Canzonissima
| Canzonissima | |
|---|---|
 Paolo Panelli, Delia Scala and Nino Manfredi hosting Canzonissima in 1959 | |
| Genre | Musical, variety show |
| Directed by |
|
| Presented by |
|
| Country of origin | Italy |
| Original language | Italian |
| No. of seasons | 13 |
| No. of episodes | 161 |
| Production | |
| Production company | RAI |
| Original release | |
| Network | Programma Nazionale |
| Release | 22 October 1958 – 6 January 1975 |
| Network | Rai 1 |
| Release | 21 March – 25 April 2026 |
Canzonissima (Italian: [kantsoˈnissima]; transl. "[The] Utmost Song") is an Italian musical variety show originally broadcast by Rai 1 from 1958 to 1975, aired on Saturday evenings except for the last two editions, which were aired on Sunday afternoon. The program has been referred to as "the synthesis and paradigm of Italian television variety".[1]
During its last six editions (1969–1974), the show constituted the national selection for the artist that would represent Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest the following year.[2] A reboot of the show has been airing since March 2026.[3]
History
Originating in radio as a song tournament in 1956, with the title Le canzoni della fortuna ("The songs of fortune"), it shortly gained great public success. The following year it was brought on television titled Voci e volti della fortuna ("Voices and faces of fortune") and turned into a competition between amateurs from the various regions of Italy, with the participation of some professional singers, who competed in a separate group. In 1958, the variety took its definitive name Canzonissima, with exception of 1963–1967 when the broadcast bore different titles: Gran Premio, Napoli contro tutti, La prova del nove, Scala reale and Partitissima.[1]
The show consisted of a musical contest where singers were paired with some national lottery numbers and which followed elaborate rules, generally different from one edition to another; the competition was interspersed with dances and comedy sketches involving special guests.[1]
The 1959 and 1970 editions contributed to the launch of the careers of Nino Manfredi and Raffaella Carrà, respectively.[1] The 1962 edition, hosted by Dario Fo and Franca Rame, generated large political controversities due to some of Fo's satirical sketches being censored by RAI; the couple was eventually fired, and the scandal lead to a five-year interruption of their collaboration with the broadcaster.[1][4]
In 2026, Rai announced a new edition of the popolar programme, hosted by Milly Carlucci.
Editions
| # | Year | Presenters | Winner(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| [a] | 1956 | Adriana Serra, Antonella Steni, Raffaele Pisu and Renato Turi | "Mamma" (Nunzio Gallo) and "Buon anno, buona fortuna" (Gino Latilla) |
| 1957 | Enzo Tortora, Silvio Noto, Antonella Steni and Renato Turi | "Scapricciatiello" (Aurelio Fierro) | |
| 1 | 1958 | Renato Tagliani with Walter Chiari, Raimondo Vianello, Lauretta Masiero, Scilla Gabel and Corrado Pani | "L'edera" (Nilla Pizzi) |
| 2 | 1959 | Delia Scala, Paolo Panelli and Nino Manfredi | "Piove" (Joe Sentieri) |
| 3 | 1960 | Alberto Lionello, Lauretta Masiero, Aroldo Tieri and Lilli Lembo | "Romantica" (Tony Dallara) |
| 4 | 1961 | Sandra Mondaini, Enzo Garinei, Toni Ucci, Carletto Sposito and Anna Maria Gambineri, with Paolo Poli, Alberto Bonucci and Tino Buazzelli | "Bambina bambina" (Tony Dallara) |
| 5 | 1962 | Dario Fo and Franca Rame, then Tino Buazzelli, Sandra Mondaini and Corrado | "Quando, quando, quando" (Tony Renis) |
| [b] | 1963 | Various (one for each region of Italy) | Sicily |
| [c] | 1964 | Nino Taranto and Nadia Gray | "'O sole mio" (Claudio Villa) |
| [d] | 1965 | Corrado with Walter Chiari and Kessler Twins | "Non son degno di te" (Gianni Morandi) |
| [e] | 1966 | Peppino De Filippo | "Granada" (Claudio Villa) |
| [f] | 1967 | Alberto Lupo, Franco and Ciccio | "Dan dan dan" (Dalida) |
| 6 | 1968 | Mina, Walter Chiari and Paolo Panelli | "Scende la pioggia" (Gianni Morandi) |
| 7 | 1969 | Johnny Dorelli, Raimondo Vianello and Kessler Twins, with Sandra Mondaini and Paolo Villaggio | "Ma chi se ne importa" (Gianni Morandi) |
| 8 | 1970 | Corrado and Raffaella Carrà | "Vent'anni" (Massimo Ranieri) |
| 9 | 1971 | Corrado and Raffaella Carrà, with Alighiero Noschese | "Chitarra suona più piano" (Nicola Di Bari) |
| 10 | 1972 | Pippo Baudo and Loretta Goggi | "Erba di casa mia" (Massimo Ranieri) |
| 11 | 1973 | Pippo Baudo and Mita Medici | "Alle porte del sole" (Gigliola Cinquetti) |
| 12 | 1974 | Raffaella Carrà, Cochi e Renato and Mike Bongiorno | "Un corpo e un'anima" (Wess & Dori Ghezzi) |
| 13 | 2026 | Milly Carlucci | TBD |
Notes
- ^ The two original editions, usually not counted as part of the programme, consisted of a radio contest titled Le canzoni della fortuna.
- ^ This edition, titled Gran Premio, saw a competition among the regions of Italy.
- ^ This edition, titled Napoli contro tutti, saw a competition between Naples (represented by a Neapolitan song) and the remaining cities of Italy.
- ^ This edition was titled La prova del nove.
- ^ This edition was titled Scala reale.
- ^ This edition was titled Partitissima.
References
- ^ a b c d e Grasso, Aldo; Scaglioni, Massimo (1996–2003). Enciclopedia della Televisione (in Italian). Milan: Garzanti.
- ^ "Eurovision: tutte le partecipazioni italiane e piazzamento". Eurofestival News (in Italian). Retrieved 24 April 2024.
- ^ "Canzonissima 2026, il cast dello show con Milly Carlucci". Sky TG24 (in Italian). 19 March 2026. Retrieved 4 April 2026.
- ^ Valentini, Chiara (1997). La storia di Dario Fo (in Italian). Milan: Feltrinelli.
External links
Media related to Canzonissima at Wikimedia Commons
