Dear Friends of Classical Music Rising:

It was terrific to connect with classical station leaders at the Super Regional conference in Pittsburgh late last month, and to have three days of conversations about our Classical Music Rising project. I am still meeting and making many new friends in public radio and among those whose work surrounds and supports stations, such as the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, NPR, Radio Research Consortium, Public Radio Program Directors, Public Media Futures, Greater Public, and Current. I found much shared enthusiasm for the work our partner stations are doing collectively in Classical Music Rising.

Read on for a new report from Edison Research on how American adults listen to music, one last Election-themed item, and station news…

Wende

Wende Persons, Managing Director
Classical Music Rising | www.classicalmusic.wpengine.com 
[email protected] | cell: 917-691-1282

Radio still leads media usage, but streaming & mobile are catching up

Edison Research has presented the latest installment of its Share of Ear series. The new report is titled Share of Music, reports Radio & Internet News, and it focuses on American adults’ music listening habits. Vehicle listening still tops the location list, with 70% playing music in a car or truck on an average day. Home trailed close behind with 68%. Work ranked a distant third with 18%. The music sources American adults are using are continuing to shift. AM/FM radio still holds the biggest piece of the overall pie, but it’s less than half at 44%. View Edison’s Share of Music presentation slides.

Election 2016: Bach vs Mozart at KMFA 89.5

Last month KMFA in Austin teamed with La Follia Austin Baroque to present its own Election-themed concert, with the audience voting its choices for President of Early Classical Music. KMFA announcers served as “surrogates” for Conservative Party candidate J.S. Bach and Progressive candidate W.A. Mozart, with the latter emerging as the winner. GM Ann Wilson noted that it was a great community collaboration that got KMFA hosts out on stage showing off multiple talents. Bad hairstyles and some nasty (fake) tweets provided some common ground with the current Presidential campaign.

WQXR’s instrument drive makes Oscar’s short list

Joe’s Violin, a film that found inspiration from a classical station’s instrument drive, is one of ten films on Oscar’s list for Documentary Short Subject. In it, a 91-year-old Holocaust survivor donates his violin of 70 years to WQXR’s instrument drive in New York City, changing the life of a 12-year-old schoolgirl from one of the nation’s poorest districts. Watch the trailer for Joe’s Violin and root for the power of classical music to make the final cut for this year’s Academy Awards on February 26.

Phoenix launches mobile unit food truck

Classical KBAQ and KJZZ are hitting the road in Phoenix in mid-December with a mobile production unit that doubles as a food truck, reports Current. The 40-foot truck, called Soundbite, will be outfitted with a kitchen and a studio for broadcasting live events. “There will be a folding stage on the sound truck, where we can then bring in performers, classical groups, jazz bands, whatever,” VP Jim Paluzzi told Current. Chief Content Officer Jon Hoban added, “If you’re going to be a community resource, you have to be visible, and you can’t just be holed up in your studio expecting people to find you on the radio.”

APM forms partnership with Google Play

American Public Media has formed a cross-promotional partnership to connect music lovers with recordings in Classical Live’s catalog on Google Play Music. Classical Live is a new recording program made exclusively for Google Play that delivers performances of some of the world’s leading orchestras to a global audience digitally without delay. Nine new titles from six international ensembles are currently being featured on and promoted through Performance Today and other APM classical music programs. Read more…

KING creates Women in (New) Music blog & timeline

Second Inversion, Classical KING’s home for new and unusual music in Seattle, has launched a new blog series exploring the past, present, and future of women in classical music. View the introductory post and a timeline of women in classical music. Feel free to use it as a resource, and if you are interested in contributing, contact Maggie Molloy: [email protected].

WUOL’s Daniel Gilliam releases first CD

Daniel Gilliam, Director of Radio for Louisville Public Media, somehow finds time to be an accomplished composer. This fall he released his first CD, The Call to Earth, a collection of art songs that examines our relationship with the natural world through the words of Whitman, Dickinson, and Kentucky poet Jesse Stuart. Sample a few tracks.

In the arts: Creative funding for Boston Globe music critic

With shrinking budgets, newspapers are hard pressed to keep up coverage of the lively arts. The New York Times reports that the Boston Globe is getting a music critic through a unique pilot program funded by the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, the Rubin Institute for Music Criticism and the Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation. An important thing to note is that the funders do not themselves have a direct interest in the Boston music scene, artfully dodging any apparent conflict of interest. Might public radio stations forge creative nonprofit funding initiatives for arts reporters and mentorship programs? Read the New York Times story.

Food for thought…

How does the author of a book about Legos inspire public radio? David Robertson gave a fascinating keynote on innovation at the Super Regional conference. “Think about your core product. How do you make it irresistible?” asked the author of Brick by Brick: How LEGO Rewrote the Rules of Innovation and Conquered the Global Toy Industry. Robertson entreats us to think of our work in radio as dating our customers, rather than fighting the competition. “It’s not just a box of bricks, but the play experience that surrounds it.”

Jobs: Classical Station Opportunities

Program Host – KUSC, Los Angeles
America’s #1 Classical station is looking for America’s next great classical announcer. Can you connect with a broad audience of music lovers of all kinds? USC Radio Group’s Los Angeles division, KUSC, is seeking a Program Host with a passion for and basic knowledge of classical music, someone that has an engaging personality that can weave topical elements into a show effortlessly beyond classical music. Come to sunny Southern California! Learn more/apply.

Classical Music Announcer/Producer: WGUC, Cincinnati
Competitive candidates will share a passion for classical music public radio and its ability to inspire and enrich the community. Applicants should possess curiosity and an active interest in music; excellent research, writing, and organizational skills; and feel comfortable engaging with listeners. Learn more/apply.

Broadcast Producer Manager/Assistant Program Director: KBAQ, your Classical Companion in Phoenix, AZ is hiring a Broadcast Producer Manager who will serve as an Assistant Program Director.  Learn more/apply (by November 15).

Send News & Tips

Send your news, tips, job openings, collaborations, successes, grand failures and big ideas to share through Classical Music Rising: [email protected].
E-News Sign Up
Have colleagues to add to the Classical Music Rising e-news list? Send name, title, station or organization and email address to [email protected].

About Classical Music Rising

Classical Music Rising is a collaborative project managed by the Station Resource Group of leading classical stations to shape the future of classical music radio as the field confronts evolution in delivery across multiple broadcast and digital platforms, demographic and cultural change, and significant disruption throughout the music industry. The initiative centers on strategy, innovative tactics, and collective action – all informed by ongoing research and analysis. Read the full project description.