What killed smooth jazz radio? Why aren’t there any commercial classical stations any longer? And, why do radio stations have a “format” to begin with? Matthew Lasar joins us to explore these questions about the fundamental organizing principle of most music radio. Matthew is a co-founder of Radio Survivor and the author of three important […]
Attention all classical radio presenters: don’t deny your listeners live classical recordings because of a few tickled throats!
I recommend a visit to Second Inversion radio for their wonderful video of the Third Coast Percussion ensemble’s new soundtrack to the 1966 Canadian short feature titled Paddle to the Sea. It is quite something. The musicians deploy skittering wood blocks and water-filled wine glasses to create a beautiful nature-filled sound environment. Paddle to the Sea was […]
Oh for goodness sake would you people stop killing jazz radio already? You know who you are. And we know who you are, too. In North Carolina there’s Fayetteville State College’s Board of Trustees, who sold WFSS-FM back in 2015. Of late somebody wrote into the Fayetteville Observer and asked: “The Fayetteville State University public radio […]
Lorraine Gordon has died. She operated the world’s premier jazz club, the Village Vanguard in Greenwich Village, for almost 30 years. Gordon ran the place like clockwork. The New York Times obituary gives you the picture: Ms. Gordon, often nursing a glass of vodka, presided over the scene with a personal brand of tough love. […]
On Wednesday, into my classical/radio newsfeed fell this notification about Minnesota Classical Radio (MPR)’s playlist for May 23, 2018. Through the day you get the usual stuff: Schubert, Elgar, Vivaldi. Then the 10 PM hour arrives, and . . . KABOING: Refuge Baljinder Sekhon Robert McCormick McCormick Percussion Group Gumboots David Bruce Carducci Quartet Julian […]
I must tell you that I was shocked to read this story. After protests, a radio station has decided to keep its classical music format. In Provo, Utah, no less. BYU Broadcasting has announced that it will buy an FM signal that will allow it to broadcast a bunch of educational content it planned to […]
The New York Times has published a nice essay urging people to get over their fear of classical music and just enjoy the genre. The piece does not say anything that doesn’t get said once every five years or so in some prominent venue. But it does say it well. Miles Hoffman notes the existence of […]
The Death of Stalin begins with a terrifying radio story. Did it actually happen?
Good grief is there ever a lot of crossover classical stuff going on, much of it in the United Kingdom. Let’s see . . . The Classic FM online service is teaming up with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and PlayStation to present a show titled PlayStation in Concert, billboarding “the very best in video game music.” […]
