Don Tait retires from WFMT
David Royko
today after 35 years at WFMT. Don's tenure at WFMT began just before I
"discovered" classical music, and he became a huge influence on me
well before I worked at WFMT (1979-1981) and was lucky enough to
become friends with him and a listening buddy. His passion for, and
unparalleld knowledge of the history of recorded classical music made
him the single most influential person if my "recorded music"
education. I can not imagine WFMT without him.
Have fun Don, and know that you'll be missed every day,
Dave Royko
MW
> Have fun Don, and know that you'll be missed every day,
> Dave Royko
Hopefully the move will be good for Don's health and our RMCR
community, if he has time for posting. I don't relish the idea of
WFMT sans Don, but I'll hold my breath in hopes I don't notice it too
much.
MW in Chicago
Joey7
Don, thanks for the fine work including the Stokowski Legacy, and that
contagious chuckle.
Regards,
Joe
GMS
Thank you for introducing me to Koussevitzky, Ignaz Friedman,
Percy Grainger, Mengelberg's "Les Preludes", etc., etc. on WFMT.
Also, thank you for all of your advice regarding record collecting and
for revealing the record "codes" ie: matrix and take numbers, and for
your help with proper recording equalization. Thanks, too, for
introducing me to our late friend, Fred Heft. Have a wonderful
retirement! Hope to see you soon. Best, Gary
El Klauso
professional Classical Music broadcaster it has ever been my pleasure
to hear. His programming has been the source of endless edification
for yours truly; His great surveys of vintage recordings, especially
the series "Collector's Item," have been the direct inspiration for my
own pursuits in the realm of historic recordings, as well as a career
inspiration to me virtually all of my life.
Don's huge bank of knowledge, energizing insights, and admirable
ability to synthesize information into the stuff of informative,
educational and entertaining broadcasting are simply too important to
disappear from the scene. It's my sincere hope that the powers that be
at WFMT (and elsewhere) will offer him a platform to continue his
activities, and that the world of digital media will be enriched by
his presence and mastery of the subject matter of concert music and
great recordings for many decades to come.
Bravo, Bravissimo Don Tait, and cue the tusch!!!
Edward A. Cowan
period when I could hear that station, first via cable FM, and then
later via satellite -- this using a device called a PANDA compressor
(don't ask! <g>) that revealed the true magnitude and range of the
station's signal. I do have several tapes taken from WFMT, many of
them with Tait. He will truly be missed by those still able to hear
the station, whether locally in Chicago or via the web. (And let us
not forget that WFMT programs are, several of them, syndicated
throughout the country and can be heard on many local FM stations.)
Have a happy retirement, Don! --E.A.C.
On Oct 19, 10:45 am, David Royko <davidro...@yahoo.com> wrote:
thoren...@yahoo.com
national CSO broadcasts.I only heard him a couple of times
recently,after WFMT started streaming.This "Collector's Item" show
sounds like something I wanted to do at one time.It's very special not
only to have a classical station in your area,but one that recognizes
there were actually classical recordings made before 1985 or so.I ran
into the guy who does afternoons at KHFM once at the supermarket,and I
told him about my collection. He says I should have been there in
1991,when they liquidated their vinyl.I said I was,and I bought all of
their promo label Mercury Stereos,DGs,and all of their early stereo
Capitols.(I wasn't as savvy about obscure mono records as I am now.)I
asked him,if they might be interested in someone doing a show,say on a
weekend afternoon, of 78s,and older vinyl.Especially since they had
just dropped The Met.He tells me he thinks it wold be a great idea,but
not one he thought the sponsors would approve of.You people in
Chicago,have no idea how lucky you have been to have had Don these
past 35 years.
Roger
El Klauso
had Don these past 35 years.
EK: Oh, yes we do.
Dontait...@aol.com
All I did was to try my best, to do what I thought would be pretty
good, and to try to live up to being a WFMT person. If I succeeded,
I'm very happy.
Who knows what I'll do next? Bill Anderson is prodding me. We'll
see.
Thanks again, everyone.
Don Tait
Dontait...@aol.com
wrote
(big edit)
> I
> asked him,if they might be interested in someone doing a show,say on a
> weekend afternoon, of 78s,and older vinyl.Especially since they had
> just dropped The Met.
> Roger
A collector's program would be great of course, and good luck (I did
them for decades). But they just dropped the Met broadcasts? This anti-
vocal music, anti-opera prejudice on the part of so-called classical
music station managers and programmers is stupid, stupid, stupid. It
is born of the herd instinct: analysts (consultants) decided that
listeners don't like vocal music, and because most people running the
few remaining classical stations are frightened and have no
convictions of their own, they do what the consultants preach to them.
I can testify that the most popular music on WFMT is vocal, especially
opera. During our fund-raisers nothing makes the phones go crazy like
vocal music.
The trashy character of the current Met broadcasts under Peter Gelb
might make them worthy of cancellation for other reasons, of course.
Don Tait
bruckner_1
to be able to communicate with you here. I look forward to your
continued (and increased?) participation.
Jeff from WI
Matthew B. Tepper
typed in news:1192920796....@v23g2000prn.googlegroups.com:
> The trashy character of the current Met broadcasts under Peter Gelb
> might make them worthy of cancellation for other reasons, of course.
I stopped listening to them after he took over. (Actually, I had been
getting disenchanted with the format changes after Chevron Texaco dumped
them, Margaret Juntwait took over, Peter Allen was reduced to doing asinine
and irrelevant interstitials, etc.) In what way has it become "trashy"?
Could it be the dumbing-down I was expecting to happen?
--
Matthew B. Tepper: WWW, science fiction, classical music, ducks!
My personal home page -- http://home.earthlink.net/~oy/index.html
My main music page --- http://home.earthlink.net/~oy/berlioz.html
To write to me, do for my address what Androcles did for the lion
War is Peace. ** Freedom is Slavery. ** It's all Napster's fault!
Eric Nagamine
Don,
Best wishes on your retirement. Thanks for all of your input around
here. Hope you continue to post on RMCR!
--
-----------
Aloha and Mahalo,
Eric Nagamine
http://home.hawaii.rr.com/mahlerb/broadcaststartpage.html
geneh
> HORRIBLE news for any of us living in Chicago--Don Tait is retiring
> today after 35 years at WFMT.
When I think of WFMT the names that come to mind are Bernie and Rita
Jacobs, Mike Nichols, Norm Pellegrini, Studs Terkel, Ray Nordstrand
and Don Tait. Thank you Don, for the many years of enjoyment and
information you have brought your listeners. You will be greatly
missed.
-Gene Halaburt
Dontait...@aol.com
Thank you, Jeff.
Don
Dontait...@aol.com
(snip)
> Don,
>
> Best wishes on your retirement. Thanks for all of your input around
> here. Hope you continue to post on RMCR!
Thanks, Eric. Yes, now that I'll have my time to myself I expect to
go on participating, perhaps even more if reasons arise.
Don T.
Dontait...@aol.com
> Dontaitchic...@aol.com appears to have caused the following letters to be
> typed innews:1192920796....@v23g2000prn.googlegroups.com:
>
> > The trashy character of the current Met broadcasts under Peter Gelb
> > might make them worthy of cancellation for other reasons, of course.
>
> I stopped listening to them after he took over. (Actually, I had been
> getting disenchanted with the format changes after Chevron Texaco dumped
> them, Margaret Juntwait took over, Peter Allen was reduced to doing asinine
> and irrelevant interstitials, etc.) In what way has it become "trashy"?
> Could it be the dumbing-down I was expecting to happen?
Yes. I should say first that the season before last I became so fed
up that I stopped listening; they might have made adjustments since
then. But dumbing-down was what had happened. The synopses of the acts
had been turned into cute dialogues between Margaret Juntwait and an
invited guest or "authority." Instead of just telling the story of
what was coming up, it became two voices alternating sentences and cit-
chat -- which was very distracting from concentrating on the
description of the plot. That is stupid radio and bad for
understanding of the operas. Also, almost all the intermissions I
heard were superficial live backstage interviews of the breathless
"oh, isn't this exciting?!" variety. Most singers resting between acts
cannot be expected to be at their most relaxed under such
circumstances, anyway. The former intermission features were gone,
except that they might have retained the quiz since it was so popular
-- my patience was never long enough to stick around to hear whether
they'd done so.
Don Tait
td
Frankly, Don, I have to disagree with you about the renovations which
have taken place on the Met broadcasts. I have studiously avoided them
for decades. Nothing so silly as opera on the radio. Opera on
television, now that's something quite different, but very rare on
this side of the Atlantic.
The entire broadcast has been rethought and I approve of the
rethinking going on. Helps that I know one of the participants
personally and she's one very bright lady with lots of ideas and even
more energy.
The plots? I was always unable to follow those. If I am interested, I
have Milton Cross's Opera summaries. After that I just want to know
who's singing and who's conducting.
The quiz? Well, that was always the stagiest part of the old Met
broadcasts, so I don't miss that at all.
As for Peter Gelb. Well, he has scored a complete triumph with the
telecasting of the Met broadcasts through movie theatres throughout
the world. The theatre sells out in Kingston, Ontario, weeks before
each closed circuit telecast, so he must be doing something right.
Feeding an obvious need. I have NO love for Mr. Gelb, who made my work
on the GPE phenomenally difficult and ended up doing a disservice to
all the Sony artists as a result. But I am forced to give credit where
credit is due. He has done great work at the Met so far.
Despite the fervent hopes of Matthew B. Tepper that he would fall on
his face. Gelb never falls on his face; he just gains more and more
power and credibility. A power to be reckoned with, I would say, if a
disagreeable one as well. Clearly it is he who has brought in this new
team at the Met radio broadcast network. It may disturb old-timers,
but I wager he's looking to expand his audience considerably. Perhaps
among all those people frustrated by not being able to get into the
theatres?
TD
El Klauso
one, and the televised direction of the operas has been decent enough,
the "annotation" and useless backstage 'candid camera' features have
been merely distracting - as well as a horrible imposition on artists
who should be concentrating on the demands of the performance at
hand.
The current Met radio presentation methodology? It's seemingly
inspired more by "All Things Considered" than by the informational
needs of opera lovers. It's been glitzed merely to accommodate 'modern
listeners' with nano-second attention spans, who will never tune in
for a broadcast opera in the first place...
TareeDawg
Best wishes too, from those of us who aren't in Chicagee, and have never
heard ya.
Ray (Dawg) Hall, Taree
Tom Baker
programming.
I remember listening to Don on WNIB (long defunct) in Chicago even
before the WFMT days! Very happy memories.
All the best,
Tom Baker
Princeton Junction, NJ
On Oct 19, 11:45 am, David Royko <davidro...@yahoo.com> wrote:
Lawrence Chalmers
but I want to thank you for your posts here on rmcr and the memories we
shared about Discount Records. Last week I stood on that very corner
w/o realizing I was there. Chicago has changed so much since '67, '95,
my last visits there. Everywhere I went during my vacation reminded me
of its hugeness, feeling of substance. San Francisco seems like a
cracker box in comparison.
I had an opportunity to go to the Mahler 6 concert at the 'Symphony
Center' (my first live experience of the work), had great seats, enjoyed
the re-visit to the place -but those seats are too narrow (and I haven't
'grown' that way much').
Hope to hear from you on this and other places you may lurk (reviews
maybe)
May you enjoy good health and a happy retirement...
All the best,
Larry in SF
mswd...@gmail.com
Oscar
>
> Just heard it from a friend who was undoubtedly listening to WFMT on the way back home from my place.
> RMCR contributor and for manhy years a major part of WFMT. It was always a pleasure interacting with Don.
mswd...@gmail.com
Mind you I keep looking for verification (not seeing it yet) and hoping my friend just got it wrong.
Raymond Hall
https://www.wfmt.com/2024/02/04/remembering-don-tait
Ray Hall, Taree
Roland van Gaalen
> Sadly it is true. [Mr. Tait] He passed away Dec 2023 at age 82.
Don Tait represented the very best of this newsgroup REC.MUSIC.CLASSICAL.RECORDINGS in its glory days.
Thank you Mr. Tait.
--
Roland van Gaalen
The Netherlands
Oscar
>
> Don Tait represented the very best of this newsgroup REC.MUSIC.CLASSICAL.RECORDINGS in its glory days.
> Thank you Mr. Tait.