Date:	27-Apr-1998 13:05:33
From:	Neil Jones (Neil_Jones@tvo.org)
	Jazz radio in Toronto is alive and well! Over 65 hours per week of every sort of jazz imaginable. Sundays are pitiful, though. I wish someone would program jazz Sunday evenings. If anyone wants a jazz/blues radio schedule for Toronto, contact me, as I've just compiled one for my own personal use.

 

Date:	29-Apr-1998 13:33:27
From:	Chris S (cslawec9@idt.net)
	I live in a suburb of Philly. We at one time had the world's greatest jazz station (at least it was the greatest in MY world), WRTI-FM from Temple University. Within the past few months, this station merged with the going-out-of-business classical station, with this result: Now we have classical music from 6 am to 6 pm, and jazz from 6 pm to 6 am. And for a city with the jazz legacy that Philadelphia is legitimately proud of, that really sucks. All the responsible button-down business people listen to the radio during the day, and the night belongs to those shiftless, club-dwelling freaks? Please!

 

Date:	30-Apr-1998 19:33:27
From:	Jeff Duperon (mrjazzjr@sprintmail.com)
	In five words: " JAZZ IS ALIVE AND WELL " Chris, I agree that Philly has a rich jazz legacy and the city should be very proud of their place in Jazz history. However, I don't agree with your anger about losing 12 hours of Jazz programming. WRTI still programs more JAZZ than any other radio station in the tri-state area. Keep in mind, if the financial contributions from listeners like yourself, (that's assuming that you pledged your financial support to the station), had not dwindled, You would proudly be stating in your comments that Philly has the only 24hr *Real Jazz* station in the country. I have heard all of the arguments as to why jazz listeners have decided to turn their backs on WRTI and quite frankly, I don't buy it. As long as I can physically operate my vocal chords, I will be promoting America's only original art form. WRTI's committment to program the best JAZZ on the air is and always will be strong. Bob Perkins, Earle Brown, J. Michael Harrison, Harrison Ridley, myself et al, will continue to broadcast the music without reservation. Tune in to any of the aforementioned individuals and plan to be improvisationally entertained with the best of extemporaneous embellishment on the theme that your ears can stand. Tune in every Saturday from 7 p.m. - 9 p.m. in Philadelphia, WRTI - 90.1FM and be entertained by a Master of the Jazz Turntable. Nuff Said

 

Date:	02-May-1998 18:12:12
From:	Mvalentine
	Here in Miami there's WDNA 88.9 consisting of 18hrs per day of jazz(Mon-Fri)Sat and Sun from 8:00 A.M.- 12:00 P.M.In addition jazz overnight with Bob Parlocha

 

Date:	05-May-1998 11:31:48
From:	Fred Moskowitz (moskowitzf@icst.com)
	Re: State of Jazz radio in Philadelphia I agree with Jeff Duperon in that the programming change could have been avoided if there was more financial support from the listening community. In the past at WRTI, the radio of actual supporting members to listeners was pathetic. And now, it looks like the classical listeners are having no qualms about supporting the station. Remember that a public station will respond to the needs and wishes of its supporting members. Right now I would venture to guess that the classical listening members significantly outnumber the jazz listening members (can you verify that, Jeff?). If this ever changes, then I am sure that WRTI will take another look at the direction that they are heading. For the time being, there are alternatives available for daytime listening. For those of us here on the internet, we can tune into two excellent stations using the RealAudio software. Both KCSM (San Franscicso Bay area) and WBGO (Newark, NJ) broadcast over the internet, and both of these stations are 24 hour jazz stations providing excellent programming (IMHO). In order to tune in, just visit their web sites, www.kcsm.org and www.wbgo.org Emphasizing what I had mentioned before, if you enjoy either or both of these stations then you should be proactive and show your support financially. During their last fund drive, KCSM spoke at length about what could happen to a public station without the support of its listeners. And to illustrate their point, their example was, of course, WRTI in Philadelphia. Keep up the good work Jeff, you and the other jazz folks at WRTI. But I am curious what happened to Kim Berry? It seems that she disappeared rather quietly. -Fred Moskowitz

 

Date:	06-May-1998 21:15:27
From:	Walter Price (lw627329@aol.com)
	Will these big city jazz radio station RATS quit whining about funding. They probaly stood in the jazz ship that sunk throwing their hands up in the air playing musical formats that turned off hardcore jazz fans and put to sleep eevry new listerner. GET EXCITED ABOUT JAZZ AND LISTERNERS WILL COME!!!!! Jazz radio RATS that cannot survive in a market like Philadelphia. Well then there is just no hope for the majority of the rest of us who catches jazz on every college and public radio station in middle America. Will somebody replace these rats for some jazz cats. Oh I forgot its jazz-nobody in America is listening!!!!

 

Date:	08-May-1998 00:27:49
From:	Annie Flynn
	Did you know we have great jazz shows out here in Carbondale, CO? Top Floor Jazz, Loch Dinkle Monster Jazz, Night Magic, Wicked Jazz, the Razor's Edge, and Saturday Night Jazz Boys - - this and more. OK, we're not 24 hours; we share the air waves with an eclectic battery of DJs serving blues, ska, punk, classic rock, celtic, R&B freaks et al. But we LOVE OUR JAZZ. Tune in as you're heading across to KDNK at 90.5 or 88.3 FM.

 

Date:	09-May-1998 01:51:50
From:	Cameron Taylor
	Is jazz radio alive and well? In Chicago it sure is. there are two stations playing adequate amounts of jazz in and around the city: the overrated stalwart WBEZ and a great station out of the western suburbs, WDCB. BEZ has cut back significantly on their jazz (9pm to 4am), and rarely play that much of interest, while DCB has honed their focus and is now playing some truly great stuff from 6am to 6pm and overnights from 12am to 4, 6 nights a week. If that's the state of jazz radio, we fans of the REAL music are in fine shape.

 

Date:	12-May-1998 00:13:39
From:	Rick Erben (Rick L... Erben @ notes.up.com)
	I, too, share the dismay over loss of full-time jazz on Philly's WRTI. I had hoped the wide expanse of the station's signal (via translators) would reach a wide enough audience to offset the lack of "market share" inherent with jazz - or at least until Shania Twain begins to record with Eric Alexander and Mel Rhyne. I note the mention of Bob Parlocha in reference to programming in the Miami area and thus presume his program is via satellite. I have heard it on KANU from Lawrence, KS and am much impressed by this fellow's show. Jim Wilke's superb Jazz After Hours is available across much of the country on weekends via satellite also and has been a staple source of The Music for those of us in the central "stranded" zone. Jazz airs on Omaha's KIOS-FM 91.5 weekday afternoons between 1pm and 330pm and Saturday nights between 8pm and midnight. Every little bit helps.

 

Date:	18-May-1998 18:42:36
From:	loisc
	The Toronto jazz radio available would take a tremendous hit if CJRT-FM went under ... and funding remains a serious challenge.

 

Date:	18-May-1998 22:58:11
From:	Bill Gallagher
	In the San Francisco Bay Area we have KCSM (91.1 FM). It's a full 24 hour, public radio station, listener funded, on the campus of College of San Mateo, that is getting bigger all the time. They now have an annual jazz festival and guest musician (e.g. Sweets Edison) spot. Great mix of programming. Something for everyone. Marian McPartland's show, Dick Hadlock's show, Jazz from Riverwalk (San Antonio), and until his recent death, we even had Al Jazzbeau Collins. Listen in if you are ever out this way.

 

Date:	21-May-1998 00:03:00
From:	Vicki (vicki@uab.campus.mci.net)
	Jazz radio sucks in B'ham, AL. I'm always so tickled at how we get a few well known artisits to appear here and no one knows they are coming because there is no format to announce it to a vast majority of interested listeners. Furthermore, it's also odd, because we really have a vast base of local jazz talent. Our lack of a jazz formatted station is not reflected in our local talent. Don't get me wrong, there is a college radio station that airs "Jazz after Hours" for which I'm truly grateful but thats only 2 nights out of the week. Another college station airs many tapes of "smooth jazz", which is somewhat outdated, but that's only 8 hours a day and 5 hours through the wee hours of the morning. If it wasn't for the internet I think I would almost be totally oblivious to what's out there in jazz radio. Thank God for the internet!!!

 

Date:	22-May-1998 01:17:06
From:	Daniel Woods-Karcher (jazzonair@aol.com)
	I see there is an abundance of passion and frustration regarding the state of jazz radio in Philadelphia. Indeed, WRTI had their reasons to alter the format, of which we all have some knowledge of, yet no one posted as of yet is qualified to reveal the bottom-line reasons (although, the statement about financial support (or, "lack-of") is terribly close. There are additional reasons as well. What is the "bottom-line, however, is that Philadelphia is indeed lacking a 24-hour format loyal to America's classical music. This, is not only dissapointing, it's downright embarrassing. If anything, we should ALL be ashamed. In response to the statement that WRTI still has the most predominant jazz in the tri-state area, I must remind you about WBGO (88.3) in Newark, NJ. WBGO is, and always has been a 24-hour professional jazz station, and is also considered to be the finest jazz station not only in the U.S., yet rather, the world. And! and! and! hailing from just outside NYC, that makes it 66% of the tri-state area, and 100% if you consider the translators. So, although I'm still very very grateful for WRTI's jazz in the back seat 12 hour shift (questionably, in that sports and some rather unorthodox programming occurs 30% of that 12 hour slot), let us give respect where it is due. I have mixed feelings about WRTI, yet I have NOT lost my affection for it (I was with JAZZ-FM four years ago), and for those who have remained on staff (i.e. Earl), THANK YOU for not losing your spirit when you ARE on the air. In-so-far as as additional jazz radio, Monifa has graduated to JAZZ88 (BGO), and I have been hosting a jazz program at WPRB (103.3)for 4 years now (the Blue Daniel) in the midday hours, so Philly never actually lost its midday jazz, it was simply misplaced. Although we have always maintained respectable ratings (yes, even Gavin noticed), since WRTI's format change, our ratings have blown through the roof as word and blue-notes from WPRB's jazz get out - one ear at a time. As a result, we are expanding our jazz format slots, as carefully as possible (we have a very strong audience in our other also rather unorthodox programs, and that has to be considered, in that we are a commercial station). Therefore, WRTI and WPRB both have many options to consider, and that should be respected. Be proud that at least we (RTI and PRB) didn't "sell-out" like a few nameless other stations (oh, what a FAN-fair). If we are as passionate about jazz as I safely assume we are, then we are already blood-brothers, and I'm confident we will all work together on this. WE need 24 hour jazz DIRECTLY in Philadelphia AGAIN, it doesn't matter be it PRB or RTI, we love the jazz, we NEED the jazz, WHAT are WE going to do about it? Your comments are invited to jazzonair@aol.com.

 

Date:	25-May-1998 21:15:24
From:	Karen Angela Moore (MOORETUNES@aol.com)
	Well - Jazz Radio here In Twang Town (Nashville, Tennessee) is about what you'd expect...it sucks. WE had a wonderful station at the university - WMOT. Played so much new stuff and did quality live in studio shows etc. For some reason they are now syndicating so much of the show. Not that it's all bad...but it's mostly the Gavin Chart lists and reissue. I can't complain - atleast we have something here! I have to repeat a comment that I left in another catagory...a BIG round of applause for college radio across the country. It's the last unprogrammed, non- corporate frontier. Tap in! It's great!

 

Date:	26-May-1998 21:50:18
From:	Rasa Petrovic (prasa@eunet.yu)
	Considering economic and political situation in Yugoslavia, I must say that jazz is very much alive. I'm pretty proud that I influenced a lot of young people to start their jazz programs on local radio stations, so now we have over 20 weekly jazz programs. A lot of young musicians started playing jazz, from mainstream to fusion, with great enthusiasm. We also have a lot of students in jazz academies in Europe and USA. Big Band of RTS, under direction of Steve Gut (proffessor at Jazz Academy in Gratz, Austria) is getting better and better. Recently we had a few famous gust stars - Clark Terry, Roy Hargrove, Alvin Queen etc., and for the Summertime Jazz Festival we're expecting Branford Marsalis, Dr. John, The Blues Brothers and some other acts TBA. So, all things considering things are going better than I can hope. Rasa Petrovic Editor and author of "All That Jazz" radio programme Radio Beograd - BEOGRAD 202

 

Date:	28-May-1998 16:47:29
From:	Kevin Seiler (mseiler@racal-pelagos.com)
	Jazz radio in San Diego fairly sucks... there's a station that plays 'cool jazz", wich is an abomination. David Sanborn and his ilk are doing to Jazz what Kenny Rogers did to Country music- watering it down and ruining it. Garth Brooks is the evil spawn of this commercial noise. If you want real Jazz in S.D. there is Jazz 88, a college station running about 100 watts but available on cable or if you have a good FM antenna. Most people in this town think Jazz is this Cool Jazz souless crap.

 

Date:	29-May-1998 16:53:58
From:	Lyle Melton (lyle@melton.org)
	I agree. Wish the college station would boost it's power. It's the best (and only) station in San Diego

 

Date:	30-May-1998 11:36:38
From:	don guthrie (guthrie@mcn.org)
	just got home from sacramento jazz jubilee. best ever.over 130 bands. looking to next year.

 

Date:	30-May-1998 12:41:43
From:	Frank Lombardo (skipl@cwia.com)
	Northern California is rich with Jazz radio. When in the San Francisco Bay Area the aforementioned KCSM (91.5) out of San Mateo Community College is excellent. As you head toward Sacramento (and get just past Fairfield on HWY 80, you can tune to 88.9 (KJAZ) out of Sacramento State. You can hold that station all they way to Donner Summit where you switch to KTTO (90.5) which has jazz all afternoon (it's broadcast from KJAZ). Finally in the evening here in Lake Tahoe it's jazz on 88.7 (KUNR) from 7:00PM to 10:00PM

 

Date:	31-May-1998 00:01:02
From:	Peter Kenyon (kenyonp@cbs.curtin.edu.au)
	Wow, some of you guys don't know how lucky you are! Here in Perth, Western Australia, we get a few measly hours of jazz radio PER WEEK! 3 hrs on each of Saturday and Sunday afternoons ABC ClassicFM - the national public broadcaster (which for the rest of the week plays an excellent range of classical music) and four hours a week on Saturday around lunchtime on another public radio station, RTR FM. There are other bits and pieces on little public stations around the place, but NOTHING on the commercials.

 

Date:	10-Jun-1998 02:14:11
From:	Casaundra (Luminouss@aol.com)
	Hey ya everyone from Sacramento,CA...what about 94.7, The City.....they play a nice mix of comtemp Jazz to Passionate Jazz as well....listen to them if you are ever in teh area here! :)

 

Date:	14-Jun-1998 20:21:15
From:	Geoff Castle (castleg@turret.demon.co.uk)
	If you're visiting London or Manchester, England there's plenty of good jazz on the dial. Independent station Jazz FM 102.32 is available within a 40 mile radius of both cities. You can also tune in from the internet with Real Audio from their website at http://www.jazzfm.co.uk/. The main daytime output features commercial jazz with more variety late at night. The dinner jazz evening slot from 8-10pm (British Summer Time GMT+1) has the hightest ratings of the week. There is also a weekday jazz show Jazz Notes on BBC Radio 3 at 11.30pm which is broadcast nationally. Jazz on 3 features top quality new concert recordings every Saturday night. My personal web site is at http://www.turret.demon.co.uk.

 

Date:	24-Jun-1998 08:45:26
From:	Bruce K Woods (wphilly@ix.netcom.com)
	I too have very mixed feelings about the state of Jazz at WRTI. It seems that Jazz is a victim of it own abundance. It great to hear that WRTI is now the predominant public station in the area. it's disappointing that much of that is due to a desperate desire for classical programming, which I have zero interest in listening to or supporting. But I support just the same, the reasons why?? The people. I love the oldheads Bob Perkins and brother Earle, although their tastes in jazz does not exactly mesh with mine; they have the greatest jazz GM in radio --- The soundman, Tobias Poole; they still have my mentor and friend Harrison Ridley Jr. who has educated a ton of use on the glory of the music; Jeff D the Master of the Playlist, and My man on Saturday night (Von Trickt?) who play the best in the extended improv. BUT It sucks that I can't chill out on an afternoon or morning and listen to the radio (unless it's WIP!) and I'm still pissed at the way the sleazy, lowlifed, disgusting worthless Temple administration and board of directors skunked the Jazz community (no there was no notice of the change-by the way) and changed the format practically overnight. But I hope the Jazz community in Philly and around the world will see this as a warning. Don't take this magnificent artform for granted. And as Jeff stated support it...or you'll be listening to Bach...bleech! Also kudos to WWOZ in New orleans THE internet Jazz station!

 

Date:	24-Jun-1998 21:31:34
From:	Arun Dias-Bandaranaike (arundb@serendib.ccom.lk)
	It was most interesting to read various comments on this thread(Jazz Radio). I myself am a presenter on Capital Radio 100.4 in Colombo, SRI LANKA. I am, probably the ONLY Jazz host in this city. I b/cast just an hour every week. The afficionados are few, but they are 'maniacs' (Thank Goodness!) and most learn of the onward progress of our music thro' my Hour!! I personally buy all the material for b/cast. It's expensive. The management of the Radio station buy only the Pop chart stuff and other programming. They claim that they have no support from the 'obscure' labels that publish our music. PLEASE, PLEASE, will someone enlighten me on how I (far away here in Sri Lanka) can get 'label' support to continue b/casting Jazz releases and re-releases. Will some professional out there be able to advise? Thanks.

 

Date:	26-Jun-1998 15:06:15
From:	Rich Chapel (rchapel@discovernet.net)
	When driving through central Massachusetts, specifically the Worcester area, dial in 90.5 on the FM band and check out WICN. Originally the radio voice of Clark University, WICN has become a beacon of jazz playing all styles. Having a jazz station of this high caliber is a great asset, nearly enough to justify relocating to "Wormtown." RC

 

Date:	01-Jul-1998 17:26:59
From:	Jan Klincewicz (phillyjazz@home.com)
	It seems no matter how polite one's comment is on here, somebody's gonna flame ya anyway, so here goes (sans political correctness): I'd listened to WRTI for over 25 years. I pledged and paid, even when I could ill afford to do so. I, for one, feel betrayed by Temple U. who chose to jerk around all those RTF students whose parents cough up good tuition so maybe their kid can get some on-air experience and exposure. When I went to college, a college radio station was primarily for the benefit of the students. There was no need to build repeaters from the Pocono Mts. to the Jersey shore, and although the DJ's were some times amateurish, at least the music was fresh and vital. If it's a money issue, I'm sure WRTI is better funded by every freakin' dentist in the Delaware Valley who find tossing a few bucks to 'RTI cheaper than subscribing to Muzak. Since I drive all day, and spend my evenings raising my kids, I rarely get a chance to benefit from 90.1 any longer. I can do without some highly-paid "professional" announcer feeding me "Gunther Dickschnozz conducting the Serbo-Croation String Quartet in Mahler's blah blah blah .." IMHO, RTI has done the Philadelphia region a great disservice by exchanging vital, creative (and often local) art for tired renditions of long-dead middle-of-the-road classical "elevator music". When the only "jazz alternative" for drive time is WJJZ's Kenny G/STING/Whitney Houston short list, my only choice is to carry tapes in the car. I really miss WRTI, and would rather they downsize, and shut down their Allentown antennas than compromise America's only art form. Flame Away .......

 

Date:	11-Jul-1998 01:42:05
From:	Jack Bowers (bigbandman@earthlink.net)
	Checking in from Charlotte, NC, where the wife and I have resided since last October: We have a "lite Jazz" station, 92.7 FM; needless to say, I don't listen to that one. Also, there's Jazz each evening from 8 to midnight on 90.7-FM, WFAE, and then from midnight to 5 a.m. (a bit late for me), with most evenings given over to Bob Parlocha's syndicated program, which isn't bad from what I've heard. We also have a college station at 88.3-FM that plays Jazz all day, but the signal is so weak it makes listening almost unbearable. I'm starting to miss Chicagoland with WBEZ and WDCB, but no one forced me to move here, so I have to make the best of it.

 

Date:	12-Jul-1998 22:27:14
From:	kate o'moyle (none)
	seattle,washington. the jazz scene here is gradually improving,(when pat metheny comes here twice in the same year,you know things must be getting better!) As for the condition of the jazz radio, I'm afraid there is a 'smooth jazz' fad plaguing the airwaves. this station rarely, if ever, plays anything with guts or melodic complexity. listeners are consistently tortured by the overtly simpleton arrangements of rep-happy composers,who's main concern seems to be to turn out as much simmilar sounding material as possible. I heard the exact same percussion line for seven songs in a solid row the other night, it's THAT bad! Let's hope seattle gets some REAL jazz on it's radio before we all give up and turn it off.

 

Date:	18-Jul-1998 18:53:31
From:	Don Druker (dond1@erols.com)
	Sadly, Washington, DC, lost its jazz station early this year. After years of near-death experiences, WDCU-FM finally expired, the victim of the lousy financial management of the University of the District of Columbia (a DC institution that is going down the toilet financially -- go figure!) and virtually no financial support from the "jazz community" in the nation's capital. Oh, sure, people loved the station, but no one called to pledge financial support. I know -- I worked the pledge drives and spent long hours sitting in the phone room listening to the silence. The station had its problems, of course. But, it deserved to survive. However, the University sold off this priceless asset to C-Span, so now we get to listen to the sound track to possibly the most boring cable station on the planet. Meanwhile, the other public radio stations in the DC area (WAMU-FM, WETA-FM, and WPFW-FM) are doing just fine financially; listeners call in regularly with their pledges. So now, what we have in DC is a Pacifica station -- WPFW-FM -- which has all of the virtues and ALL of the faults of a Pacifica station. It trumpets its format as "Jazz . . . and Much More," but if you listen to it for any length of time, you come away disappointed and a bit insulted. There is no real programming sense to their jazz offerings, no passion for the music, just a kind of smug sense of being the only game in town. I would call WPFW's music format "smooth jazz with a little bebop" -- they play the obvious stuff, but nothing really adventurous. The on-air staff is inept (with one or two exceptions, notably Candy Shannon on Friday mornings -- a real pro -- and Tom Cole on Sunday mornings) and generally ignorant. Their on-air delivery is sometimes incoherent and unintelligle -- no one at the station seems to care very much about radio professionalism (oh, well, we ARE talking about Pacifica). When Washington, DC, failed to support its jazz radio station, it got what it deserved.

 

Date:	18-Jul-1998 18:57:19
From:	Don Druker (dond1@erols.com)
	By the way, I DO know how to spell "unintelligible."

 

Date:	20-Jul-1998 20:41:45
From:	Richard Hubbard (rhub969285@aol.com)
	better move to Portland,oregon. we have the greatest 24 hour station. KMHD 89.1 mt. hoot comm. college. 24 hours a day

 

Date:	21-Jul-1998 12:03:49
From:	Don Druker (dond1@erols.com)
	Perhaps the Portland station would consider broadcasting on the net -- providing everyone with a computer the opportunity to hear their programming. By the way, one of the country's best jazz stations -- WBGO-FM in Newark, NJ -- IS on the net. Check it out.

 

Date:	21-Jul-1998 21:04:22
From:	Gregg Jewett (gregg@pil.net)
	Warm greetings one and all. I'll try to be coherent with my thoughts here, and I apologize in advance for being long-winded. However, I do have a bunch to say, and I've pretty much kept my mouth shut for a year now. I am worried and relieved and disgusted and upset and thankful and angry and torn, still, about jazz music on the radio today, and I'll explain why. By the way, when I mention jazz in this piece, I mean real jazz. I won't even address the smooth instrumental pop music at this juncture. I, too, am from Philly. I, too, knew WRTI-90.1FM (or "The Point" or "Jazz90" or really "JazzFM" as I prefer to call her) before I even knew what jazz was. JazzFM taught me practically all I know about jazz. I'll be honest here. It had never been the best-run station, and there were reasons for that. But in terms of the music, she was the best. I have never heard a station before or since, that could teach so much about the music, so quickly. The legends - Blakey, Holiday, Wes, Corea, Vaughan, Monk, Ellington, Basie, Mulligan, Clifford Brown, Mingus, Coltrane, Ella, Miles, Getz, Cannon, Nat Cole, right on through to the future legends Marsalis, Hargrove, McBride, Redman, Mehldau, Cassandra, Payton, Metheny, Garrett, Krall, etc. My apologies to those whose names were not listed, you know who you are. That was an example of about three or four hours on the station - right there. JazzFM was the best. During the evenings, we had the best mix of music - after some NPR Jazz, there would be some Blues or World Beat or Big Band or Latin or an alphabet soup show. And it all highlighted or touched on some form of jazz. Weekdays, we had an All-Request Hour during the lunch hour and some of the best, young radio hosts out there. Weekends gave us personalities that are well known on the Philly airwaves like Kim Berry, Harrison Ridley Jr., Earle Brown and Bob Perkins. That cast right there has over 100 years on the airwaves, playing and talking jazz. In my eyes, JazzFM was the best. I miss her dearly. I will admit I am somewhat biased, though. In addition to loving the music and the station, I had the fabulous opportunity to actually live the music and the station. In the span of four years - from 93 to 97, I was an overnight host, the Saturday afternoon host, and host of the Mid-Day Show. I even found myself as Music Director and Interim Program Director before my tour of duty ended. And it was not just coincidence that my tour ended not long after that fateful day, nearly a year ago. I was on staff and at the table in the room when we were told the news. Format change. Classical - 6a to 6p. No discussion. My first feeling - I was actually relieved - for I knew we (both the station and our university-proprietor) were in financial difficulties. And just the year before, we witnessed the slow, painful jazz radio death down in DC. Many of us even heard the horrid stories about people waking up in Northern California one day and their jazz station had just vanished. Gone. No warning, only static. I really believed the plug would be pulled right out of the wall on us. So then I got angry at our up-on-high university administration for their ignorance and stupidity. They clearly made their decision without consulting the radio station management or alerting the listeners. JazzFM was not commercial radio - they couldn't do that, could they? They had to give us a chance, didn't they? We knew they were mainly looking at their short-term, bottom line. Then I thought - WRTI had been spinning jazz on the airwaves in Philadelphia for 40+ years. Over 40 years! We were given plenty of chances to make the station solid and financially independent and flat-out untouchable, and we didn't. So then I got upset at the so-called jazz lovers of our area. We had consultants from NPR come in and tell us that we had the worst percentage of members to listeners of jazz station in a major city. Plus, I began to think back to the many fund-drives I had personally agonized through, begging the same people that would call in every other day (usually just to ask who the incredible drummer was on that last cut), to call that day and make a pledge. (by the way, the answer was often Tony Williams). And after a while, I just got disgusted. I thought because so many of our listeners were not members, we would (and should) simply cut the station off one night and never cut it back on. That'll show everyone That'll teach 'em a lesson. I quickly came to my senses after that ridiculous idea. Never let jazz slip through your fingers or fade away. Never. So now, I'm still torn, with some discontent for the non-member listener and the short-sighted administration, along with worry for the future of jazz radio and thankfulness that jazz is still on the air in Philly, although minimal. Well, I'll wrap up now and try not to preach. In my opinion, we need three elements at work here. One, everyday people - whether you listen for ten minutes or all night long - need to give. You don't have to give $1,000 or $500, but (and trust me, I did the math) if every listener just gave $1 every fund drive, JazzFM would still be JazzFM right now. Give something! If listeners do not become members and take some ownership of your stations, someone else will. And they may not care about jazz. When it comes pledge time for your station, give a little, then give a little more, then call your friends and family and make sure they give (if not for themselves, then for you). And if your jazz station does not have fund raisers, give anyway. Set up a trust fund so people like you can donate directly to the jazz preservation and growth on that station. It is first your responsibility to make sure jazz stays on the airwaves in your area, and you can only do that by putting your hard-earned, hard-saved money behind your "I love jazz" mouth. Secondly, the corporations need to get involved and more involved. Cognac Hennessey, Playboy, Mellon Bank, JVC (just as examples) all sponsor usually excellent festivals and concert series every year. They should be commended for their work thus far. But they are not the only businesses with a few dollars to put behind the arts, and market themselves pretty well while they're at it. I know some of you have great connections out there in the business world - well, use them for something other than just good seats at a Yankees or Bulls or Eagles game. That goes for the local mom-and-pop stores just as it does for the international, multi-billion dollar corporations. And finally, we need you, the fans, the true lovers of jazz to "step up to the plate" (as WRTI GM Tobias Poole would say) and start acting like we want this music to continue to grow. Support this music and those musicians you love. Go see them perform! It's not just the money you pay to get in, but they need to see and hear you in their audience. While you're at it, buy the CD! Join a club for a penny or buy it at your local superstore - just get it. I say that because there are numbers and dollars at work here. And as I mentioned in numbers one and two, tell somebody! Talk to your friends and colleagues. Tell them what this music means to you and this country and the world, whether they know anything about jazz or not. If we can stop just preaching to the choir, like we tend to do, we might get somewhere. Then introduce them to jazz. You can walk them through it, even if you're just getting your legs under you in the music yourself. Let a family member borrow a CD (or an album if they have a turntable and needle). And take a friend to a show. If you know like I know, and I know you do, there is nothin' like live jazz. And think back - someone introduced you to jazz that way, didn't they? Gregg Jewett Member, WRTI-FM Philadelphia, PA Member, WBGO-FM Newark, NJ

 

Date:	22-Jul-1998 21:16:29
From:	Jan Klincewicz (phillyjazz@home.com)
	Greg - I hear what your saying, but COLLEGE RADIO (not public radio in general) does not need a huge amount of funding. WRTI does NOT need to broadcast to the Poconos, Scranton, the Jersey Shore etc. The Philadelphia public could be well-served on a small budget. WRTI's expansionist behavior is probably the root cause of the need for more and more funds. I am happy to donate what I can to hear Jazz on my local radio. I don't need to subsidize Allentown, PA.

 

Date:	23-Jul-1998 09:46:29
From:	David Whiteis (whiteis@ipfw.e)
	WWOZ in New Orleans has got to be the hippest radio station in the entire country. Whenever I'm in that city, I can turn on that station at literarlly any hour & be blessed w/ something righteous, from traditional New Orleans jazz through swing, bebop, & beyond; from traditional acoustic souther blues through postwar Chicago blues, R&B, & funk; all the way to the most progressive sounds being made in today's world. I dunno how they do it -- as an old Chicagoan, I remember the days when WBEZ was THE jazz station, & even then they didn't have a musical palette as diverse & savory as 'WOZ. Anyone, anywhere who really wants a taste of what music radio could/should be, needs to give that station a listen.

 

Date:	11-Aug-1998 19:08:07
From:	Steve Hahn (sdhahn@u.arizona.edu)
	I know where the best jazz station in the country is because I program it - KUAZ-FM in Tucson. 70 hours a week of locally programmed "genuine jazz" (as our slogan identifier calls it)which wraps around morning and afternoon NPR news programming. People tell us how great we are all the time - comments like "you guys are much better than the station in (fill in the major market blank)" are typical. But guess what? It's the news listeners who support the station financially. Jazz fans are really great at paying lip service to the great american art form but when asked to support it fall woefully short. Our all-classical station is well supported by its listeners who are just as passionate about their music. Don't tell me people won't pay for something they value. So jazz fans (including Philadelphia), put up or shut up.

 

Date:	12-Aug-1998 10:51:15
From:	David G. Whiteis (whiteis@ipfw.edu)
	So (he asked provocatively)... what, exactly, constitutes "genuine jazz" anyway?!?

 

Date:	13-Aug-1998 04:32:21
From:	Eveline How (luv_jazz@hotmail.com)
	Greetings from the tiny island of Singapore in South East Asia!! In Singapore, sad to say there isn't a SINGLE dedicated jazz radio station. We have a "classical" music station which will play jazz for 4 hours each, on Sat and Sun, from 8 to 12pm. As for the selection, well... The regular DJ seems to have a fascination with Michael Feinstein; he never fails to play his songs every programme. Other regular artistes include Christie Barron (who does a terrible rendition of "Misty") and Harry Connick Jr. Okay, so these pple are easy to listen to, but I draw the line at playing the SAME SONG for a FEW WEEKS in a row!!! The DJ also gets many of his songs from movie sound tracks, so you'll keep hearing "One Fine Day" and other sweety "jazzy" tunes. Almost died from diabetes listening to his programme. Very seldom (I should say never) do you hear pieces from musicians such as Monk, Bird or even Davis. You'll hear Coltrane and Getz (yes, the Ipanema song) now and then but otherwise the selection is pretty disappointing. I've given up listening to this programme. Sometimes there're other part-time DJs who have a more discerning taste in music, but I regret to say their appearance is few and far in between. One saving grace abt the programme is I've never heard KENNY G being played.

 

Date:	13-Aug-1998 13:29:59
From:	Don Druker (dond1@erols.com)
	KCSM 91.1 FM in the San Francisco Bay Area does some nice stuff and has a pretty professional on-air staff. Check them out when you're in San Francisco or nearby, or listen to them online (although their server is frequently down, so I have not been able to hear them on the Internet for over a week -- hope they fix the problem).

 

Date:	13-Aug-1998 22:02:52
From:	Brian L Fichthorn (BFichthorn@aol.com)
	I no longer live in southeast Pennsylvania, but on the rare occasions that I get home to Reading I turn the dial to the former WRTI Jazz FM transmitter at 97.7 with hope that I might hear jazz during the day. ....no luck ! I love classical music.....BUT.......WFLN went out of business because it was a failed radio station with a failed format. It seems ironic for it to be simply transferred to WRTI to continue its tired life under public subsidy. In the world of economics this is akin to the Japanese continuing to prop up their failed banks with public money. Sorry, but I am still angry. WRTI was successful and innovative; WFLN was NOT, but now we have to live with this misguided effort at trying to please everybody and in the end pleasing no one. Southeast Pennsylvania deserves a 24-hour jazz radio station; that is, those who the staff at WRTI worked so hard to nurture deserve not to be betrayed in the name of "The Arts." Southeast Pennsylvania also deserves a 24-hour vibrant and innovative classical music station, unfortunately something that WFLN was not. This melding of classical and jazz only serves to frustrate and distract. The failed and tired WFLN formula simply continues. And the vibrancy of Jazz FM will only wear as the focus on jazz weakens. What is the answer ? Obviously this exposes the perils of depending on public funding for the things that we love in the case of WRTI, and to the whims of private ownership in the case of WFLN. I can't help wondering though whether the needs of the mostly wealthy WFLN listeners would not have been met somehow in the end with their own resources. I myself am certainly not wealthy.....I just simply love classical music and I DID listen to WFLN, however the stereotype mostly applies to that tired old radio station. I like to think that a classical music station could be just as vibrant and innovative as was Jazz FM. Maybe someone would have stepped up to the plate to give it a try, had not Temple University decided to reward failure. Imagine what a truly innovative classical staion could be like ? Let WRTI focus on what they do best: JAZZ. And let's challenge someone else to revive classical music in southeast Pennsylvania, but in a format that is truly exciting. Unfortunately we will likely get the opposite as both formats frustrate listeners and lose focus. Let's have more discussion about this. I am still angry.

 

Date:	17-Aug-1998 01:16:11
From:	gideon belete (gbelete@aol.com)
	I miss the Cats that used to play on UDC Jazz 90.1 They were the best! Now we put up with WPFW crappy format.....I think whoever is running the station is letting anyone who is willing to come in and voluntee a shot at DJ....I miss the knowledge of Whitmore John.....He should be DJing somewhere....an educator with out condesending, Thank god for WGBO on the internet...I would be dead now.....my money has to go to them now!

 

Date:	24-Sep-1998 19:03:03
From:	henry mars (hmars@voicenet.com)
	I am from the suburbs of Philly too .... WRTI blew it. They will get no support from me. The stat of jazz radio in Philly ... going .... going .... soon it will be gone.

 

Date:	27-Sep-1998 00:13:50
From:	Jim Wilke (jwilke@u.washington.edu)
	I've read through all the comments, and it seems a common thread is complaints and reasons why NOT to support jazz radio. Wake up jazz fans, especially those of you who are listening to mixed-format stations like WRTI. If you don't support the jazz, station management will replace it with something listeners WILL respond to! Too often I've seen jazz programming downsized because of lack of listener response. If you don't like it all, it's all the more important you support those programs you DO like by calling in a pledge while they are on the air. Stations are more dependent than ever on income from listeners and if it ain't there for some programs, those programs are replaced! Conversely, programs that are successful are expanded.

 

Date:	30-Sep-1998 23:40:49
From:	Bebop (car@neptune.on.ca)
	You know, jazz to me is very exciting and at times invigerating. My issue with jazz radio is this...Why is it that jazz hosts always sound like they are bored out of their minds or they just woke up with a really bad hang over? At least they do in Toronto. Maybe thats why so many jazz stations or programs are failing. The hosts are putting us to sleep. We need some excitement, some hype. Look at those other music genres. They have obviously found a winning formula to put their music in the forefront. The first step is to WAKE UP those hosts. Their killng me and my music. Is this just a Toronto thing or does anyone else experience this in their city?

 

Date:	20-Oct-1998 17:31:49
From:	Ted
	We have a mumbler in our town (Philadelphia). He replaced a stutterer.

 

Date:	24-Oct-1998 18:08:39
From:	Judson O. Maynard
	In the central N.Y. area, Syracuse to be exact, we have two jazz stations on air WAER 88.3 which plays a nice mixture of jazz from all it,s periods of development as well as programs devoted to blues, new age, world music and black gospel. We also have WHCD 106.9 which is a smooth jazz station.

 

Date:	20-Nov-1998 10:55:50
From:	Joe Sitomer (jsitomer@qid-rnd.com)
	There have been many respondents who joyously proclaimed that they have the greatest jazz station on the air. This is great to hear. These are the communities which will keep their fresh, vital, and stimulating programming (at least if there are enough other enthusiasts around who support their station like the vocal ones here)! I've never been to Tucson, but I'm sure the station mentioned is GREAT. I have been to New Orleans, Toronto, and the San Francisco area, and can vouch for all of them (especially KCSM in San Mateo (near SF) which got me through many weeks visiting my company's office in Sunnyvale CA. The unfortunate truth is that jazz is not the big money making format needed to support a large comercial operation like pop, rock, and country can. This means jazz stations are by necessity public broadcasting or college (or both) stations. This requires PUBLIC participation and support. I hear that only 10% of the people that listen to such stations regularly actually contribute to their stations. Here in lies the problem. Get enthusiastic - get excited - get hip - get a tax write off! CONTRIBUTE and yee shall continue to hear the programming you love. I am really sorry to hear about WRTI in Philly, but all is not lost yet. You still have jazz on the air, and you can make a difference durring the coming fund raisers by making your opinions heard along with your pledge. If enough of you do so, you can help bring back what you lost. Good luck! I for one am pulling for you. Here in the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Michigan area, we have WEMU 89.1, which is what I have always thought is the best jazz station around. They are a college (Eastern Michigan U.) base NPR station which plays a great mix of jazz and blues (they also have one roots rock show/week). Jazz is on the air at least 80 hours/week along with the regular NPR news/talk shows like "Morning Edition", "Rresh Air" (go Philly!), and "All Things Considered". When I started to listen to this station, I liked, but knew very little about jazz. Over the last 15 years, I have learned a tremendous amount from their top notch, highly dedicated DJ's - in particular: Linda Yon, Michael Jewet, Michael G. Nastos, Dr. Arwulf, Mark Taras and Jammin' Jessica Webster. The staff makes the station, and I can't say enough about these guys. They are exceptionally knowledgeable, perceptive, and community spiritted taking a great interest in local artists and happennings as well as the nationall and international ones. You may have heard the live recordings of the Montreau Detroit Jazz Festivals in the past. Well These are some of the people responsible for the broadcast/recordings (along with the WDET folks). I only hope all of you can get this type of programming in your areas some day, but even here it is a struggle. Each and every fund raiser comes down to the wire..... I could go on and on, but you get the point.

 

Date:	30-Nov-1998 18:41:54
From:	Robb Hudspeth (robb-cheree@airmail.net)
	While Dallas, Texas may not be a Jazz stronghold, (we do have some good Jazz clubs) we are fortunate to be 20 miles south of Denton, Texas. Denton is home to the University of North Texas (formerly North Texas State University). I remember when I attended a semester at Berklee College of Music, my professors would always mention U.N.T. when they found out I was from the North Texas area. They have a fantastic Jazz program and a wonderful (and powerful) radio station. They don't play the standard program list, just fantastic Jazz from every era and style. While the student DJ's can be annoying from time to time, the music is always superb, and you can tell the kids spinning the discs dig it. So if your driving through the DFW area, tune in to 88.1 FM, KNTU.

 

Date:	03-Dec-1998 23:55:07
From:	Adam (Alphaminus@hotmail.com)
	Sucks to be me. I live in a small town in central Kansas. I play Jazz, and I listen to Jazz. Just not on the radio. All we have is a Smooth jazz station. I want to throw up every time I hear those plastic basslines And overprocessed bland Flugal Horn! Whatever happened to creativity? Where do they get off calling it jazz?

 

Date:	05-Dec-1998 09:40:17
From:	Aaron Fensterheim (jazfan@usa.net)
	The public radio station in Miami WLRN-FM inherited the station manager from Philly's Temple Univ. and already the changes are starting. 2 jazz shows that have been on the air from11am-1pm with Len Pace and Ed Bell will be gone as of the first of the year.Ed Bell had a show sunday from11pm-1am, that will be gone also. The jazz programming will soon be gone if new management has any say so in the matter. But when the time comes to raise monies I hope people don't call in. Instead they should support WDNA in Miami and WXEL-FM in West Palm Beach which can be heard in most parts of the North Miami area. Then maybe Joe Cooper,program director par nothing and the new station manager will quietly leave the building and not return.

 

Date:	08-Dec-1998 17:13:56
From:	Andrew B. (BLU1026@AOL.COM)
	This is a subject that is close to my heart. As a life-long jazz fan and once-apon-a-time musician, I have always been on the lookout for good Jazz radio.Having grown up in Chicago, WBEZ was great, I was turned on to alot of new artists and styles from the 'NPR affilliate. I've been living in L.A. for the last 7 yrs. or so, and until recentlyI had my own show on a small independent(some call it "pirate") station called "Jazz Advance" on KBLT. There was NO other jazz show of its kind that I've ever come across.We touched on the gamut of styles and genres from NewOrleansto bebop, hard bop, rare groove, latin,Acid jazz and on and on.We also prided ourselves in playing musicians that mostshows (certainly not the sanctioned,licenced stations like the fantastically white-bread KLON) would never play.Well, you guessed it, the FCC shut us down about 2 months ago. Actually, it did get a fair amount of local press behind us, but all we can do now is try to re-invent ourselves on the internet.So, while the state of Jazz radio well may be alive and well on the east coast and San Francisco, Los Angeles has lost (for now) the only outlet for a truly eclecticformat for Jazz. Check those search engines under "KBLT"in the upcoming months and look for "Jazz Advance" or E-Mail me back, and I'd be happy to give you more details. Thanks!

 

Date:	21-Dec-1998 12:38:55
From:	Don Mopsick (mophandl@idworld.net)
	"Riverwalk, Live from the Landing" is America's best-loved Public Radio jazz series, heard on over 220 stations by over 1 million people weekly. Starring the acclaimed Jim Cullum Jazz Band, the series features guests from the world of classic jazz such as Benny Carter, Joe Williams, Clark Terry, Bob Wilber, Dick Hyman, Linda Hopkins, and narrators William Warfield and Vernel Bagneris. The chances are very good that Riverwalk is carried in your Public Radio market. For a complete list of stations, look at our site at http://www.riverwalk.org and click on "Station List." Don Mopsick, bassist and webmaster

 

Date:	02-Feb-1999 11:55:25
From:	Marie
	How sad, no one has included the best smooth jazz radio station around in the best city around. CD101.9 in NYC. It is a so-fistocated station for an upscale audience with a great contempary jazz format that's on 24 hr. a day. They must be doing something right. They've been smooth jazz for over 10 years!

 

Date:	18-Feb-1999 12:31:26
From:	VERONICA
	I do not even listen to the radio in my hometown, Cincinnati, OH. We only have 2 jazz radio stations; one is 94.9 The Wave - smooth jazz (LISTENERS PREPARE!!). The other station is 740 AM. I personally like AM radio, thank you very much, but who really looks forward to that Sunday drive with static taking up half the reception? There is another station, however, that is on FM. 88.3. this station is a "variety" station that only plays jazz on certain nights and times. So, there it is. From now on, I am sticking to controlling what I listen to. This is no boycott against the evil radio stations destroying the glory of jazz. This is simply a ticked-off motivational effort to listen to what I want to. Instead of groaning about what to do about these B.S. stations calling themselves jazz appreciators, just turn the knob to "OFF."

 

Date:	06-Mar-1999 14:19:00
From:	Patrick Keyes (keyes@sciencebuff.org)
	I live in Buffalo, NY, where we used to have a great jazz station in WBFO-FM. However, in the past few years it has gone right to hell. The daytime programmer is terrible, always talking over tune openings and closings and spinning mindless tales about who-knows-what that he somehow turns into the song intros. And where the station used to have more than 30,000 albums to choose from, it sounds a lot like he's only got about 25 records in rotation and they're mostly organ trio dates. Gosh I miss good radio in this town. If it weren't for the strong weekend jazz programs and the NPR shows on this station, I'd never listen to it anymore. Thank heavens for Toronto! CJRT has been my salvation for more than 20 years! I grew up listening to Ted O'Reilly on the headphones in bed at night from 10 p.m. - 1 a.m. I must take issue with the comment that these guys are asleep or boring. On the contrary, if you listen to Ted and to Bob Parlocha (the new night-time host thanks to satellite) and even Glenn Woodcock, these guys aren't exactly the screaming loonies (pardon the Canadian currency pun) you hear on a lot of FM radio, but you do quite clearly hear their passion for the music they play. And they are quite knowledgeable about the history, which I always found very important. Yes, they may be snobs toward electronic music, but I can get that elsewhere, generally by buying discs. So those in Western New York tired of the mundane top-40 apoproach WBFO has taken can tune in to CJRT from 3-6 p.m. every weekday and 8 p.m. to 1 a.m each weeknight and hear some real music. Swing on!

 

Date:	08-Mar-1999 00:54:27
From:	Kathy (Cowgirl52@aol.com)
	I live 100 miles west of Chicago and about 20 miles west of Rockford (pop. 140,000). We have many stations, many formats, but only one in the area, to my knowledge, plays jazz. WNIJ out of Dekalb (it's run by Northern IL University) plays lots of NPR programs (PHC, Car Talk, Diane Rehm, Fresh Air, Whad'ya Know, etc.) and jazz at night, I believe. However, I think it's just contemporary jazz at night. Booorrrring. Sorry, but it just sounds like elevator music to me. (Yes, I'm fairly new to jazz, but I know what I like.) There is some section of the week when they play good OLD jazz, I believe, but I'll be darned if I can recall when that is! Plus, they moved the two-hour blues program to Saturday afternoon, noon to 2 pm... I love that!! I can be getting ready for work and be rockin' to the blues. All in all, I love our WNIJ. It's not perfect, but then, if there's a *perfect* station out there, I'd like to hear about it...

 

Date:	08-Mar-1999 19:40:36
From:	Jokin
	I think nobody is really fucked-up by jazz, nowadays

 

Date:	10-Mar-1999 12:49:00
From:	Martin (MRT@switchboardmail.com)
	WYMS in Milwaukee usually plays a nice mix of straight ahead jazz. I am a little troubled by their play list though. Like many jazz stations, they avoid tunes with extended or dense improvisation. (If there were a new Mingus, Monk or Trane out there, nobody would ever hear of him due to lack of air play and good jazz clubs.) They occasionally play tunes that would be more appropriate on a "smooth jazz" station. Third, they play music by bands that I never heard of. This third point may be more a comment the state of the jazz club scene in Milwaukee. There is simply no place for up and coming (recently recorded) groups to play. The comments criticizing classical music and its fans concerns me. This type of stereotyping is uncalled for. Philadelphia deserves both a full time jazz and full time classical station. The real enemy of serious music is the kind of fluff exemplified by Kenny G, Yanni, Titanic soundtrack. Unfortunately, fans of this crap support it by buying CDs in large numbers (I know somebody who bought 3 copies of the Titanic soundtrack) and by calling in pledges to public television when they put those awful specials on.

 

Date:	03-May-1999 15:39:15
From:	Marc (mhorwitz@lasal.net)
	Moab, Utah a small town 100 miles from anywhere. Our public radio station, KZMU, www.moab-utah.com/kzmu, has three two hour jazz shows. Mine is dedicated to my Patron Saint, Louis Armstrong. We also get Jazz all night from Salt Lake on Public radio, KUER. Not bad for a Mormon enclave, eh!?!

 

Date:	25-May-1999 16:08:21
From:	Jake Longwell (jake@linkny.com)
	First, I must tell you what a wonderful feeling it was for me to see that so many people are disappointed by the state of Jazz radio in their region. And particularly those who expressed their dismay over the downfall of WRTI. I have made many vacation trips South in my life, and I would travel through Central PA often, and I remember JazzFM thanks to their Harrisburgh area relay on 91.7, and I always held the station in high regard until the format change. Now I must take issue with the person who said that WRTI shouldn't have built all those repeater stations, mainly because I had never visited the Philadelphia area at all, and had it not been for the relay station in Central PA, I never would have known about JazzFM, but I see the point that maybe the station did get too big for its small budget. What I would like to know is just how well those relay stations are doing. I say this because I happen to know that in Scranton and Harrisburgh, their are already existing "Classical Music" stations, WVIA and WITF respectively. I want to know how Temple University Public Radio compares to these long established stations in these areas. If you ask me, the folks at Temple should have at least kept the Jazz format going full time on those relay stations, for there is already Classical music on the air in those areas, and perhaps they could have boosted the transmitter power on the relays in Atlantic City, NJ or Dover, DE so that the stations could have made it into Philadelphia, then if they were really serious about Classical music at WRTI, they could just go all classical on 90.1 and keep Jazz going full time on the other stations, does any of that make sense to anyone out there? Well I also wanted to discuss the status of Jazz radio here in Upstate NY if I may. The closest major city to my rural town is Rochester, NY. And it, as far as I am concerned, is the Jazz capitol of Upstate NY. First of all, Rochester is home to THE BEST Jazz station I have EVER heard in my entire life. I am speaking of WGMC 90.1 FM in the small suburb of Greece, NY. This is a non commercial station run by the Greece Central School District. But the DJs on the station aren't high school kids, they are mostly volunteers who have a strong love for Jazz, and you can hear that in their voices every time they open the microphone. And good news, the station now has realaudio on the net, check them out at http://www.greeceny.com/wgmc/menu.html then click on the "Listen To Us Live" icon and go from there. I am so glad to hear the station on the net, it wouldn't have much of an audience otherwise as they have very limited coverage with their FM signal. There is also a fairly decent Commercial station there too, WJZR on 105.9 FM. Now this station has changed somewhat in recent years. Originally, the station had a really amazing mix of Traditional and Contemporary Jazz, New Age, Blues, World Beat, and even Folk and Acoustic music. But along came a Smooth Jazz station called WRCD, and when WRCD was bought out and the format was changed, well the folks at WJZR streamlined their format a bit to try to get the WRCD listeners and advertisers I suspect. So now WJZR is mostly mainstream Contemporary Jazz, with a healthy serving of Straight ahead material, a bit of Blues, and once in a blue moon you'll still hear some Acoustic music if you listen long enough, hey it isn't what it used to be, but at least it is still more than your average Smooth Jazz station, it's still pretty good listening, they should consider putting 'JZR on the web as well. There are also two college stations, WRUR 88.5 and WITR 89.7 both of which are on the web, and they both have Jazz at various times during the week depending on the musical interests of the student or volunteer DJ that is on at the time. And Rochester also has an established Classical station WXXI on91.5 so I can't see WGMC going half classical anytime soon. There is one final issue I wanted to raise before I close. I would be interested in knowing if there are still any good Jazz shows worth listening to anymore on any local commercial stations in your area? Where I come from, we have an established program on Sunday mornings called Jazz And More with Bill Groome, it is on WCBA 98.7 FM in Corning, NY, and I have listened to it for years now. He really loves Jazz as well as New Age, Folk and World Beat, and he really mixes it up, is there anything like that where you live? Now having listened to him and being a student of Broadcasting myself, I decided to start a radio show of my own like Jazz And More, but on a smaller scale, so about three years ago I approached a small radio station in my area about doing such a program. Now, three years later, I am still hosting The Finger Lakes Music Showcase, Sunday nights at seven o'clock to eight o'clock on WFLR 95.9 FM in Dundee, NY, it isn't much of a show I'll admit, just an offbeat mix of music from my meager home collection, but (and I don't like to sound pompus here) it is an escape from the blandness that plagues radio in rural America today. So I will keep the show going, and when I finish college and hopefully will move into a full time job at the station, I can try to expand the show perhaps, we shall see. But the point of all that is this, if you love Jazz, and you do not feel that there is enough of it on your local radio dial, and you have a pretty good collection of music at home, and provided that you are not afraid to speak into a microphone, here is what you should do. Contact the manager or Program Director of a LOCALLY OWNED, COMMUNITY MINDED radio station in your area, such as a small daytime only AM station perhaps. Talk to them about establishing a Jazz or eclectic music program on their station. Now you may have to VOLUNTEER your time for it, or you may even have to PURCHASE the time from the station for the show, in which case you will want a sponsor or two for the show so you don't have to foot the bill yourself, but either way, it will be worth it if you really want to educate the public about Jazz, that my friends is the way to go, I have converted many of my peers over to this great music thanks to my show I have been doing on a station which I know has quite a following around here, and so now I am slowly but surely sparking an interest in Jazz and eclectic music. So if any of you out there decide to try to venture out onto the airwaves in your community, let me know how it turns out okay? Well sorry this was so long, but I guess I just had so much to say I didn't pay attention to length. But my heart goes out to all of you WRTI fans, or former WRTI fans as the case may be, good luck in bringing back JazzFM, hey it could happen, you never know. And my sympathy to all in DC, you too are in need of a great full time Jazz outlet. I also remember WDCU and the great station it once was, lots of luck to you all. Jake Longwell Bath, New York, USA

 

Date:	09-Jun-1999 15:49:44
From:	WGMC (wgmc@greece.k12.ny.us)
	Thanks Jake! What an endorsement! I'd just like to add that WGMC is broadcasting on the internet 24hrs/day live realaudio G2 streaming.

 

Date:	09-Jun-1999 15:55:21
From:	WGMC
	http://wgmc.greeceny.org CLICK HERE TO "TUNE IN"

 

Date:	29-Jun-1999 04:01:46
From:	Mike Bartlett (mikeybart@juno.com)
	As I sit and read you guys belly-aching about your limited choices of jazz radio, I am green with envy. Residing in a small east Texas town, our choices are simple. There are none! We are too far to recieve "the oasis" in Dallas, and our local college's public radio has a comical idea as to what jazz is. Oh well, as long as I have Miles on cd, who needs radio? The community, that's who. If we could take only one of the thirty-five to fourty country stations currently on the air waves and convert it to something with culture, I believe it would impact the whole community.

 

Date:	17-Aug-1999 23:00:46
From:	D C DowDell (keyplyr@email.com)
	I am truely blessed to live in Jazz Eden, or as everyone else calls it, Southern California. I have never felt lacking for options when it comes to Jazz music. I live currently in San Diego where there is a plethora of nightclubs, hotels and concert settings rotating Jazz artists at a consistency rivaling sports events. Between Los Angeles with the legendary Chuck Niles leading the line up at Long Beach's KLON and the Pat Henry's expertise on the legends of Jazz, here in San Diego's all Jass station KSDS, I am never without inspiration. And if there ever was to be a problem with any of the local all Jazz radio stations, well ...there's always (forgive me!) smooth jazz!

 

Date:	17-Aug-1999 23:30:36
From:	john autry (autryms@aslancorp.com)
	Jackson Mississippi has a jazz station a Jackson State University WJSU and they do fairly well though the same public service announcements occur too often throughout the day. Nancy Wilson does a jazz program on Friday night and Music at Lincoln Center with Billy Taylor is on Saturday at 11 am. The other public radio station used to air jazz after hours which was wonderful but it was replaced with new age music.

 

Date:	18-Aug-1999 03:17:58
From:	Jim Wilke (jwilke@u.washington.edu)
	I'd like to remind you to check out webcasting stations if you don't find what you like on the air. There are some good stations with unaffected but enthusiastic announcers and a nice variety of music. Send along a pledge, too, if you like what you hear. Among those I've set buttons for are KSDS in San Diego, KCSM in San Mateo CA, KMHD in Gresham OR, and KSLU in Hammond LA. The last one's a personal favorite since they stream my PRI show Jazz After Hours to the web Friday and Saturday nights starting at Midnight and continue til 6 am. (shameless plug) If you're not in one of the 70 markets nationwide where it's on the air, I'd love to share my enthusiasm for great jazz from then 'til now, and my guests who in recent weeks included Kenny Garrett, William Claxton and Stanley Turrentine. Plus we have news about who's at The Vanguard, The Jazz Showcase, Snug Harbor, Catalina B & G, Jazz Alley & many more nationwide on Jazz After Hours. For more info and a list of stations: www.kuow.org/jazz Thanks, Jim

 

Date:	18-Aug-1999 06:52:54
From:	Mark M.
	I live in San Antonio, Tx. and about a year ago we had a station pronouncing itself to be THE "Smooooth Jazz" station for the area. Slowly but surely it began "sneaking" in various R & B tunes, along with "bubble-gum" rock. Imagine a station playing it's "Promo" of "Smoooth-Jazz for San Antonio" and immediately playing a song by the Doobie Bros, etc. Well, it seems even those were the "good ol' days" as that same station has now totally sold out and has decided to go the way of "Disco-Duck Revival." I now have 2 programs....not stations...but programs to listen to on the radio. One is on Saturday mornings from a college station (IF those DJ's dont have to work their 'real' jobs that weekend and one program on Sunday morns (on a different station). So...for those of us who are seriously Jazz-Deficient...please pray.

 

Date:	18-Aug-1999 21:00:46
From:	Ted Ikola
	Reading the state of jazz radio around the nation affirmed my belief that we in Detroit can at least be thankful that we have the Ed Love show on our NPR affiliate WDET at Wayne State University. Ed not only plays a broad spectrum of jazz Monday - Friday 7:00 to 10:00pm but he occasionally does interviews and often tells about jazz history and personalities - knowledge he has gained over his many years of experience. As many of you have said, money talks. I think the strong support he brings to their on-air fundraisers had a lot to do with his program going from 4 nights to 5 a few years ago.

 

Date:	20-Aug-1999 18:34:44
From:	Sean Smothers (sean@kzjz.com)
	Check out THE JAZZ VOICE...COMMERCIAL JAZZ RADIO in St. Louis... www.kzjz.com By the way, this ain't no smooth thing...it's the real deal.

 

Date:	02-Sep-1999 10:36:24
From:	Ken Chiara (ken_chiara@gage.com)
	I have reviewed many of the comments about jazz radio in the various cities in the US on this web site. I feel very fortunate to live and work in the DETROIT area. Each weekday, between 9AM and 3PM we have one of the best Jazz NPR formats in the States at WEMU from Eastern Michigan University (89.1). As previously noted by web comments of a jazz listener named Joe Sitomer on this web site, Linda Yohn is great at starting off each day for jazz lovers.This NPR station continues with Jazz & Blues thruout the afternoon. I hope they never change their format. Each weekday evening, between 7PM and 10PM we have one of the most knowledgeable Jazz hosts in the world of National Public Radio at Wayne State University's WDET. His name is Ed Love and he plays the absolute best Jazz each and every night for a solid 3 hours. I invite all visitors to Detroit who love traditional jazz to tune into FM 101.9 every night. Ed Love has been hosting this show for many many years and continues to have a fabulous program month after month.When this man retires, all the Jazz lovers in Detroit will lose a little part of their soul.

 

Date:	10-Sep-1999 23:23:12
From:	Bob Rogers (rogershouse@earthlink.com)
	Here in the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill (NC) area we have several public stations programming jazz, two of which are full-time and both on the web. Shaw University's WSHA (www.wshafm.org) and N.C. Central University's WNCU (can't remember address). Both are pretty much straight ahead, with both stations doing some other blocks of programming as well (blues - mostly WSHA but Bob Porter syndication on WNCU - reggae, gospel, African). NCU broadcasts 24/7, w/NPR jazz features and Parlouchi overnight. WSHA broadcasts 6am-mid. now but will go 24/7 on Nov. 1st, with the KLON signal overnights (mid-6a.m.) Sunday through Friday nights. I'll be doing Saturday night-Sunday morning (mid.-6). The best time for jazz fans to check out WSHA presently is late afternoon to midnight, Monday through Friday. A vintage jazz (20s-30s) is being planned for Sunday nights, 9-mid.,which follows a five-hour (4-9pm) blues program, which follows a very good Sunday afernoon (noon-4pm) Sunday Jazz matinee. I've been a volunteer announcer at WSHA for about six years now (8pm-mid Wednesdays) and have also, in a past life, managed a Pacifica station in Houston (KPFT), an "acid rock" station in San Diego in the late 60's-early 70's (KPRI), and a country station in Phoenix in the 70's (KNIX). I've always been convinced that the notable failure of jazz radio is much more a failure of radio than of jazz. Presentations are too often boring, and as someone commented in these messages, the announcers just sound either sleepy or hopeless pedantic (or maybe too cool to actually talk). I think that the idea of ever having jazz in any meaningful way on commercial radio is completely hopeless and not even an interesting idea. Who needs commercials? So it's entirely on the non-commercial side and it really needs to be financially supported whenever it raises its fragile head. Most public stations are doing "block" programming so if you have one in your area that has even an hour of what you consider to be worthy jazz programming, please make your financial pledge to that station, specifying precisely what program you are supporting. You'd be surprised how big an impact on programming decisions just a small core of actively supporting listeners can make. Listeners to a lot of public stations have much more power to influence programming than they realize. I think that ultimately noncommercial jazz radio stations will have to have a strong Internet presence and be able to program creatively enough to give Internet listeners a reason to lend their financial support. KLON and WBGO are good examples of stations that are beginning to attract Internet listener supporters. Others will follow. I know that at WSHA we are beginning to get supporters from all over the country. I'm confident that if the programming deserves support, it will get support. Perhaps it's just too much to expect most communities to support jazz radio stations. The evidence thus far certainly suggests that. I think that its going to be very important that the Internet listeners become active listener supporters to whatever stations and individual programs they prefer. Thanks for the forum.

 

Date:	26-Sep-1999 16:40:22
From:	Jake Longwell (jake@linkny.com)
	Well first, I am very greatful that we have this fine forum in which we can speak openly on the state of Jazz radio in the various parts of the country/world in which we live. The following message is of particular interest to anyone from the Albany, NY area who is reading this page. Now is a very critical time for action in this region. According to an item I read in the Sept. 24th issue of North East Radio Watch, an online radio news publication based in Rochester, NY, WHRL 103.1 FM in Albany, which has been a Jazz station in that city for over a decade, will be making a format change on or around October 1st. My guess is that WHRL's new parent company Clear Channel Communications, which recently aquired the station, is not satisfied with the stationss ratings, or ad revenues or something, and so, they are going to put some pre-packaged, and probably fully automated music format on the station which their executives feel will boost ratings or revenue or both. Why am I saying all this? Because this to me is an absolute outrage, you see, WHRL is very dear to me, for that station is one of the first stations which sparked my personal interest in Jazz music, when I accidentally tuned into them years ago while travelling through the region. And now I hear that corporate interests want to simply kill the station, no discussion, just pull the plug. Never mind that WHRL has been the regions main source for Jazz for over ten years, never mind that WHRL has a format which is unique when compared to all of the other stations in the market, no never mind any of that, they are simply going to flip the station to some pre-packaged crap which one can probably already hear on one or more other commercial station in the region :( The point of this rant? I am urging ALL fans of Jazz in New York's Capitol region to make their presence known to the corporate fat cats at Clear Channel's Albany cluster of stations. I want all of you to let them know that you ARE listening to WHRL and that you DO enjoy it's programming. Tell them, gently but firmly, that you want the station to remain as is, and that you will not stand for a format change to some bland, and non creative format. I firmly believe that IF enough people make their views known, BEFORE the format change actually takes place, then maybe we can save the city's ONLY full time Jazz outlet. There really are no other Jazz stations in the region, while WAMC Public Radio does indeed have some Jazz in their broadcast day, much of their time is devoted either to Classical music, or Public Affairs programs, and I doubt that any of the area college stations have much Jazz to speak of. So, if you are a fan of Jazz music, and you would like to see WHRL continue in its present form, I strongly recommend you to make your voice heard. Contact Clear Channels' Albany offices, and let them know you will not stand for the demise of Jazz radio in the capitol region!!! Thank you.

 

Date:	07-Oct-1999 21:37:50
From:	Brian Gibbons (bgbbns@gis.net)
	Listeners in the Boston area are fortunate to have some pretty decent programming on WGBH-FM (public radio) during prime-time 5 nights a week and from midnight til dawn every night. Unfortunately, the growing `popularity' of smoothness seems to be influencing some of the selections during prime time. Out on Cape Cod our only all-volunteer station is considering the replacement of its very popular Saturday afternoon jazz/alternative programming with a satellite feed of live broadcasts of the NYC Metropolitan Opera. It's pretty frustrating to know that the music is out there evolving and developing, but being unable to hear it unless you pony up the $15 for every new cd. And with so little exposure, how do the musicians survive?

 

Date:	12-Oct-1999 00:14:57
From:	Lazaro Vega (radio@bluelake.org)
	Blue Lake Public Radio is West Michigan's Fine Arts Radio station from Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. We offer 45 hours of jazz per week, 30 of which I program myself. 100,000 watts at 90.3 FM, and covering all of Grand Rapids at 88.9 FM. Everything from King Oliver to Lester Bowie, so to speak: the century of music. Also, Grand Valley State University operates WGVU FM which programs jazz Monday through Friday from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. and all weekend. They're located in Grand Rapids at 88.5 FM and along the lakeshore at 95.3 FM.

 

Date:	16-Oct-1999 19:25:10
From:	b.a. (ba@kzjz.com)
	From the heartland of America....comes the music of America! A little over a year ago, this pioneer commercial AM station in St. Louis switched call letters--to KZJZ--and format: to "straight-ahead" "mainstream" jazz....24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The numbers and the demos are incredible. No "smoove". No playlists. The jocks are jazz-savvy, and their shows reflect their personal tastes...from the great West Coast stuff of the 50s and 60s...to the best of the fine young players hitting the scene. Meet us on our web site: www.kzjz.com Or go directly to www.WebRadio.com, click on KZJZ, and hear us streamin' and steam

 

Date:	16-Oct-1999 22:15:57
From:	ELIZABETH (JSEMON8923@AOL.COM)
	THANKS FOR THE WONDERFUL ARTICLES AND FORUM! IN MOBILE ALABAMA, JAZZ IS NOT QUITE ANATHEMATICALLY SCRUTINIZED, BUT DOES NOT FIND ITSELF THE INSPIRATION OF MOST RADIO JOCKEYS OR HEADS ATTATCHED TO LISTENING RECEPTACLES HERE IN THE HEART OF DIXIE. WE HAVE ONE SPORADICALLY INTELLIGIBLE TASTE OF FUZZY JAZZ FROM MISSISSIPPI, A SMOOTH/ SLOWLY PETRIFYING "JAZZ" STATION SO PEOPLE CAN ENDURE THEIR 9-5 WITHOUT VIOLENCE ON A SIESMIC SCALE, AND A (JESUIT) COLLEGE STATION WHIL- WHICH IS MAINLY CLASSICAL BUT HAS INFORMATIVE YET SPARSE JAZZ INJECTIONS. ONE CAN ALWAYS FIND PLENTY OF CARTOONISH/ WARRISH OR CHEESY ROMANTIC CLASSICAL, PLENTY OF BEWAILING, CONFUSED, DEPRESSED TEENAGERS BACKED BY ANGRY BUZZING GUITAR AND BRUTE DRUMMING, OR COUNTRY, BUT SADLY, SADLY LITTLE FOLK AND JAZZ. EVEN AS A POOR, MENIAL STUDENT I WOULD DONATE, DONATE, DONATE MY LITTLE HANDS TO THE NUB WERE THERE ANY POTENTIAL JAZZ OUTPUTTING SOURCE. COULD IT BE THAT THE ONLY SOLUTION MIGHT BE TO LEAVE ALABAMA WITH A BANJO ON MY MIND?

 

Date:	20-Oct-1999 01:30:59
From:	kevin allen (kallen1954@aol.com)
	IN THE SEATTLE AREA,WE ARE PRETTY FORTUNATE TO HAVE A COMMERCIAL "SMOOTH" JAZZ STATION AND A PRETTY STRONG PUBLIC RADIO STATION THAT PROGRAMS THE MORE STRAIGHT AHEAD JAZZ AND BLUES ON THE WEEKEND......I DO LISTED TO BOTH WHEN I CAN,BUT SOMETIMES....I MISS THE "FREEDOM SOUNDS" OF WRTI, MY HOMETOWN PHILLY....SOMETIMES THE PROGRAMING OUT HERE ON BOTH STATIONS GETS A LITTLE BIT "PALE" FOR MY TASTES... WE STILL HAVE JAZZ ALLEY...WHERE NATIONAL ACTS COME TO SEATTLE AND STAY FOR THE WHOLE WEEK SO I GUESS I SHULDN'T COMPLAIN.....MAYBE DREAM A LITTLE??? I DO BUY CD'S AND SUPPORT THE LOCAL ARTISTS AND LIVE JAZZ MUSIC VENUES HERE....WE GOTTA DO THAT!!.......KEVIN

 

Date:	21-Oct-1999 22:42:16
From:	Bob Jacobson (bobboj@aol.com)
	Here in Baltimore, Md. we have two university radio stations which play jazz: WJHU-FM at Johns Hopkins U. (88.1) and WEAA-FM at Morgan State University (88.9). WEAA calls itself Jazz88.9 but during the day it's mostly "urban contemporary", smooth/pop-ish kind of stuff. Both stations' jazz is basically restricted to about 3 hrs. on weeknights with good content on both. Monday nights on WEAA are hosted by George "Doc" Manning, whose show "In the Tradition" actually includes a lot of what I would call "outside" stuff. He also does a lot to promote local groups including a once-a-month feature of a live performance with interviews. Former big band drummer Jon Tegler is extremely informative on his Weds. night show. WEAA also has a Latin music show. DJ Andy Bienstock on WJHU has an American Songbook show once a week in addition to his jazz programming. Relatively speaking I guess we're not too bad off but it is a drag during the day. I used to count on WDCU during the day in the car and it was great but we lost that one. WPFW from Washington, D.C. fills the void somewhat. So until nighttime comes it's mostly talk radio and tapes for me.

 

Date:	26-Oct-1999 07:55:42
From:	David Arnholm (darn98@sr.sdu.dk)
	Just a note to inform you all, that the student radio in Odense, Denmark has a weekly jazzprogram on tuesdays from 20 to 21. So if you're in Odense, tune to 87,9 mhz! I'm one of the three hosts, and we try to inform our listeners of the new cd's, the concerts in Odense and whatever we find relevant ...

 

Date:	29-Oct-1999 22:49:52
From:	"BigJim" Roche (sroche@home.net)
	Hi...I do a show called "The Hot House of Jazz" on WRTC-FM 89.3 in Hartford,Ct. The show airs 6-9 a.m. on Tuesday mornings. The station part of Trinity College plays jazz music M-F 6-9 a.m. and M-F afternoons