Goffredo Petrassi’s reputation was established in 1932 when his Partita (available on Naxos 8572411) won critical acclaim. Petrassi then composed his Concerto for Orchestra, the first of eight, which, upon its 1935 premiere, secured his reputation outside of Italy. The Second Concerto from 1951 reveals more avante-garde tendencies, while the Third Concerto from 1952–53 is animated and playful.

Francesco La Vecchia was the permanent conductor and artistic director of the Rome Symphony Orchestra, borne from his own project, for 14 years; he was the principal guest conductor of the Berliner Symphoniker for 5 years. He is an Honorary Academician of the Beijing Conservatory, Emeritus Professor of the University of Seoul, and Ambassador of the UN and FAO for Culture in the World.

The Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma undertook a wide-ranging and well received series of recordings, principally for Naxos, of important compositions by Italian composers of the 19th and 20th centuries, including Busoni, Catalani, Ferrara, Ghedini, Malipiero, Mancinelli, Martucci, Mercadante, Petrassi, Sgambati and Wolf-Ferrari. Many of these are world-premiere recordings.