Classical podcasts from labels, and a new show Down Under

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Authormike72x72_3 Amid our recent discussion of classical podcasts, this news item caught my eye: the host of a classical show on the Canadian Broadcasting Corp.’s radio stations found a new home for his program after the CBC dropped it in March. Rick Phillips’ Sound Advice is now available as a podcast. The interesting thing is that the new producer and distributor of Sound Advice is Universal Music Canada, the record label. As a result, the show, which discusses classical recordings, now spotlights only Universal products.

Here’s the full article at scena.org about this change. Radio stations, take note — if you create a vacuum or leave one unfilled, other producers in the new-media realm are in line to cozy up to your listeners.

Another example is the weekly podcast available from the Naxos label, featuring interviews with performers, composers, conductors and others about new recordings on Naxos. Thanks to David Srebnik for pointing that one out after I asked for podcast suggestions.

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From the Top’s new season, and a juggling act in Colorado

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Authormike72x72_3

Hi everyone — I’m just back from the massive Bonnaroo music festival, held every year in Tennessee, where I must admit I didn’t see any classical music performed. Not that there was any, unless you count Iceland’s wonderful Sigur Rós, whose music has “classical elements” according to their Wikipedia entry. Classical or no, the group performed a spectacular late-night set, accompanied by a string section, a quintet of costumed, drum-pounding women and a white-clad brass section that paraded around the stage. What a show.

On to other, squarely classical matters. As I was on my way home, the television version of From the Top, a show that spotlights young performers of classical music, began its second season on PBS. A release about the show says that this season From the Top at Carnegie Hall will have a different focus. “Last
year we produced a show about classical music played by kids,” says Executive Producer Don
Mischer. “This year we are making a show about kids, all of whom play
classical music.” So the show will feature documentary-style bits about the kids who perform, visiting them in their hometowns. Note that From the Top at Carnegie Hall offers video podcasts via its website.

Meanwhile, the Boston Globe profiles Jerry Slavet, creator of From the Top (which began as a radio show nine years ago and continues in that format as well). I’ve met Jerry and can second the impression conveyed by this article — he is quite the dynamo.

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Mozart as Wallpaper

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I know today’s title may be “fightin’ words,” but I have a musical reason for begging program directors not to play so much Mozart. And Haydn. And Rosetti, Krommer, J.C. Bach, Hummel, and Stamitz, as well. The melodies are square, the harmonies are safe and predictable, the form is formulaic (pun intended). And frankly, many recordings of this repertoire are just plain boring. Mozart and Haydn did it better than anyone else, but they are being played to death on classical stations. We use their music as filler, because it comes in … Continue Reading

Who Does What At A Classical Station?

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Authormarty72x72 Our fearless Inside the Arts blog leader and guru, Drew McManus, reminded me that not everyone is a classical radio nerd, and that I should remember to do a nuts-and-bolts post once in a while.

If you’re a listener rather than a radio employee, you might not know who does what at a classical station.

Announcers
The people you hear on the air are the public voice of the station, but they often are NOT the decision-makers. And it might surprise you to know that at a classical station the announcers are not like Don Imus and Howard Stern, pulling in the big bucks. Classical announcers are more likely to be the lowest paid employees. Announcing is considered a glamour job. I know of stations where the on-air employees earn just over mimimum wage. (By the way, we don’t call them D.J.s in classical music.)

A full time announcer might make about $50,000 at a unionized station (the union most belong to is AFTRA, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists), but most stations are not unionized. I worked full time on-air for many years and never even broke $20,000. Still, being on-air is the most fun of all radio jobs IF the announcer gets to pick some of the music. If not, the job can be very frustrating.

Stations usually have a handful of fulltime announcers, and a stable of part-timers who do weekends and sub when needed.

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