Antonio Francesco Carli (fl.

Floruit

Floruit , abbreviated fl. , is a Latin verb meaning "flourished", denoting the period of time during which something was active...

 1706–23) was an Italian bass singer, primarily of operatic roles. He is best remembered for having sung the role of Claudius in the original production of George Frideric Handel

George Frideric Handel

George Frideric Handel was a German-British Baroque composer, famous for his operas, oratorios, anthems and organ concertos. Handel was born in 1685, in a family indifferent to music...

's early success Agrippina

Agrippina (opera)

Agrippina is an opera seria in three acts by George Frideric Handel, from a libretto by Cardinal Vincenzo Grimani. Composed for the Venice Carnevale season, the opera tells the story of Agrippina, the mother of Nero, as she plots the downfall of the Roman Emperor Claudius and the installation of...

. Carli sung in many different Italian cities, including Rome, Bologna, Turin, and Florence, though he primarily worked at Venice between 1706–18 and 1722-3. The part of Claudius demands a bass possessed of an exceptionally wide tessitura and one who is able to perform sudden leaps of vocal register. It is possible that an extremely difficult cantata, Nell'Africane selve, was composed by Handel for Carli.