Afro Poli

Afro Poli (22 December 1902 in Pisa – 22 February 1988 in Rome) was an Italian operatic baritone, particularly associated with the Italian repertory.

Poli began his vocal studies when he joined the "Società Corale Pisana" in 1925, where he was a pupil of Bruno Pizzi. He made his stage debut in 1927 at the Teatro Verdi in Pisa, as Germont. He then went to Milan to further his studies with Gino Neri, and later joined the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma in 1930.

He was a leading baritone at La Scala in Milan from 1937 to 1955, where he sang in a wide repertoire from Mozart to verismo, including; Le nozze di Figaro, Così fan tutte, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Lucia di Lammermoor, Rigoletto, Simon Boccanegra, L'amico Fritz, Manon Lescaut, La bohème, Tosca, Adriana Lecouvreur, as well as Italian versions of operas such as; Les pêcheurs de perles, Manon, Werther, etc.

Along with the La Scala company, he made guest appearances in Berlin and Munich in 1946. He also appeared in Paris, London, Madrid, Lisbon and Buenos Aires. He was a guest at the Holland Festival and the Wexford Festival in the 1950s.[citation needed ]

He was also very active on Italian Radio and Television (RAI), primarily in a production of Madama Butterfly, in 1956, with two then unknown beginners, Anna Moffo and Renato Cioni, which has been recently released on DVD. He can also be heard on disc in complete recordings of L'elisir d'amore, Don Pasquale, and Pagliacci.

Poli enjoyed a long career singing until 1969, when he then turned to teaching, first in Ankara and later in Melbourne. He gave his last performance in Adelaide, as Rodolfo in La Sonnambula in 1978.

Recordings in 78 RPM. and 33 RPM.

Complete Operas