[BC] Classical Radio (was Digital Interference)

[DANA PUOPOLO]

Greater Media just bought WCRB, the fine arts station in Boston. They
consistently are in the top 10 ratings wise.

-D

------ Original Message ------
Received: Tue, 20 Dec 2005 06:52:25 PM PST
From: Robert Orban <rorban at earthlink.net>
To: broadcast at radiolists.net
Subject: [BC] Classical Radio (was Digital Interference)

At 09:48 AM 12/20/2005, you wrote:
>From: "Steve" <shnewman at alaweb.com>
>Subject: Re: [BC] Digital Interference
>To: "Broadcast Radio Mailing List" <broadcast at radiolists.net>
>Message-ID: <001301c60535$92cdbc40$7402a8c0 at wildblue.com>
>Content-Type: text/plain;       charset="iso-8859-1"
>
>Robert:
>
>Programming a Classical music station in San Francisco (as I did for Ed
>Davis at KDFC in 1980 with tapes with the announcements built in) I beat
>KKHI. No big deal. It's like shooting fish in a barrel to program a
>Classical station in San Francisco. Those kinds of numbers can only be
>achieved in San Francisco. Seattle is another easy one. Did mornings for
>KING-FM for 5 years (82-87). Morning drive was 5th in the demo. Now (if I
>may pat myself on the back for a moment) programming a Classical music
>station in Dallas, TX is another story. But between the guy who now programs
>the Classical Channel "Maestro" on WorldSpace (my former Music Director at
>WRR) and myself we pulled a 3.1 share. The highest ratings the station had
>ever had in it's 50 years. Now that was fun. Dallas Symphony in the Meyerson
>is another sound to hear. Next to the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Hall, the
>Meyerson comes in at #2. I believe the new hall in Singapore is in there now
>as far as acoustics.
>
>Back to San Francisco. This might be a case of "Well, they're the only one
>in the market" statement...and they are. But I would bet money that if
>another came along and started with the modern stuff and added vocals KDFC
>would still win.
>I feel another debate coming on. I'm ducking already. :)

IIRC, when KKHI finally disappeared, KDFC's ratings immediately increased 
to almost exactly the sum of the ratings of the two stations prior to 
KKHI's format change.

Ironically, back in the days of KDFC's "so stiff it sounds embalmed" 
presentation, the music programming was more eclectic and interesting than 
it is now. Some of the tapes that Steve Waldee prepared (in the '70s) from 
his collection of around 5000 classical LPs introduced me to worthwhile 
music that I never have sought out on my own.

KDFC is programming for ratings and is getting very good numbers. Moreover, 
I give it credit for being much more involved with the San Francisco 
performing arts community than it ever was under Ed Davis There is 
obviously a big audience for the "classical music as the new Beautiful 
Music format," not intended for attentive listening. If I were programming 
a commercial classical station today, I would probably go in the same 
direction because it provides a viable alternative to "smooth jazz" for 
listeners who want something soothing in the background during their 
workdays. Nevertheless, listening to single movements from symphonies and 
concerti, pulled raw and still bleeding from the complete works, is not my 
personal cup of tea.

San Francisco needs a non-comm classical station (like Sacramento's KXPR, a 
100KW flamethrower that is a delight to listen to) that serves the more 
serious listener. Judging from the reception that contemporary and 
"difficult" works get at live SF Symphony concerts, I am convinced that 
there is an audience for this kind of radio in SF, although I am sure it 
would never get KDFC's ratings. But serving audiences that are under-served 
by commercial radio is the whole point of non-comm radio, isn't it? Or at 
least it should be.

Bob Orban 



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