Rai Radio Classica

Italy's state classical broadcaster doesn't apologize for demanding standards. Rai Radio Classica assumes listeners know Debussy from Brahms. The programming skips the Greatest Hits approach entirely. Instead you get full symphonies, complete operas, chamber works that are allowed to breathe over 45 minutes without interruption. The curators have opinions: certain recordings get repeated because they're definitive - Toscanini conducting Verdi, not just any recording that fits the time slot. Morning slots favor Italian composers (Vivaldi, Rossini, Respighi) but they're not nationalist about it.…