in school. I tire of charlatans and con men pulling the strings of voters, for one thing.
I also recommend that Naxos CD of FFJ. It includes not just her but good singers singing out-of-character or funny songs.
If you want to hear more awful singing, look up Leona Anderson and Darlene Edwards. The latter was a deliberate spoof done by Jo Stafford.
Mado had a great voice. However, her article on Wiki doesn’t say hers was the highest note. Wikipedia article says Guinness gave that place to pop singer Georgia Brown. Example: http://youtube.com/watch?v=P6wSyIdwCFM
There are a number of coloraturas who can do very high notes, but I don’t know how their ranges stack up against Mado’s or Brown’s.
Jim C: Thanks for those links – I have not heard of Georgia Brown so thanks for bringing her to my attention.
the sounds of hell was such a joke.
Nice list. I listened to all but the Jonestown one, can’t bring myself to.
haha, the sounds from hell was probably just the basement of some Siberian market.
jonestown is messed up. i don’t know what sadder, someone who would want to take advantage of stupid people or the people who don’t know any better.
Windowpane: I think the saddest part is probably the children who had no say in the matter and were simply murdered in cold blood. Horrifying.
Well. I’m not going to lie to you. Early in the morning, all alone in a dark room, hardly any of these are suitable. Though I am completely intrigued by the “Numbers”.
i couldnt make out anything on the jonestown audio
mm: did you listen for long? The start is very quiet for a few seconds then you hear Jim Jones start to speak.
To Stu,
If it is “recorded”, post it here. If you heard it but it wasn’t recorded, it doesn’t count here because it’s the highest note ever “recorded” that counts on this web site.
Bill
Most of the people at Jonestown were murdered by deathsquads–when it came down to it most refused to commit suicide. It was shut down because of Congressman Leo Ryan’s investigation–it was a CIA front for mind control operations; the People’s Temple was a mass mind control experiment. There is also video of Congressman Ryan being murdered trying to rescue some of his constituents and escape from Jonestown.
why does everything have to be a CIA plot? are we that starved for sensationalist entertainment that something as horrifying as jonestown has to be puffed up into a government plot against the people? things happen. facts exist. logic, i believe, usually points the way to truth. is it healthy or productive to always resist accepting what makes most sense, or seems most likely to have happened, based on the evidence at hand? where is YOUR evidence? what has you so convinced, raul? you offer ideas, but you present them as fact. it’s just not good enough.
Agreed. This is the perfect example of Occam's Razor. Jim Jones started as a well-meaning community preacher, fighting racism and oppression that keeps people in poverty. He was thwarted at every turn by a society unwilling to embrace racial and class equality, but he was idolized by many of those to whom he ministered. The combination of a human ego fed by an increasingly large following who treated him like a messiah, and the bitterness grown of a life-long rebuke by the larger society, caused him to want to withdraw to Guyana, where he could be safe from criticism with his fan club. When he turned to meth to stay awake and energized for endless speeches and sermons, it was pretty much all over for his sanity. I think the lesson here starts with "Power corrupts" (and ends with "Speed kills"). And this is an excellent lesson to bear in mind when deciding how much credence and power to give to politicians and religious leaders.
The exorcism thing was freakin creepy. It was very cool though. I’d like to see the video if there is one.
Mini – I have managed to get a copy of another exorcism but I need to format it for the site. Once I do that I will post it here as item 12. In the meantime, check out Another 10 Bizarre Videos as it has a video of a Russian Exorcism on it.
Jim C.
While I don’t doubt that Georgia Brown is producing higher notes, I personally would rather pierce my eardrums with a sharpened no. 2 pencil than listen to her screaming (since that’s practically what she’s doing). Mado actually has a pleasant song voice, and if I were part of the Guinness team, I would not have given Brown that honor of highest sung note.
But that’s my personal opinion, and others are certainly free to choose otherwise.
S. A. Thanks for your comment; you obviously have some knowledge of music and it is nice to see someone like that posting on the topic.
the aria Mado Robin is singing is “sopra il sen la man mi posa” from Bellini’s opera, “La Sonnambula.”
The text says she could hit a D4, but here she only hits the Ab one tritone beneath. Most sopranos end the aria on the (extremely high) Eb a fourth below, but Miss Robin only touches the Eb to prepare for her dazzling, unheard of Ab.
Marc: thanks so much for that! I am glad to finally know what it is.
WOW that exorcism with the Russians completely terrified me. those low notes were just so… loud… i can’t even imagine having to be in the presence of one of those. scary.
the eunuch was very interesting! i’ve always wondered as to what one sounds like.
i can’t listen to the one with the cyanide however. would prolly haunt my dreams for some time to come.
very good page!
Lyyli – I couldn’t finish listening to the Jonestown one either – it was too awful.
I read that FFJ later fretted about her final high D — D- “flatural,” actually — and contacted the sound engineer (or someone in a similar position), who reassured her, telling her the note was perfect. In a way, it is.
perhaps you might want to add this to your list, the only recording of hitler in private
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Hitler#Recording_of_Hitler_in_private_conversation
oktavian: really? How funny – perhaps she was being bravado for the public but honest in the background?
Phil: Thanks for that – it sounds like it would be very interesting. Unfortunately I speak not a word of Finnish – would someone here who does be able to go to this page and find the URL of the sound file for me?
i tried listening to the exorcism. Frankly, it gave me chills and i had this sneaking suspicion someone was watching me other than my cat and dog. i fast forwarded thru it, heard those insane screams, and had to stop. maybe i’m being paranoid but does anyone feel like listening to something like that can conjure up some things you don’t want around you? on that note, listening to jonestown is probably out of the question. i’ve already heard florence. she was a big hit while i was in music school.
I had no problem listening to the exorcism. The human voice is remarkably agile and it's just fascinating, the many sounds it can make. Aboriginal throat singing, Mado Robin, Janis Joplin for Pete's sake. And don't let anyone tell you one person can't possibly make vastly differing sounds. Good singers know otherwise.
i have to agree with you on that AGrey…its especially disturbing at 3:00 am…
AGrey: I had the same feeling you did when I was listening to the exorcism. I think we can safely say that we aren’t unleashing anything by doing so though
You guys should be very careful about this. Exorcisms are real as are demons and angels. Talk to your church leader or priest about it.
I would strongly recommend NOT listening to these exorcism tapes (or even watching any of those exorcism/horror movies — fictional or not). You DO NOT want to invite this stuff into your life. Trust me.
I listened to the hell recording some time ago, I think I heard about it from the Art Bell program, although a hoax, those sounds wheile in a quite room all alone, very eerie. I refusw to listen to listen to those innocent children be murdered all the while their parents being coaxed and coached, it makes me sick to think of it. Exorcisms scare the bejesus outta me!! Always have, must be my Catholic upbringing. Thanks for the interesting postings jfrater!
I think what makes the Exorcism so creepy is that there is no video to this. It forces a visual.
I wanted to say that I found this page very interesting – however, I must make a few comments regarding the musical excerpts.
Mado Robin definitely had one of the most extreme ranges of any singer – however, I am not sure of the validity that she has sung the recorded highest note. In the sound clip you provided of her (Bellini’s “Care compagne” from La sonnambula) is pitched in A-flat and so the last note is a High A-flat, not a D.
Also, Florence Foster Jenkins is very famous for her awful renditions of operatic arias…but another singer who is far more interesting, musical and completely lacking in vocal talent or technique is the Portugese singer Natalia DeAndrade. There is a full recording that she did of various operatic pieces – and some clips of her and Florence and other horrible singers are included on a CD entitled “The Muse Surpassed.”
Thanks for the great clips – full of very interesting information!
Tigerlily: You are most welcome; thanks for the comment.
KendalJaye: I think you are right about that – we tend to become blase about images of horror as we see them all the time in movies, but to hear one forces us to use our imaginations which can be far more bizarre.
Anon E. Muss: Thanks for that comment – I will have to check DeAndrade out.
Is there anyway to actually save these so they show up on iTunes?
Taranis: if you can download and hear them, then save the finished mp3 to your desktop and drag it over to your itunes logo. Thats how I do it. I’m sure there are other ways, but it works for me.
Christian: when I click on it to play my AOL media player comes up and it’s played through that, but there’s nothing about saving it and right clicking does nothing.
Taranis: try right clicking on the links on this page instead, hopefully you should get an option like “Download target file as…” You should then be able to choose a folder to put the files in and drag them in to iTunes. If that doesn’t work let me know by email (you can find that at the bottom of the page) and I will see if there is another solution.
MrRobby – if you wish to email me about advertising we can discuss it
My address is jamie@frater.com
The ones that got at me were the exorcism, jones and the castrati. I had to turn the exorcism off, I had to turn the castrati off it made me feel sick and Jonestown is horrific. Thanks jfrater
SarahJ: Thanks
I quite like the castrati – in a similar way to liking Lightning Strikes by Klaus Nomi – it is awful but you have to listen. The other two were very eerie.
I only read the list to see if my candidate for the best recording of all time was on the list. It was not and I am severly disappointed.
Kiri Te Kanawa in a performance in 1979 sang Richard Strauss ( Four Last Songs) Beim Schlafengehen. I consider it to be the most moving , beautiful and stunning manmade sounds ever achieved.
William Jonas Corpus Christi Tx
william: The list is really more for incredulous or weird recordings. I am planning, at some point, to do a list that relates to classical music. Perhaps Dame Kiri will make it to that one. Have you heard the incredible performance at the Met of the quartet from Der Rosenkavalier? It was performed at a gala event and one of the singers was Kathleen Battle – I don’t recalled the names of the other three but they were equally famous. It is outstanding.