One of the leading symphony orchestras in Italy, was founded in 1994 through the merger of the public radio orchestras of Turin, Rome, Milan, and Naples. Its chief conductor appointed in 2009 is Juraj Valcuha.

The orchestra musicians worked with such renowned conductors as G. Pretre, G. Sinopoli, E. Inbal, G. Noseda, C.M. Giulini, W. Sawallisch, M. Rostropovich, M.-W. Chung, R. Chailly, L. Maazel, Z. Mehta, Y. Ahronovitch, M. Janowski, S. Bychkov, D. Kitayenko, A. Lazarev, V. Gergiev, R. Abbado, and K. Petrenko. The orchestra has long-term cooperation with the largest

radio channel in Italy (Radio3) and three television channels (Rai1, Rai3, Rai5). Its repertoire features not only the classical symphonic legacy, but also contemporary and avant-garde music. RAI has been honored to be the first performer of contemporary authors’ compositions, many of which have been commissioned by the orchestra. In 2004, the orchestra gave a number of contemporary music concerts under the umbrella title Rai NuovaMusica.

The orchestra takes part in festivals in Ravenna, MITO SettembreMusica, La Biennale di Venezia, Sagra Malatestiana in Rimini (Italy), Salzburg (Austria) and others. It gives performances in prestigious concert halls, including the Berlin Philharmonic and Musikverein in Vienna. CD and DVD releases of orchestra recordings boast an invariably high circulation.