10 Facts About Afro Poli

Afro Poli was an Italian operatic baritone, particularly associated with the Italian repertory.

Afro Poli made his stage debut in 1927 at the Teatro Verdi in Pisa, as Germont.

Afro Poli then went to Milan to further his studies with Gino Neri, and later joined the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma in 1930.

Afro Poli 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, Cosi fan tutte, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Lucia di Lammermoor, Rigoletto, Simon Boccanegra, L'amico Fritz, Manon Lescaut, La boheme, Tosca, Adriana Lecouvreur, as well as Italian versions of operas such as; Les pecheurs de perles, Manon, Werther, etc.

Afro Poli appeared in Paris, London, Madrid, Lisbon and Buenos Aires.

Afro Poli was a guest at the Holland Festival and the Wexford Festival in the 1950s.

Afro Poli was very active on Italian Radio and Television, 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.

Afro Poli can be heard on disc in complete recordings of L'elisir d'amore, Don Pasquale, and Pagliacci.

Afro Poli enjoyed a long career singing until 1969, when he then turned to teaching, first in Ankara and later in Melbourne.

Afro Poli gave his last performance in Adelaide, as Rodolfo in La Sonnambula in 1978.