The Eternal Breakfast Debate in a New Place

[french frank]

Really, for me the schedule changes have accelerated a trend - use BBC Sounds,

I can hear the new R3 trails now in preparation: 'Live Radio 3 is Dead'.

[oddoneout]

But why should it be more of a wasted effort than trying to improve Essential Classics or the Afternoon Concert?

The enigma is why they make their classical music programming so unappealing to so many listeners who are interested primarily in classical music.

I think it ticks too many boxes now, and I suspect that there are quite a lot of otherwise typical/core/longstanding R3 listeners who tune in as well, so I feel it is better to concede that battle and concentrate on the rest of the daytime schedule(up to COTW) which is now far more of a wasted opportunity and willful avoidance of what R3 should be doing in my opinion. But you and I are never going to agree on this are we?

[Cockney Sparrow]

And yet .. you tune in, which is all they want you to do. You may switch off in exasperation, but for all they know that's when you have to leave for work.

I've done my part.
Earlier this year (end of winter, IIRC) Mrs CS had a friendly conversation with a caller at the door, and then sub-contracted the resultant record keeping of a survey of radio listening. In 15 minute segments.
It showed I listened, morning and afternoon to YLE (Finland), radio France, WQXR and Radio 4. Also radio 3 for specific content - composer of the week, record review, private passions, EMS, CE, evening concert, lunchtime concert (if it was happening at the time) Opera on 3, the Essay and other, largely evening, R3 speech programmes of worth (i.e babble/trailer free). No Classic FM light (morning, mid afternoon) content, no Tom Service. No Jazz (no offence, just not for me). A few times "In Tune" - where the short span is, IMO justified - when driving and once or twice world/Roots music.

Really, for me the schedule changes have accelerated a trend - use BBC Sounds, "the radio" only sometimes - to listen to a certain number of programmes I value, for both Radio 3 and 4, and use streaming service playlists for works, and CDs when I am not mobile around the house / garden etc.

I was past the point of having the radio on for long periods and expecting informative, intelligent content in a sufficient proportion to outweigh the features I have found increasingly annoying -
Very loud, compressed (audio quality) trailers.
Added to the trivialisation of Radio 3, on Radio 4: content for hours on end laying out the woes and demands of segments of society, 10 part series stretching thin material far overlong and then repeated up to 3 or more times. "Re-imagining". And quite a bit more - I could go on, but I've run out of time, and in any case, I think that's enough for now...

[french frank]

to put that particular genie back in the pot is a wasted effort.

But why should it be more of a wasted effort than trying to improve Essential Classics or the Afternoon Concert?

The enigma is why they make their classical music programming so unappealing to so many listeners who are interested primarily in classical music.

[oddoneout]

And yet .. you tune in, which is all they want you to do. You may switch off in exasperation, but for all they know that's when you have to leave for work.

I know, awful isn't it? It so happens that it suits me at that time of day, since for various reasons(pain being one) I welcome the undemanding distraction and the chance of hearing something new to me or a bit of interesting information, which does still happen, despite the encroachment of the various forms of Beeb self promotion. It's not what I want for the rest of the day though, which is why I switch off now at 9-30 - preferably using the off switch... There are quite often items I would like to listen to in the afternoon, but I can't be doing with trying to guess when they might come on.
I apologise for adding a number to the wrong metric, but it is counter-balanced perhaps by not being a number any more for the rest of the day, (and most evenings) since I am now largely an exR3 listener.