I may have lost my base camp for my specialty shows, “Picture Perfect” and “The Lost Chord” – which, with very little notice, were dropped from my friendly neighborhood classical music station (and employer of 28 years), WWFM The Classical Network – but I’ve still got a toehold in the Pacific Northwest.
It is a fact perhaps not widely circulated that the shows are syndicated. I’m not sure in how many markets. At one point there was a station in New York that was carrying them and, quite by chance, I discovered one on another station in North Carolina. It was never closely monitored, since the content was posted for free, and other stations would just pick them up to plug them into their schedules.
At present, all I know for certain is that both shows are still being broadcast on KWAX, the radio station of the University of Oregon. “Picture Perfect” is on their Friday schedule at 5:00 pm PACIFIC TIME (which translates to 8:00 pm EASTERN TIME), and “The Lost Chord” is on their Saturday schedule at 4:00 pm PACIFIC TIME (or 7:00 pm EASTERN TIME).
Not bad for East Coast listeners. I’m in the process of ordering equipment for a home studio, so that I can continue to produce and – since I will be in a position to oversee everything and make my own decisions – aggressively promote and distribute the shows. So you can be sure I will keep you posted whenever they find another roost in your area.
In syndication, the shows always aired the week after they were heard on WWFM, so if you missed the final WWFM broadcasts of either program, you’ve got another chance today and tomorrow on KWAX.
KWAX is a great station that still honors the integrity of the music AND its listeners’ intelligence, with varied and rewarding programs that are presented with polish and professionalism. How refreshing to hear complete symphonies and concertos again, without all the vapid blather. This, folks, is the way classical radio used to be.
Give their streaming a shot now. It could very well change your life for the better.
As an added bonus – AND IT’S A BIG ONE – the program director is Peter Van de Graaff. Those of you who are longtime listeners of WWFM will recall Peter as the noon to 3:00 host, who also anchored the overnights. These segments were produced at WFMT in Chicago, as part of Peter’s Beethoven Satellite Network. This was foolishly thrown over by WWFM to accommodate the vastly inferior Classical 24 out of Minnesota, since C24 offers greater flexibility in terms of automation. Now, of course, on an average day, WWFM is a conduit for C24 for up to 20 hours of its broadcast day. So much for community!
In the interest of full disclosure, Peter Van De Graaff is my favorite classical music programmer of all time. And I’m not just saying that because KWAX is carrying my shows. I believe they picked them up before he started there anyway. I love Peter so much, I actually offered to come work for him in Chicago in 2012. There weren’t any openings at the time, and within three years he had moved to KWAX in Eugene.
My heart would still beat for PVdG, even if they wound up dropping my shows. Thank you, KWAX! And keep watching this space for further developments.
You can refresh your memory on the content of my shows for this weekend from these posts I wrote last week for their WWFM broadcast. Just note that the times and the station of origin have changed!
“Picture Perfect,” Fridays on KWAX at 5:00 PACIFIC TIME (8:00 PM EDT)
https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1085977752321287&set=a.883855802533484
“The Lost Chord,” Saturdays on KWAX at 4:00 PACIFIC TIME (7:00 PM EDT)
https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1086510718934657&set=a.883855802533484
PHOTO: Conan rides again on KWAX!
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