Calibrated it started well. The new version of the musical format, broadcast in prime time on Canale 5, marked the return of Paolo Bonolis to music on TV after years away from that story which also saw him as the protagonist on the stage of Sanremo Festival. A return which, thanks to the good debut of the programme, brought exclusive declarations from Gabriel Parpiglia: Bonolis should have led Sanremo 2026 with Damiano David.
The journalist revealed the news in his newsletter on Substack, explaining the reason that stopped the host's return to the Riviera.
The numbers of Taratata's debut
The first episode of Calibrated (here our report cards), the second will be broadcast on Monday 16 February, he collected 2,333,000 spectatorsagainst i 2,940,000 of Rai 1 fiction Hearts 3. What made the difference was the share: the longer duration of the Canale 5 programme, an hour longer than the competing programme, allowed it to close at 18.1%surpassing the 17.4% of competition.
The most significant data, however, came from social media. Here the audience, especially the younger ones, rediscovered a Bonolis who was perfectly at ease with music, openly asking for his return to the helm of the Festival.
Paolo Bonolis and the Sanremo festival
For those who have not directly experienced its Festivals, Calibrated it worked as a sort of reminder. Paolo Bonolis led two high-impact editions of the Sanremo FestivalIn the 2005 and in 2009bringing to the stage a recognizable mix of story, irony and confidence with the artists.
The one seen at Calibrated it is, in fact, the transposition of that method: great familiarity with the musical world, direct relationships with the singers, ability to intertwine performance and narration, also recalling the more reflective approach of his cult programme, The meaning of life.
Not everything, however, was perfect in those editions. The division of the Bigs into categories, men, women, classic and band, was a choice that never convinced us. What was even less convincing, but for other reasons, was the regulation of the 2009 New Proposals category.
In fact, in that year prominent names emerged such as Arisa, Simona Molinari And Malika Ayanebut the mechanism provided that the artists had to bring “godfathers” onto the stage, a strong choice from a television and musical point of view, among other things they arrived Lucius From the, Pine Daniel, Ornella Vanoni And Burt Bacarachbut at the same time it made the category a luxury accessible only to artists with already strong recording mechanisms behind them.
Net of this, the ratings rewarded the Bonolis festivals, won respectively by Mark Paper And Francis Renga.
Paolo Bonolis, Damiano David and that faded Sanremo
This is where the revelation of comes in Parpiglia. According to reports, already at the end of the management of Amadeuswhen it was clear that the host would not renew, Paolo Bonolis was contacted to evaluate a return to the Festival.
Initially unconvinced, the host changed his attitude when faced with the idea of sharing the scene with Damiano Davidnow a musical figure of international scope. A hypothesis that would have led to several meetings and concrete planning.
What blew it all up, however, was a specific request from Bonolis, a request that had been going on for a long time among other things (here one of our vintage insights): the change of location. For years the host has maintained that the Festival, to truly evolve, should overcome the structural limits of the Ariston Theatre, which we remember is a simple cinema for most of the year, and move to a larger and more functional space such as the Palafiori.
A more modern vision, also in line with the setting of international events, which however would not have found acceptance either on the part of the Rai nor of the Municipality of Sanremo. Hence the definitive step backwards Paul Bonolis and the return of Carlo Conti.
Calibratedmeanwhile, has put Bonolis back at the center of television music. And judging by the public reaction, the debate on Sanremo it is far from closed.
