Meet PRX, the Content Bank for Everyone

A guest post today from David Srebnik:

There’s PRI, APR, MPR, NPR, CPB, NEA, but have you heard about PRX?  The Public Radio Exchange is a relatively new radio program bank where program producers and stations (large and small) meet to upload, download and review programming.  You don’t have to work at a radio station to listen – PRX programming is available to all listeners at www.prx.org.

There’s a little bit of everything – news, politics, music, radio drama, commentaries, and a wide assortment of topics presented as features from a variety of sources – from small town stations and stations in major markets to international sources like the CBC, Radio Netherlands and Deutsche Welle. NPR is also well represented with produced classical music and jazz concert programming

Without question, PRX is a major Public Radio player and program distribution platform with nearly 18,000 program pieces, features and other material, more than 70,000 members and a recent MacArthur Foundation grant.

PRX is run by a cast of exceptionally talented media types:  Jake Shapiro is the Executive Director; John Barth, Managing Director; Kerri Hoffman, Associate Director.  And the other creative and talented staff writers, editors and IT specialists include Genevieve Sponsler, Matt MacDonald and Andrew Kuklewicz.

Established Producers like David Brown and Sarah Fishko put their programming up on PRX.  There’s also an exciting new wave of producers like Jad Abumrad and Anthony Fantano.

GPB’s Sarah Zaslaw has one of the best classical music features on PRX – “K is for Koechel: The Story Behind those Mozart Numbers” (http://www.prx.org/pieces/12724).

WOSU’s Boyce Lancaster recently put up a stunning bio-tribute to Ruby Elzy, George Gershwin’s first choice for the role of Serena in the original production of Porgy and Bess: (http://www.prx.org/pieces/33144).

WNYC’s Sarah Fishko regularly produces thoughtful and entertaining classical music interviews (Murray Perahia and Philip Glass), and classical music features, including a look at Bach’s Chaconne and the perfect recorded “inexperience” (http://www.prx.org/pieces/20006).

And there’s nothing quite like Jad Abumrad’s “The Ring and I…The Passion, The Myth, The Mania”:  (http://www.prx.org/pieces/896-the-ring-and-i-the-passion-the-myth-the-mania).

Also worth checking out – WNYC’s “The Tristan Mysteries: (http://www.prx.org/pieces/18961-the-tristan-mysteries-the-sonic-mysteries).  Wagner will never sound the same.

While classical music has a presence on PRX, there’s plenty of room for more.  If you’re a producer with an interest in reaching a larger, national audience, consider putting up your interviews, program specials, reviews and features on PRX.  (For local station programming, it’s best if you repackage it for the wider PRX audience by editing out unessential local station business.)

Listening to PRX programming is free.  Stations and independent producers pay a reasonable yearly fee to upload and download programs – and there’s no limit on audio space.  The site has seen tremendous growth in listener-members in the past few months, so here’s one more way you can get your program out in front of a new and larger audience.  You can also hear what other stations and producers are creating with a classical frame of mind.

David Srebnik and Cynthia May co-founded Listener Directed Productions, producers of Virtuoso Voices, a performer interview clip and fundraising service on PRX.  They’re launching two new series on PRX – Classical Music in 60 Seconds and Fundraising Voices.