Last piece played by WNIB?
Rick
station, WNIB. The last piece was played unannounced. It was a very moving
string piece, and it very well expressed the emotions of the moment. No, it
wasn't Barber's Adagio, that would have been a bit maudlin and too obvious
choice. The music said all that needed to be said, hence the appropriateness
of no announcement. However, I did really like the piece, and I'm sure I've
heard it before. Did any of you hear it and know what it is?
Thank you, WNIB. You will be greatly missed.
- Rick
Edward A. Cowan
> Thank you, WNIB. You will be greatly missed.
A sad moment, indeed. But Chicago still has WFMT. Alas, that station
seems headed for the dumbing-down that affected other classical FM
stations in the past, including the late lamented WFLN of Philadelphia,
a station I used to listen to when I was in grad school there in the
late 1960s. I have listened to WFMT on cable and satellite, a once very
great station, but I read the omens, and they foretell doom...
--
E.A.C. (who occasionally revisits the final episode of the TV series,
"Murder She Wrote"...)
Greg Holden
> heard it before. Did any of you hear it and know what it is?\
I did hear it; I wish I had recorded it, because I thought it fit the mood
perfectly and was suitably haunting and restrained--I called the station (nice
to know they are still there answering the phone at least) and was told it was
an elegy by George Walker, but the fellow I spoke to didn't know anything more
than that. If you can find it, please tell me.
I see the new station is treating us to an all-BS (Barbra Streisand) format.
Just what the world needs, don't you think? If I am not mistaken, the new
owners, Bonneville International, also own WGMS in Washington D.C., which is one
of two classical stations there. Why couldn't they have kept our second
classical station here in Chicago, I wonder?
Greg Holden
Greg Holden
> Rick wrote:
>
> > I just listened to the final moments of Chicago's most popular classical
> > station, WNIB. The last piece was played unannounced. It was a very moving
> > string piece, and it very well expressed the emotions of the moment. No, it
> > wasn't Barber's Adagio, that would have been a bit maudlin and too obvious
> > choice. The music said all that needed to be said, hence the appropriateness
> > of no announcement. However, I did really like the piece, and I'm sure I've
> > heard it before. Did any of you hear it and know what it is?\
>
Actually, I think I might have found it--I think it's called "Lyrics," and it's on
this CD:
Greg
Gail Mrozak
The final WNIB program announcer, Bruce Duffie, notes on his personal
web site that the piece is "Lyric for Strings" by George Walker.
It appears that the Streisand music is a place holder until the new
format is a) decided, b) prepared, or c) advertised. They are playing
2 or more Streisand albums over and over, w/a voice at least every hour
on the hour annoucing "WNIB 97.1" (required to ID hourly by the FCC),
EVEN over the music!
Don't count on Streisand, or anything classical, taking its place.
Chicago's been spoiled for years w/2 classical stations....WFMT has
already changed to calling itself "Chicago's classical music station";
they used to say "Chicago's fine arts station".
--
Gail Mrozak
"You play that cling cling cling jazz
or you won't get PAID tonight!"
--Stan Freberg, "The Great Pretender"
minklerstraat
Rick <pl1_alp...@juNOSPAM.com> schreef in berichtnieuws
:
: Thank you, WNIB. You will be greatly missed.
:
: - Rick
:
So WNIB finally died? This is sad news indeed. I listened to WNIB for
years and years and years..1970 to 1990...Bruce Duffy, the WNIB dogs, got
cassettes of live concerts with the Beaux Arts trio...Terrible. I've heard
WFMT a couple of times here in Belgium and it is indeed sad that still, ten
years later, it's playing all these Neville Marriner recordings.
In Belgium our classical station, through the years, has lost its broadcast
strength as a result of media ministers who think the zillions of pop
stations should be available everywhere since, supposedly, everyone listens
to them. The classical station has also been forced to 'popularize' itself
a little bit (fortunately, it's still lightyears better than WFMT), now that
the present media minister is complaining that there it has so few listeners
(because so few people can receive it now, dummy, is my response!).
Anyway, there is a petition which asks for more broadcast strength for Radio
Klara (the name of the station), and asks for more attention to be paid to
educational cultural efforts (though the main point is the broadcast
strength). If you all would be interested in supporting us, even though not
directly affected by the decision, but simply because you find that this is
an important issue -- feel free to sign. The petition is in Dutch, so you
won't be able to read it, but it contains basically what I have summarized
above.
It's at:
www.petitiononline.com/klara/petition.html
Thanks!
-James Coder
Don Drewecki
Sad times indeed: WNIB dead, WFLN dead, other stations dead, Robert J.
Lurtsema dead. Now, the often appalling WMHT/Schenectady has just added
NPR's 5-minute newscasts every hour to their overnight (BSN) schedule,
so that shaves off yet another 30 minutes of classical music on their
schedule per 24-hour day.
This is The Age of Talk, as exemplified by NPR, Fox News Channel, MSNBC,
etc. -- just talk and talk and talk, and you'll convince people you say
important things. I guess we can also call it The Age of Hating Music.
--
Don Drewecki
<dre...@rpi.edu>
Joel Finkel
This is a copy of the letter I wrote to The Chicago Tribune (2/12/01), which
they have not printed.
I would not mind at all if you distributed it widely with the request that
people call the Regional Vice-President of Bonneville Communications (the
new owners) to complain. He is Drew Horowitz, and can be reached at
312-946-1019.
Thanks,
/Joel ( fin...@sdi.com)
To the Editor,
In the time it takes to write a check for $165 million, WNIB radio changed
from broadcasting some of the greatest, serious music to broadcasting some
of the most vapid, inconsequential, and meaningless adult contemporary pulp.
[Actually, it is now broadcasting country pulp]. It's as if our Mona Lisa
has been replaced by the cover of People Magazine; our fine bottle of Merlot
by a cherry coke; our Gwendolyn Brooks by the prattling of a three year old;
Horowitz and Bobby "Blue" Bland by Yanni.
This is a crime against all those who love classical music and blues in
Chicago.
It's been a very long time since I have felt so insulted and harmed. Money
talks, however, and because they have the money to back up their check, the
new owners of WNIB can take from Chicago one of its finest jewels and
replace it with a pebble.
Joel Finkel
Chicago, IL
fin...@sdi.com
Joel Finkel
The last piece played on WNIB, by Bruce Duffie, was "Lyric for Strings" by
George Walker. This information is from Duffie's web site:
http://my.voyager.net/duffie/
/Joel (fin...@sdi.com)
"Rick" <pl1_alp...@juNOSPAM.com> wrote in message
news:967vk8$2bk$1...@sshuraac-i-1.production.compuserve.com...
Joel Finkel
For the record, the first tune played by the new owners (at 12:25 AM) was
"New York, New York" which is certainly the perfect selection to engender
respect and loyalty among listeners in Chicago . . . . .
/Joel (fin...@sdi.com)
"Joel Finkel" <fin...@sdi.com> wrote in message
news:kdGi6.61302$wu5.7...@e420r-sjo2.usenetserver.com...
Peter T. Daniels
>
> Folks,
>
> This is a copy of the letter I wrote to The Chicago Tribune (2/12/01), which
> they have not printed.
>
> I would not mind at all if you distributed it widely with the request that
> people call the Regional Vice-President of Bonneville Communications (the
> new owners) to complain. He is Drew Horowitz, and can be reached at
> 312-946-1019.
>
> Thanks,
>
> /Joel ( fin...@sdi.com)
>
> To the Editor,
>
> In the time it takes to write a check for $165 million, WNIB radio changed
> from broadcasting some of the greatest, serious music to broadcasting some
> of the most vapid, inconsequential, and meaningless adult contemporary pulp.
> [Actually, it is now broadcasting country pulp]. It's as if our Mona Lisa
> has been replaced by the cover of People Magazine; our fine bottle of Merlot
> by a cherry coke; our Gwendolyn Brooks by the prattling of a three year old;
> Horowitz and Bobby "Blue" Bland by Yanni.
"Our" Mona Lisa? It's in Paris.
"Our" Gwendolyn Brooks? She's dead.
They probably printed other letters on the topic.
> This is a crime against all those who love classical music and blues in
> Chicago.
>
> It's been a very long time since I have felt so insulted and harmed. Money
> talks, however, and because they have the money to back up their check, the
> new owners of WNIB can take from Chicago one of its finest jewels and
> replace it with a pebble.
For twenty-five years I heard them whine "remember when Chicago had (n)
classical radio stations? We might go the way of (...) WEFM [which bit
the dust in my time] if you don't give us money and subscribe to our
program listings ...." Yet when they retired, did they take care to
preserve Chicago's "other" classical station? No, they sold out for $165
million, presumably to the highest bidder. Evidently they weren't in
quite so desperate straits as they continually claimed.
--
Peter T. Daniels gram...@worldnet.att.net
Joel Finkel
Thank you for you very kind words. How clever of you to recognize a
metaphor when you see one. I appreciate your very insightful corrections; I
am sure I have confused everyone!
The Tribune has printed one letter about WNIB, about three weeks. ago.
The full story behind the Florians' decision has yet to be written. Perhaps
they tried, and were unable, to find a buyer who could guarantee the future
of the station. The word is that they are committed to donating the bulk of
the money to support the fine arts in Chicago .
-Joel
"Peter T. Daniels" <gram...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:3A8B66...@worldnet.att.net...
>
> "Our" Mona Lisa? It's in Paris.
>
> "Our" Gwendolyn Brooks? She's dead.
>
> They probably printed other letters on the topic.
>
>
Bill & Cynthia O'Connell
>For twenty-five years I heard them whine "remember when Chicago had (n)
>classical radio stations? We might go the way of (...) WEFM [which bit
>the dust in my time] if you don't give us money and subscribe to our
>program listings ...."
WNIB was a *commercial* classical station. I doubt they *ever* asked for
anyone's money, except advertisers'.
>Yet when they retired, did they take care to
>preserve Chicago's "other" classical station? No, they sold out for $165
>million, presumably to the highest bidder.
You may presume as your wits dictate, but WNIB's new owner, Bonneville,
which runs two artlessly programmed but very fiscally successful classical
stations in Washington DC and San Francisco, is the radio group *most
likely* to have kept WNIB classical. Bonneville couldn't and didn't but the
Florians did not necessarily sell out to the highest bidder.
>Evidently they weren't in
>quite so desperate straits as they continually claimed.
That's a pretty thoughtless cheap shot. It's not as easy as you suppose to
find a new owner who will keep a station classical, especially with another
heritage classical station in the market. The Florians could have cashed
out NIB at any time in the past 20 years and made millions; that they didn't
is testimony to their committment to the classical format. Don't blame the
Florians for the demise of WNIB. That station, plus those in Philadelphia,
Denver, Detroit, one in San Francisco, et al. were done in by the Telecom
Act of 1996 which unleashed radio consolidation and programming
homogenization.
Bill O'Connell
Peter T. Daniels
>
> Peter T. Daniels wrote in message <3A8B66...@worldnet.att.net>...
> >For twenty-five years I heard them whine "remember when Chicago had (n)
> >classical radio stations? We might go the way of (...) WEFM [which bit
> >the dust in my time] if you don't give us money and subscribe to our
> >program listings ...."
>
> WNIB was a *commercial* classical station. I doubt they *ever* asked for
> anyone's money, except advertisers'.
Evidently, "there in Cleveland" you never heard WNIB. They were
*continually* (yes, I don't even mean "constantly"!) begging you to
subscribe to their program magazine (which, unlike WFMT's program
listings, which evolved into *Chicago* magazine, never included articles
as well), even though it was also distributed free at record stores.