  High resolution (R~20,000), high signal-to-noise (S/N~100) spectra were
collected for ~40 symbiotic stars with the Asiago echelle spectrograph over the
same 8480-8740 Ang wavelength range covered by the ESA Cornerstone mission
GAIA, centered on the near-IR CaII triplet and the head of the Paschen series.
A large number (~140) of cool MKK giant and supergiant templates were observed
with the same instrumentation to serve as a reference and classification grid.
The spectra offer bright prospects in classifying and addressing the nature of
the cool component of symbiotic stars (deriving T(eff), log g, [Fe/H],
[alpha/Fe], V(rot)sin i both via MDM-like methods and syntetic atmosphere
modeling) and mapping the physical condition and kinematics of the gas regions
responsible for the emission lines.
