But for classical music fans in Philadelphia, Sept. 5, 1997, the day that WFLN’s owners decided to stop giving its listeners Rachmaninoff, Beethoven and Wagner, came really close.

Fortunately, WRTI, Temple University’s full-time jazz station, stepped in to fill the void, offering classical during the day and jazz at night. This year, the station is celebrating its 10th anniversary of providing jazz and classical music listeners with the music they love.

In 1997, following a quick succession of five different owners, WFLN was sold to a group that wanted to go in a new — and more profitable — direction, said Dave Conant, who was WFLN’s morning host and program director.

“Greater Media [WFLN’s final owner] decided that it couldn’t survive financially as a classical station,” he said. “Classical music on Philadelphia’s airwaves went silent for 10 days.”

Meanwhile, WRTI, the jazz station, was having sustainability problems of its own. “Audience was not growing, and membership and underwriting were not keeping up with expenses,” said Patty Prevost, director of development and marketing for the station.

So when the word got out that classical music would be leaving the airwaves, former Temple University President Peter Liacouras decided that WRTI could save classical music on the radio in Philadelphia by merging the two formats.

The format change allowed former WFLN listeners the pleasure of listening to the voices that guided them throughout their classical music listening day. Personalities Jill Pasternak and Jack Moore followed Conant from WFLN. For nighttime jazz, WRTI hired longtime Philadelphia jazz host Bob Perkins and added Maureen Malloy as jazz music director.

At the time, WRTI alumni — some of whom as former students had served in leadership positions on and off the air— were concerned that WRTI would no longer offer students the opportunities that gave them their first professional experience.

“WRTI makes sure that Temple students interested in radio have a place to learn the craft,” Prevost said. “We still have many student news reporters, student producers and on-air hosts,” she said. “Also, we’ve had students who come back as full-time staff members.”

“It’s been a good marriage in a lot of ways,” said Conant, who is now WRTI’s executive director. “ For one thing, WRTI’s audience has more than doubled to 350,000 listeners per week.

“We had 3,300 members in 1997,” he said. “We have almost 18,000 now.”

It’s also led to an increase in WRTI’s operating budget to $3.2 million, with 80 percent from the community including $1.6 million in membership, $1 million in underwriting and the remaining 20 percent from Temple University and the federal government.

“We just finished our fall membership drive, and it was one of the most successful in our history,” Prevost said.

Despite WRTI’s success, many classical music and jazz fans continue to want a full-time jazz and a full-time classical music station. The expense of such a solution in the Philadelphia market is far beyond the means of WRTI. Furthermore, it would be impossible for one additional station to have the reach of WRTI’s current 13-station network, Conant said.

To meet the needs of these listeners, WRTI now broadcasts in HD Radio and offers a second digital radio channel that broadcasts jazz during the day and classical music during the evening, thus providing 24 hours of classical music and 24 hours of jazz for those with HD Radios.

“We wish we could offer more,” said Conant, “but HD Radio is the best option in a major market that commands top-dollar for the extremely limited number of stations that even come up for sale.”

As for what happens next, WRTI will be focusing on replacing its main antenna, which has reached its 20-year life expectancy, digitizing its music library, and exploring options for expanding its facilities now that it has reached capacity in its current facility.

“The technology has changed so much, and continues to change at a rapid pace,” Conant said. “Whatever happens next, we want to be there. In the old days, you could have a five- or 10-year plan. But now, you have to make a two- or three-year plan …. and be prepared for it to change.”