# Classical FM station-changers



## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

On FM classical music stations, there are two great crimes - dead air (which is why you never "hear" 4'33") and playing anything that might cause a substantial portion of listeners to change the station. That's why the programming is so conservative. But still, there are pieces that try me sorely: _The Moldau_ is one. They seem to play it every day, maybe more than once. I want to cry, "Enough! Enough!"

What pieces make you want to cry "Enough!" and pop over to that classic rock station?


----------



## David Phillips (Jun 26, 2017)

It's the nature of the beast that it won't play Bruckner's symphonies in peak listening times, but it made Gorecki's 3rd Symphony into a popular piece and always played a lot of English music that Radio 3 rarely bothered with. Someone like Gerald Finzi was hardly known to the general public before Classic FM came along.


----------



## Guest (Dec 12, 2018)

I don’t listen to a classic rock station, but when the public broadcasting starts playing video game music I switch over to the other station or listen to the former station’s New Music podcasts online.


----------



## PlaySalieri (Jun 3, 2012)

We have a poverty of classical music stations here in the UK. In some countries they have many and most have no ads. I usually try R3 first - invariably they are either blabbing or its a piece of Elizabethan church music - Thomas Tallis - so I try Classic FM. If the ads playing I just turn the radio off or go to R5 and listen to the news/ current affairs. If its a long journey I have my CD player.


----------



## Dorsetmike (Sep 26, 2018)

The continual trotting out of Albrecht Mayer showing off and murdering vocal works annoys me greatly. The other thing that annoyed me was the way in 2015 they plugged Tchaikovsky's 175th many times a day for weeks on end, yet in January 2012 not a mention of John Stanley's 300th, I believe Radio 3 was no better re JS.


----------



## LezLee (Feb 21, 2014)

Classic FM started the year after I retired so I was able to listen most of the day. Some of the first presenters really didn’t know their subject at all, resulting in hilarious mispronunciations and no knowledge of composers’ backgrounds etc. However I have to admit it really advanced my classical knowledge considerably. I hadn’t known Rachmaninov composed symphonies, didn’t know any Richard Strauss, only knew Elgar for Enigma, so the cello concerto and symphonies etc were a great revelation. They used to have a ‘contemporary’ music hour on Sunday evenings where I discovered lots of goodies. The ads were a real pain, though. 
I’ve long since outgrown the station but I’ve graduated to Radio 3 which I listen to every morning from 9.00 till 12.00 plus Composer of the Week, depending who it is. I also listen in bed, my radio switches itself off after an hour, ideal. Radio 3 has some great presenters now and is much more ‘laid back’. I wasn’t sure about the interactive bits at first (the ubiquitous tweets, texts, emails) but actually quite enjoy them now and have joined in occasionally!


----------



## elgar's ghost (Aug 8, 2010)

I never bothered with Classic FM. I used to listen to Radio 3 to a certain extent when my liking for classical was in its formative stages. As well as often hearing for the first time music which I now take for granted I was also interested to hear about the lives and careers of certain composers/musicians and the backstories to their work - I found that a useful resource as I wasn't online back then so I didn't have the plethora of info at my fingertips like I do now. My music library since then has grown to a point where I don't really bother with Radio 3 anymore - any unfamiliar works I'm likely to be interested in are probably played during the graveyard shift anyway - but twenty or so years ago it certainly helped to push me in the right direction.


----------



## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

My local station, KBAQ, has a liking for baroque trumpet concertos - a genre that I detest. It seems like they know when I am getting into the car and make sure that's what I hear. But I instantly change to KUAT out of Tucson which plays a lot of 20th music and isn't afraid of playing longer symphonic works that are less well-known. If neither station is playing anything worth listening to, off to KRDE, classic country. Trumpet concertos, harpsichords, Mozart or Haydn chamber music - not for me.


----------



## dismrwonderful (May 5, 2013)

I listen to and record a number of Classical Music stations: WQXR, KUSC, WCRB, WETA, WETA-VIVA LA VOCE, and WFMT, all in the US. Most are conservative but get around it by either having programs devoted to contemporary music [KUSC Modern Times] or have a separate stream devoted to Modern Music [WQXR- New Sounds]. All of these stations broadcast live concerts/pre-recorded concerts that feature modern music in their programs. All these stations cater to their markets and make an effort to please their patrons and stay on the air. I've found that some of the programing I just have to endure, especially at Xmas time. Since these stations all broadcast on the Internet they are available to everyone.

Dan


----------



## Bluecrab (Jun 24, 2014)

mbhaub said:


> If neither station is playing anything worth listening to, off to KRDE, classic country.


And here I was thinking that I was the only person here who likes both classical and classic country. I'll take George Jones over Mozart and Haydn any time. 



mbhaub said:


> Trumpet concertos, harpsichords, Mozart or Haydn chamber music - not for me.


Agree. And on the only on-air classical station around here (WQXR, NYC) you're assured of getting a steady diet of Mozart every day. It's a shame how unimaginative their programming is. Thank God for online stations and CDs.


----------



## PlaySalieri (Jun 3, 2012)

Bluecrab said:


> And here I was thinking that I was the only person here who likes both classical and classic country. I'll take George Jones over Mozart and Haydn any time.
> 
> Agree. And on the only on-air classical station around here (WQXR, NYC) you're assured of *getting a steady diet of Mozart every day. It'*s a shame how unimaginative their programming is. Thank God for online stations and CDs.


what frequency do they broadcast on? Must tune in


----------



## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

mbhaub said:


> Trumpet concertos, harpsichords, Mozart or Haydn chamber music - not for me.


I consider myself fortunate if I get the above on the local radio station. What I don't care for is Vivaldi, crossover, romantic heartland and guitar music.


----------



## Littlephrase (Nov 28, 2018)

Any Vivaldi concerto. They're charming pieces and all, but no one needs to hear three everyday.


----------



## bharbeke (Mar 4, 2013)

mbhaub, does KUAT come in clearly for you? I am in west Chandler, and I thought that I would be too far away for them. Also, are you using 90.5 or 89.7?

For me, Bolero, harpsichord, and Wynton Marsalis are the things that I will always turn the station off for. The respective reasons are repetitiveness, extreme dislike of the instrument, and lack of emotion/soul in his playing. Anything else is mood-based.

Currently, my 6 presets are KMLE, KNIX, KSLX, KBAQ, KRDE, and KEZ (mostly for the Christmas music). For those not in Arizona, that's two mainstream country stations, one country station that plays things from 1960-today, one classic rock station, one classical music station, and one easy listening station. If KUAT pans out where I'm driving, I would replace KEZ with that.


----------



## Itullian (Aug 27, 2011)

I listen to KUSC 91.5fm to Jim Svedja's 7-midnight show.
Great variety and he's a great host.
I'm very happy with KUSC.


----------



## Buxtehude (Jun 14, 2018)

The local PBS would play Steppes of Central Asia at least once every 6-8 hours. It must be the perfect length to fit in a schedule. Besides pieces that are not to my taste, I would switch off if I heard this.


----------



## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

Itullian said:


> I listen to KUSC 91.5fm to Jim Svedja's 7-midnight show.
> Great variety and he's a great host.
> I'm very happy with KUSC.


Just don't get him started about Karajan.


----------



## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

KenOC said:


> ...What pieces make you want to cry "Enough!" and pop over to that classic rock station?


It's not any particular piece, but opera as a whole. Particularly how the classical station I listen to tends to program complete operas on weekends and some weekday evenings. That's when I tend to switch on radio rather than play cd's.

The generous air time given to opera is bigger in comparison to the fact Its less popular compared to instrumental music. I suppose this is just how it is, similar to how other less popular genres are played (eg. Early music, avant- garde).

That being said, I hardly listen to radio now, and inevitably if I do its to their jazz programs. I don't even own a digital radio.


----------



## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

bharbeke said:


> mbhaub, does KUAT come in clearly for you? I am in west Chandler, and I thought that I would be too far away for them. Also, are you using 90.5 or 89.7?
> 
> For me, Bolero, harpsichord, and Wynton Marsalis are the things that I will always turn the station off for. The respective reasons are repetitiveness, extreme dislike of the instrument, and lack of emotion/soul in his playing. Anything else is mood-based.
> 
> Currently, my 6 presets are KMLE, KNIX, KSLX, KBAQ, KRDE, and KEZ (mostly for the Christmas music). For those not in Arizona, that's two mainstream country stations, one country station that plays things from 1960-today, one classic rock station, one classical music station, and one easy listening station. If KUAT pans out where I'm driving, I would replace KEZ with that.


I live in Higley and KUAT comes in quite clearly. It weakens at night. In my car, I KUAT comes in better than KBAQ at times. I start losing KUAT somewhere around the Mill Ave bridge going into Phoenix, and it gets weaker around Shea Blvd on the 101. Always use 90.5. That's funny - I also have preses for KMLE and KNIX, but I really prefer KRDE over the two big ones. Some people find it odd that a classical fan can also listen to country. I don't. Some of those old time country crooners know how to reach you emotionally. And some of them, Patsy Cline, have an understanding of phrasing and diction that put many classically trained singers to shame.


----------



## dismrwonderful (May 5, 2013)

Bluecrab said:


> And here I was thinking that I was the only person here who likes both classical and classic country. I'll take George Jones over Mozart and Haydn any time.
> 
> Agree. And on the only on-air classical station around here (WQXR, NYC) you're assured of getting a steady diet of Mozart every day. It's a shame how unimaginative their programming is. Thank God for online stations and CDs.


Disagree. So far this morning they've only played Mozart twice as of 10:23 a.m. They also have several programs not devoted to Mozart including live concerts. In addition they have their New Sounds feed which is quite original and has no Mozart: https://www.newsounds.org/?utm_medium=partnersite&utm_campaign=brandheader&utm_source=wqxr[/url].

Dan


----------



## bharbeke (Mar 4, 2013)

The building blocks of the music are the same: melody, harmony, chord progressions, and rhythm. The difference is that in country and rock, I know what they are singing about (English music like Messiah being the exceptions in classical), and the tunes tend to be shorter.

Like Sid James, I generally turn the dial when they are playing the Met opera on Saturday unless I can listen to the whole thing.


----------



## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

dismrwonderful said:


> Disagree. So far this morning they've only played Mozart twice as of 10:23 a.m.


Twice already? That's a ridiculous number considering all the composers to choose from.


----------



## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

dismrwonderful said:


> Disagree. So far this morning they've only played Mozart twice as of 10:23 a.m.


Ah, Mozart. We used to have a commercial FM station, KMZT, called "K-Mozart." But all their ads were for cancer treatments and funeral homes, which says something about their demographic. Finally they closed down and their frequency was taken over by a C&W station.


----------



## Bluecrab (Jun 24, 2014)

KenOC said:


> Ah, Mozart. We used to have a commercial FM station, KMZT, called "K-Mozart." But all their ads were for cancer treatments and funeral homes, which says something about their demographic.


:lol:



KenOC said:


> Finally they closed down and their frequency was taken over by a C&W station.


The inevitable march of progress.


----------



## eugeneonagain (May 14, 2017)

I don't have much time for listening to the radio very passively; it's going to be at least another 20-25 years before I can be officially 'retired'. 

I do put on BBC radio 3, whilst working, if there is something on which piques my interest. The programming on 3 is actually quite varied and the complaints are because it's impossible to please everyone all the time.

What would make me switch off/over? Probably opera, though not always. Schubert, almost always (leider, diese Lieder!). Xenakis (a bleeding racket). In general any composer who has been 'rediscovered' and is now being played to the max and queued up for at the Albert Hall by people with no imagination of their own.


----------

