The prestigious milestone of half a century of life of a local radio station which since 1976 has profoundly and positively marked (and continues to mark) the entire Locride area. Almost a “brand” of belonging on a musical, cultural, association and knowledge level, also capable of training, in many aspects, different generations of young people. An achievement that is historic and unique in its own way, for a free and truly out of the ordinary radio, which with strength, courage and sacrifices but with extreme conviction continues to leave an unmistakable and very personal imprint on the Calabrian territory.
The birth of Radio Roccella and the adventure of free radios
It was, in fact, the year 1976, and it was a season of extraordinary civil fervor, following sentence number 202 of the Constitutional Court of 28 July, which put an end to the state radio monopoly. Radio Roccella was founded by four young people eager for new adventures and to experiment with new things: the discovery of the charm of “free radios”, of small local broadcasters, was about to explode throughout Italy and was an irresistible attraction for them.
The four – Pietro Commisso, Domenico Lombardo, Luciano Misiti and Pino Misiti – put together a small sum, 20 thousand lire each, and with this initial “budget” they purchased a tiny FM transmitter whose power was around just 2 watts.
«Even today – they recalled – we cannot forget the emotion we felt fifty years ago when we “turned on” that device for the first time and, immediately afterwards, we got into the car, obviously equipped with a car radio, to check the complete coverage of the territory, obviously limited to the neighborhood or a little beyond».
Fifty years of passion between information and music
50 years have passed since then but Radio Roccella continues to be a broadcaster present in the Calabrian airwaves and to grow while maintaining the spirit of that time: passion, volunteering and sometimes even economic sacrifices faced by its members – currently there are fifteen – and by over 20 external collaborators.
Since its establishment, Radio Roccella has wanted to orient its programming obviously towards the musical world, but also and above all towards the fields of culture and information.
The Radio Tele Roccella Cultural Association has, in fact, equipped itself with tools, such as the statute and the governing bodies, capable of directing the broadcaster towards issues linked above all to the territory. Through a hilly repeater system, the broadcaster’s signal can be clearly heard from Punta Stilo (in the north) to Capo Spartivento (in the south), including the hinterland.
Since March 1999, Radio Roccella has become part of the Popolare Network circuit. This is a choice that has allowed the radio station to “fill the gap” of alternative information to traditional channels.
However, as regards the musical selections, the Ionian broadcaster has strengthened its identity, going beyond the traditional canons of easy-listening by giving space to jazz, blues, funk, fusion, especially in the afternoon and night-time appointments.
«What unites us? Only and simply the now over fifty-year desire to do radio. The statutory framework that we have given ourselves avoids the danger that someone might think of commercial exploitation of the broadcaster”, highlighted the historic president of the Calabrian radio broadcaster, Massimo Logozzo.
The transmission studios were renovated in the summer of 2015 both in the logistical structures and in the technical instrumentation, which today offers the most innovative and modern thing that can exist on the market.
In 2017 the last important purchase was a caravan measuring approximately five metres, which was used as a mobile studio, with the possibility of following all the existing events in the area, thanks to a cutting-edge audio-video technological apparatus.
Events for the fiftieth anniversary
On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the foundation, the historic radio station from Roccello will celebrate the exceptional milestone with a series of events. The first will be held on July 29th on the Roccella seafront, in the Largo Colonne area, with the initiative “50 years of Radio Roccella, half a century of music, voices and passion”.
Many guests ensured their presence, starting with Gigi Miseferi, radio speaker, host and singer. However, it will also be a special opportunity to share stories, meet old DJs on the console, present the celebratory book and give life to an exceptional event with historical and collectible value: a special philatelic postmark with the stamp dedicated to free radio.
Closing the day will be the performance of DJ Marco Valotta with the dance music proposal “With you I unlock a memory”. Subsequently, again in Largo Colonne, from 30 July to 2 August, the “Rock Festival” will take place, dedicated to the discovery of new talents, and the three evenings of the “Rocca Blues Festival”, with performances by Enzo Ursino (30 July), Lello Panico Blues Band (31 July), Joe Mariani Blues Brothers Band (1 August) and Enrico Polverari Blues Band (2 August).