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Afro Poli (22 December 1902 in
Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the cit ...
– 22 February 1988 in Rome) was an Italian operatic
baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...
, particularly associated with the Italian repertory. Kutsch, Karl J. and
Riemens, Leo Leonardus Antony Marinus Riemens (3 December 1910 – 3 April 1985) was a Dutch musicologist and cultural journalist. He wrote a book about Maria Callas, and together with Karl-Josef Kutsch began a reference book about opera singers in 1962, which ...
(2004)
"Poli, Afro"
''
Großes Sängerlexikon ''Großes Sängerlexikon'' (''Biographical Dictionary of Singers'', literally: Large singers' lexicon) is a single-field dictionary of singers in classical music, edited by Karl-Josef Kutsch and Leo Riemens and first published in 1987. The first ...
'' 4th Edition, Vol. 1, p. 3715. Walter de Gruyter.


Life and career

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 Germont () is a commune in the Ardennes department in northern France. Population See also *Communes of the Ardennes department The following is a list of the 449 communes of the Ardennes department of France. The communes cooperate ...
. He then went to Milan to further his studies with Gino Neri, and later joined the
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma The Teatro dell'Opera di Roma (Rome Opera House) is an opera house in Rome, Italy. Originally opened in November 1880 as the 2,212 seat ''Costanzi Theatre'', it has undergone several changes of name as well modifications and improvements. The pre ...
in 1930. He was a leading baritone at
La Scala La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...
in Milan from 1937 to 1955, where he sang in a wide repertoire from
Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...
to
verismo In opera, ''verismo'' (, from , meaning "true") was a post-Romantic operatic tradition associated with Italian composers such as Pietro Mascagni, Ruggero Leoncavallo, Umberto Giordano, Francesco Cilea and Giacomo Puccini. ''Verismo'' as an ...
, including; ''
Le nozze di Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premie ...
'', ''
Così fan tutte (''All Women Do It, or The School for Lovers''), K. 588, is an opera buffa in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It was first performed on 26 January 1790 at the Burgtheater in Vienna, Austria. The libretto was written by Lorenzo Da Ponte w ...
'', ''
Il barbiere di Siviglia ''The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution'' ( it, Il barbiere di Siviglia, ossia L'inutile precauzione ) is an ''opera buffa'' in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was base ...
'', ''
Lucia di Lammermoor ''Lucia di Lammermoor'' () is a (tragic opera) in three acts by Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian-language libretto loosely based upon Sir Walter Scott's 1819 historical novel ''The Bride of Lammermoor''. ...
'', ''
Rigoletto ''Rigoletto'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the 1832 play ''Le roi s'amuse'' by Victor Hugo. Despite serious initial problems with the Austrian censors who had cont ...
'', ''
Simon Boccanegra ''Simon Boccanegra'' () is an opera with a prologue and three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, based on the play ''Simón Bocanegra'' (1843) by Antonio García Gutiérrez, whose play ''El trovador'' had b ...
'', ''
L'amico Fritz ''L'amico Fritz'' () is an opera in three acts by Pietro Mascagni, premiered in 1891 from a libretto by P. Suardon ( Nicola Daspuro) (with additions by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti), based on the French novel ''L'ami Fritz'' by Émile Erckmann and ...
'', ''
Manon Lescaut ''The Story of the Chevalier des Grieux and Manon Lescaut'' ( ) is a novel by Antoine François Prévost. Published in 1731, it is the seventh and final volume of ''Mémoires et aventures d'un homme de qualité'' (''Memoirs and Adventures of a Ma ...
'', ''
La bohème ''La bohème'' (; ) is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions ''quadri'', ''tableaux'' or "images", rather than ''atti'' (acts). composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895 to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe G ...
'', ''
Tosca ''Tosca'' is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1 ...
'', ''
Adriana Lecouvreur ''Adriana Lecouvreur'' () is an opera in four acts by Francesco Cilea to an Italian libretto by Arturo Colautti, based on the 1849 play ''Adrienne Lecouvreur'' by Eugène Scribe and Ernest Legouvé. It was first performed on 6 November 1902 at t ...
'', as well as Italian versions of operas such as; ''
Les pêcheurs de perles ' (''The Pearl Fishers'') is an opera in three acts by the French composer Georges Bizet, to a libretto by Eugène Cormon and Michel Carré. It was premiered on 30 September 1863 at the Théâtre Lyrique in Paris, and was given 18 performances in ...
'', ''
Manon ''Manon'' () is an ''opéra comique'' in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Philippe Gille, based on the 1731 novel '' L'histoire du chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut'' by the Abbé Prévost. It was first ...
'', ''
Werther ''Werther'' is an opera (''drame lyrique'') in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Édouard Blau, Paul Milliet and Georges Hartmann (who used the pseudonym Henri Grémont). It is loosely based on Goethe's epistolary novel ''The S ...
'', 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 The Holland Festival () is the oldest and largest performing arts festival in the Netherlands. It takes place every June in Amsterdam. It comprises theatre, music, opera and modern dance. In recent years, multimedia, visual arts, film and archite ...
and the
Wexford Festival Wexford Festival Opera () is an opera festival that takes place in the town of Wexford in south-eastern Ireland during the months of October and November. The festival began in 1951 under Tom Walsh and a group of opera lovers who quickly gener ...
in the 1950s. He was also very active on Italian Radio and Television (
RAI RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana (; commercially styled as Rai since 2000; known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane) is the national public broadcasting company of Italy, owned by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. RAI operates many ter ...
), primarily in a production of ''
Madama Butterfly ''Madama Butterfly'' (; ''Madame Butterfly'') is an opera in three acts (originally two) by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It is based on the short story "Madame Butterfly" (1898) by John Luther ...
'', in 1956, with two then unknown beginners,
Anna Moffo Anna Moffo (June 27, 1932 – March 9, 2006) was an American opera singer, television personality, and actress. One of the leading lyric- coloratura sopranos of her generation, she possessed a warm and radiant voice of considerable range and agil ...
and
Renato Cioni Renato Cioni (15 April 1929 – 4 March 2014) was an Italian operatic lyric tenor, particularly associated with the Italian repertory. Born in Portoferraio on the Isle of Elba, the son of a fisherman, Cioni received his main musical education a ...
, which has been recently released on DVD. He can also be heard on disc in complete recordings of ''
L'elisir d'amore ''L'elisir d'amore'' (''The Elixir of Love'', ) is a ' (opera buffa) in two acts by the Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto, after Eugène Scribe's libretto for Daniel Auber's ' (1831). The opera premiere ...
'', ''
Don Pasquale ''Don Pasquale'' () is an opera buffa, or comic opera, in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti with an Italian libretto completed largely by Giovanni Ruffini as well as the composer. It was based on a libretto by Angelo Anelli for Stefano Pavesi's ...
'', and ''
Pagliacci ''Pagliacci'' (; literal translation, "Clowns") is an Italian opera in a prologue and two acts, with music and libretto by Ruggero Leoncavallo. The opera tells the tale of Canio, actor and leader of a commedia dell'arte theatrical company, who m ...
''. 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 ''La sonnambula'' (''The Sleepwalker'') is an opera semiseria in two acts, with music in the ''bel canto'' tradition by Vincenzo Bellini set to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani, based on a scenario for a ''ballet-pantomime'' written by Eu ...
'' in 1978.Operissimo
"Poli, Afro"
/ref>


Discography

Recordings in 78 RPM. and 33 RPM. * Augusto Rotoli – Mia sposa sarà la mia bandiera, Visione veneziana – orchestra diretta da
Carlo Sabajno Carlo Sabajno (1874 in Rosasco, Italy – 1938 in Milan) was an Italian conductor. From 1904 to 1932, he was the Gramophone Company's chief conductor and artistic director in Italy, responsible for some of the earliest full-length opera recordin ...
– Grammofono n° R-10812, matricola OM-682/II e OM-683/II, 78 RPM * Afro Poli – Recital. Arie da Opere e romanze – Timaclub n° Tima 75, reg. 1932–1954 (anche inedite), 33 RPM Complete Operas * 1932 – Donizetti, Don Pasquale – Schipa, Badini, Saraceni, Poli, Callegari – Dir. Sabajno – La Voce del Padrone SQSO 53/55 e QUALP 10121 – Riversamento in microsolco – Issued in 78 RPM – N° Catalogo 78 RPM H.M.V. 10410/24. On CD: Opera d'Oro n°1224 Mono 2CD. * 1938 – Puccini, Turandot – Merli, Cigna, Olivero, Poli, Neroni – Dir. Ghione – Cetra 2066/81 78 RPM. Riversamento in Microsolco del 1951. 33 RPM Cetra XTLP 1206/3 * 1938 – Mascagni, Cavalleria rusticana – Rasa, Meloni, Melandri, Poli, Toscani – Dir. Mascagni – Orchestra e Coro dell'Opera Italiana d'Olanda – Teatro dell'Aja, Live Rec. 7 November 1938 – In CD Bongiovanni Bologna (GB 1005-2 – AAD) e Guild (n°2241 – 2CD). * 1938 – Puccini, La bohème – Gigli, Albanese, Menotti, Poli, Baracchi – Dir. Berrettoni – La Voce del Padrone QALP 10077/8 – Issued in 78 RPM.. N° Catalogo 78 RPM MMV.D.B. 3448/60. – Riversamento in Microsolco del 1955, HMV-EMI. * 1942 – Verdi, Falstaff – Stabile, Poli, Nessi, Donaggio – Dir. Erede – Orchestra del Teatro alla Scala di Milano – Telefunken GX-61009, Matrice M.DO-26637/38, 1942. * 1950 – Donizetti – Don Pasquale – Corena, Poli, Lazzari, Gatta – Dir. Armando La Rosa Parodi – Coro e Orchestra della Scala di Milano – 2LP URLP 228 Urania. * 1951 – Rossini, Il signor Bruschino – Bruscantini, Poli, Solely, Noni, Dalamangas – Dir. Giulini – Orchestra e Coro della RAI di Milano – Mono, (Milano, 9/24 September 1951) – In CD: Gop n°66329 DDD, Melodram n°50046 ADD e Walhall E.Series ADD. * 1951 – Mascagni, L'amico Fritz – Rina Gigli, Beniamino Gigli, Poli, Pirazzini – Dir. Gavazzeni – Orchestra e Coro del Teatro S.Carlo di Napoli – In CD Archipel n. 19 2CD AAD. * 1951 – Donizetti, Don Pasquale – Corena, Poli, La Gatta, Lazzari – Dir. La Rosa Parodi – Orchestra e Coro della Scala di Milano – Urania URLP 228 (2-CD Set). * 1952 – Donizetti, L'elisir d'amore – Valletti, Noni, Bruscantini, Poli – Dir. Gavazzeni – orchestra e Coro della RAI di Roma – Cetra LPC 1235 – Ristampa Cetra L.P.S. 3235 del 1968. Ristampa on CD Fonit-Cetra Records, 2CD. * 1952 – Scarlatti, Il trionfo dell'onore – Berdini, Pini, Poli, Borriello, Zerbini, Zareska – Dir. Giulini – Orchestra della RAI di Milano – Cetra LPC 1223. In CD: Urania n. 277 1CD (2005). * 1952 – Massenet, Manon – Carteri, Prandelli, Clabassi, Poli – Dir. Gui – orchestra e Coro della RAI di Milano – In CD Gop n. 66323 2CD. * 1953 – Leoncavallo, Pagliacci – Del Monaco, Petrella, Protti – Dir. Erede – Orchestra e Coro di S. Cecilia – Decca LXT 2845/46 – Issued in 33 RPM – Ristampa in CD Mono Urania (2006) e Gop (2005). * 1956 – Malipiero, Giulio Cesare – Bertocci, Colzani, Barbesi, Mazzini, Capecchi, Cattelani, Angioletti, Mercuriali, Poli, Meletti – Dir. Sanzogno – Orchestra e Coro della RAI di Milano – Live – 8 July 1956 – In CD Gop ADD – 2CD. * 1956 – Puccini, Madama Butterfly – Anna Moffo, Renato Cioni, Poli, Truccato Pace – Dir. Oliviero De Fabritiis – Orchestra e Coro della RAI di Milano – In CD Gop ADD – 2CD (See Video). * 1957 – Puccini, Turandot – Filippeschi, Noli, Poli, Catania – Dir. V.Bellezza – Coro e Orchestra del Teatro S.Carlo di Napoli – Live, 27 July 1957 Arena Flegrea di Napoli. * 1961 – Mascagni, Le Maschere – De Muro Lomanto, Cassinelli, Berdini, Tedesco, Poli, Rizzieri, Broggini, Ferrari, Malaspina, Borgioli, Taccani – Dir. Bartoletti – Orchestra e Coro del Teatro Verdi di Trieste – Live – In CD Gala n°731 – 2CD – AAD * 1961 – Mascagni, Il Piccolo Marat – Rossi-Lemeni, Zeani, Borsò, Rota, Poli – Pizzi (M° del Coro) – Dir. O.De Fabritiis – Live, 26 October 1961 Livorno La Gran Guardia – FONE' 88 F 17–37 (2 CD) * 1962 – Mascagni, Il Piccolo Marat – Rossi-Lemeni, Zeani, Gismondo, Fioravanti, Poli – Pizzi (M° del Coro) – Dir. O. Ziino – Live, San Remo 20 January 1962 – FONIT CETRA CDON 47 (2 CD).


Filmography


Operas on Film

* 1946 - Donizetti, ''Lucia di Lammermoor'' – Mario Filippeschi,
Nelly Corradi Nelly Corradi (1914–1968) was an Italian opera singer and actress. She made her screen debut in Max Ophüls' 1934 film '' Everybody's Woman''.Bayman p.101 Selected filmography * '' Dimmed Lights'' (1934) * '' Everybody's Woman'' (1934) * '' Il ...
, Afro Poli, L. Di Lelio, – Black and white film directed by P. Ballerini. * 1948 – Rossini, ''Cenerentola'' – Lori Randi (Angelina, sung by mezzo-soprano
Fedora Barbieri Fedora Barbieri (4 June 1920 – 4 March 2003) was an Italian mezzo-soprano and actor. Barbieri was born in Trieste. She performed regularly in Florence for fifty years, and performed internationally through the years. She died, aged 82, in Flor ...
) – Gino Del Signore (Don Ramiro) – Afro Poli (Dandini) – Vito De Taranto (Don Magnifico) –
Franca Tamantini Franca Tamantini (24 August 1931 – 11 August 2014) was an Italian film, television and stage actress. Life and career Born in Rome, since young age Tamantini studied piano, singing and classical dance at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma. In 19 ...
(Tisbe, sung by Fernanda Cadoni Azzolini) – Orchestra and chorus of the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma conducted by Oliviero De Fabritiis – directed by
Fernando Cerchio Fernando Cerchio (7 August 1914 – 19 August 1974) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He directed more than 30 films between 1940 and 1972. Selected filmography * '' Men of the Mountain'' (1943) * ''Mistress of the Mountains'' ...
. * 1948 – Leoncavallo, '' I Pagliacci'' – Afro Poli (Canio, sung by Galliano Masini),
Gina Lollobrigida Luigia "Gina" Lollobrigida (born 4 July 1927) is an Italian actress, photojournalist, and politician. She was one of the highest-profile European actresses of the 1950s and early 1960s, a period in which she was an international sex symbol. As o ...
,
Tito Gobbi Tito Gobbi (24 October 19135 March 1984) was an Italian operatic baritone with an international reputation. He made his operatic debut in Gubbio in 1935 as Count Rodolfo in Bellini's ''La sonnambula'' and quickly appeared in Italy's major opera ...
(in the guise of both Tonio and Silvio) – black and white film - directed by Mario Costa * 1953 - Verdi, ''Aida''
Sofia Loren Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress. She was named by the American Film Institute as one of the greatest female stars of Classical Hollywood ci ...
(sung by
Renata Tebaldi Renata Tebaldi ( , ; 1 February 1922 – 19 December 2004) was an Italian lirico-spinto soprano popular in the post-war period, and especially prominent as one of the stars of La Scala, San Carlo and, especially, the Metropolitan Opera. O ...
), Afro Poli – black and white film was coloured in 2005. VHS (black and white) and DVD (color) * 1956 – Puccini, ''Madama Butterfly'' – Anna Moffo, Renato Cioni, Afro Poli – Conducted by Oliviero De Fabritiis – Orchestra and chorus of RAI di Milano – black and white – DVD Video Artists Int'l, 4284. * 1956 – Puccini, ''
Tosca ''Tosca'' is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1 ...
'' – Franco Corelli, Franca Duval, Afro Poli (Baron Scarpia, sung by
Giangiacomo Guelfi Giangiacomo Guelfi (21 December 1924 – 8 February 2012) was an Italian operatic baritone, particularly associated with Verdi and Puccini. Born in Rome, Guelfi studied law before turning to vocal studies in Florence with baritone Titta Ruffo ...
). Conducted by Oliviero De Fabritiis – directed by Carmine Gallone. * 1967 – Verdi, ''La Traviata'' – Anna Moffo,
Franco Bonisolli Franco Bonisolli (May 25, 1938 – October 30, 2003) was an Italian operatic tenor, particularly associated with the Italian repertory, notably as Manrico and Calaf. Life and career Bonisolli was born in Rovereto, Italy. He studied with Alfr ...
, Afro Poli (sung by
Gino Bechi Gino Bechi (16 October 1913 – 2 February 1993) was an Italian operatic baritone, particularly associated with the Italian repertory, especially in Verdi roles. Life and career Bechi studied in his native Florence with Raul Frazzi and di Gior ...
) – directed by
Mario Lanfranchi Mario Lanfranchi (30 June 1927 – 3 January 2022) was an Italian film, theatre, and television director, screenwriter, producer, collector, and actor. Career Lanfranchi was born in Parma. After receiving a degree at the Drama Academy ( Accad ...
– Italia, 1967 – Duration ca. 90 minutes


References


External links

* * Recordings from La Scala - La Bohème, Act 3 - Afro Poli and Licia Albanese {{DEFAULTSORT:Poli, Afro 1902 births 1988 deaths Italian operatic baritones 20th-century Italian male opera singers