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For those looking for interesting radio, I recommend the streaming archive of Lincoln Mayorga's weekly radio show with his wife Sheri on WGXC 90.7 in the Hudson Valley. This is community radio, not NPR. http://www.wgxc.org/archives#keyword=matinee On Sun, May 25, 2014 at 10:05 AM, Roger Kulp <[log in to unmask]>wrote: > As someone who has listened to tubes pretty their entire life,I find that > Sirius is unlistenable.It's shrill,compressed and tinny.Most stations > clearly use compressed digital files,and the radios themselves sound like > crap.But I guess it's OK if you gew up listening to music on an iPod or > smart phone. > > A good Victor 78 from 1929 played through tubes beats it all to hell. > > Roger > > > Date: Sun, 25 May 2014 00:15:18 -0400 > > From: [log in to unmask] > > Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Public radio was Re: Future of CDs > > To: [log in to unmask] > > > > I also like the ability to change genre of music with SiriusXM. The OTR > > station definitely isn't particularly enlightened, but given good fortune > > in the luck of the programming draw, it can sure help a long car trip be > > more enjoyable. I force my wife to negotiate with them every year to > get a > > better rate. She out did herself this year-the full version for both of > > our cars for $100 a year each. I used to give more than that to the local > > FM Classical NPR station. I went over and manned a phone during pledge > > time. Now it seems like almost every week they take away the music so > they > > can have a fund raising event. No doubt they are doing a Memorial Day > fund > > raiser. They do Mother's Day and Valentine's Day and Christmas and > > Thanksgiving, and God knows what else. The scripted repetitive nonsense > > they broadcast during these events makes one assume they think we are all > > morons. If you added up all the regular full Monty fund drives, the > > special event fund drives and the 10 second commercials, there is far > more > > down time, with little or no music, than any of the commercial stations. > > Both of the local NPR stations make you listen to 20 seconds of > commercial > > every time you tune in the streaming version. I often wondered if the > FM > > stations couldn't let me pay an annual fee, and then allow me to listen > > without the fundraising drivel. Maybe something that accesses the extra > > band width, like their service for the visually impaired. I have also > > wished that they would spend less money on their syndicated programming, > > and just play classical music, maybe from their own library, like they > used > > to. Interesting to note that Robert Aubry Davis, one of the XM Sirius > > Symphony Hall announcers, used to be at our local station in upstate New > > York. I am very pessimistic about the future of classical FM in my area, > > and I guess I wouldn't miss them much. Too bad. > > > > > > On Sat, May 24, 2014 at 11:13 PM, Randy A. Riddle < > [log in to unmask]>wrote: > > > > > I listened to public radio for many years. I think what happened was > that > > > it lost track of its original vision to educate. > > > > > > The public radio stations in my area are basically running many of the > same > > > talk or music series that have been around since the 1980s. There > doesn't > > > seem to be anything there I've not heard before or seen around the > > > Internet. > > > > > > For me, public radio was at its best in the 1970s when it acted as a > kind > > > of curator for the best or most interesting in what was happening in > > > serious music or the arts. It was the place you would turn to to hear > new > > > classical works or new recordings of classical music, experiments in > radio > > > drama, or what was happening in music scholarship. > > > > > > A good example is a weekly show I wish I could recall the name of that > came > > > from one of the public radio networks and, each week, featured vintage > jazz > > > and big band recordings - I recall one whole episode was just devoted > to > > > V-Discs. > > > > > > At other times, my local public radio stations featured regular > broadcasts > > > of classic Old Time Radio - Suspense, the Great Gildersleeve, Jack > Benny > > > and other programs. > > > > > > Sure, much of this material is available now on the Internet or > satellite > > > radio stations. Public radio could find its voice again by being a > curator > > > and gateway into what's worth my time, rather than being either > background > > > classical Muzak for a day at the office or offering the "comfort food" > of > > > "Prairie Home Companion". It's just stale. > > > > > > I like Sirius XM because it allows me to sample genres of music that I > > > don't know much about or listen deeper into a genre catalogue to > figure out > > > what I might like or not like - the same thing that public and college > > > radio used to do for me many years ago. > > > > > > The OTR channel is a little conservative for my taste, repeating many > of > > > the same "war horses" that I've heard many times before, but at least > it's > > > something. > > > > > > Randy > > > > > > > > -- > > Frank B Strauss, DMD >