Tearjerker, Downtown Symphony, Piano Flow, Happy Harmonies and other Saturday padding

[french frank]

But I know their response: "Radio 3 never has been just classical music."

(No but the classical programmes were a sight better than the ones we have now).

Something like this humorous mock-up (no breaches of copyright intended):

[AuntDaisy]

The one success we did have was in getting BBC Radio to reverse its decision to cut R3's bitrate in order to introduce a looped trailer on R5Live, as placemarker when the station wasn't actually broadcasting anything. BBC audio boffins had assured them that the difference in audio quality wasn't distinguishable by human ear. I printed off pages and pages of comments from the old BBC messageboard and bunged them in to the Director of Radio. And we got an apology for them mucking up the Proms season.

The difference there was that the consequence was unintended. In this case the consequence is predictable, but merely collateral damage in pursuit of a higher goal But after organising a campaign unsuccessfully for 20 years, I'd be very happy if someone else thought they could do a more effective job.

Never unsuccessfully. You've done a great job against insurmountable odds - I'm very grateful.

The R3 bitrate story is new to me.

[AuntDaisy]

But I know their response: "Radio 3 never has been just classical music."

(No but the classical programmes were a sight better than the ones we have now).

Then let them plaster buses as well

Yes, they had drama and features and talks and non classical music and Open University and Comedy ...
But virtually everything is a mere shade of what it used to be, especially Drama on R3.

Sadly, we'll never again hear the likes of long, informative series like "Plainsong & the Rise of European Music" or Christopher Hogwood's "The Trio Sonata".

[LMcD]

Then let them plaster buses as well

Yes, they had drama and features and talks and non classical music and Open University and Comedy ...
But virtually everything is a mere shade of what it used to be, especially Drama on R3.

Sadly, we'll never again hear the likes of long, informative series like "Plainsong & the Rise of European Music" or Christopher Hogwood's "The Trio Sonata".

Messages plastered on the sides of buses aren't always to be believed, are they?

[kernelbogey]

I wonder what the cost of running Radio 4 Extra is?

The BBC has so much archived music material, surely including

long, informative series like "Plainsong & the Rise of European Music" or Christopher Hogwood's "The Trio Sonata".

that I am sure a Radio 3 Extra would have several years' worth of broadcasting material available. If they ran a station like that 24/7 then they could do what they like with Radio 3 itself as far as I'm concerned.

[LMcD]

I wonder what the cost of running Radio 4 Extra is?

The BBC has so much archived music material, surely including



that I am sure a Radio 3 Extra would have several years' worth of broadcasting material available. If they ran a station like that 24/7 then they could do what they like with Radio 3 itself as far as I'm concerned.

1p per individual user hour in 2019-2020. Equivalent cost of Radio 3 was 5p.

[AuntDaisy]

1p per individual user hour in 2019-2020. Equivalent cost of Radio 3 was 5p.

Any idea what the other stations cost?

We can only dream of a Radio 3 extra.

They have released some archive items, e.g. on CD under the "BBC Radio Classics" banner.
Back in 2013, when visiting Broadcasting House about the World Service Archive project, we asked a similar question on (paid) releasing of parts of the Drama archive - a major problem was apparently Music rights...

Monteverdi Vespers from R3 24/12/1970, Genome link

[kernelbogey]

1p per individual user hour in 2019-2020. Equivalent cost of Radio 3 was 5p.

Does that include cost of Proms?

[french frank]

1p per individual user hour in 2019-2020. Equivalent cost of Radio 3 was 5p.

'Cost per istener' and 'cost per listener hour' are BBC-favoured metrics - which allows them to cut Radio 3's budget (because it's a specialist station with a smaller audience) and increase other stations'. Judged by 'how many pounds per annum', R3 has the smallest budget of the five main network stations. You would think that some consideration would be given to the fact that the nature of the material broadcast would figure somewhere in the equation. Radio drama, for example, is the most expensive programming. And speech-based features and the Proms don't come cheap. Comparably, Radio 2's major expenditure is on presenters' salaries.

[Serial_Apologist]

I wonder if a way of publicly shaming the BBC cuts / changes would help? Probably not.
BBC drama is also undergoing upheaval / decay and a recent Facebook post by Caroline Raphael & interview / comments by Gillian Reynolds drew some attention, but no positive changes.

How about posters on the side of buses with:
BBC R3 - Less Classical than Classic FM *
BBC R3 & R4 - Worse than it was
BBC R3 - Turn off Grandad
BBC R4 & R3 - We won't make a Drama...

* copyright French Frank & arguably true due to the increasing non-classical drivel dilution.


Something like this humorous mock-up (no breaches of copyright intended):

I could probably drum up some support as that bus passed through Camberwell.

[LMcD]

Any idea what the other stations cost?

We can only dream of a Radio 3 extra.

They have released some archive items, e.g. on CD under the "BBC Radio Classics" banner.
Back in 2013, when visiting Broadcasting House about the World Service Archive project, we asked a similar question on (paid) releasing of parts of the Drama archive - a major problem was apparently Music rights...

Monteverdi Vespers from R3 24/12/1970, Genome link

Asian Network: 6p
Radio 1 Extra : 4p
Radio 5: 3p
All other national stations: 1p

[Edgy 2]

I wonder what the cost of running Radio 4 Extra is?

The BBC has so much archived music material, surely including



that I am sure a Radio 3 Extra would have several years' worth of broadcasting material available. If they ran a station like that 24/7 then they could do what they like with Radio 3 itself as far as I'm concerned.

[muzzer]

“Piano Flow” has just erupted into TTN with all the subtlety of a randy fifth former. Straight off to WQXR for me.

[AuntDaisy]

“Piano Flow” has just erupted into TTN with all the subtlety of a randy fifth former. Straight off to WQXR for me.

Loved your analogy, spot on.
BR Klassik for me.
PF claims "Uplifting piano pieces to brighten your day" - it didn't.

[AuntDaisy]

(Back at the PC keyboard - I hate the mobile's tiddly little keyboard.)

Here's what we poor Brits missed from "Through the Night"...
Available to our European friends, e.g. Swedish radio https://sverigesradio.se/avsnitt/1699201

05:01 Felix Mendelssohn; Prelude and fugue in G major Op 37 No 2 for organ; Jan Kalfus (organ)
05:08 Thomas Tallis; Loquebantur variis linguis for 7 voices; BBC Singers, Bo Holten (director)
05:14 Carl Friedrich Abel; Symphony in E major, Op 10 no 1; La Stagione Frankfurt, Michael Schneider (conductor)
05:25 Tekla Badarzewska-Baranowska; The maiden's prayer, Op 4; Kyung-Sook Lee (piano)
05:29 Dmitry Shostakovich; 2 Pieces (Prelude and scherzo) for string octet or orchestra, Op 11; Korean Chamber Orchestra
05:40 Richard Strauss; Horn Concerto No 2 in E flat major; Markus Maskuniitty (horn), Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Junichi Hirokami (conductor)
06:01 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; Abendempfindung K523; Elly Ameling (soprano), Jorg Demus (piano)
06:06 Ludwig van Beethoven; Sonata for violin and fortepiano in E flat, Op 12 no 3; Hiro Kurosaki (violin), Linda Nicholson (fortepiano)
06:25 Josef Suk; Raduz and Mahulena, Op 16 'A fairy tale suite'; Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Vaclav Smetacek (conductor)
06:53 Andre Messager; Solo de concours; Matous Kopacek (clarinet), Marek Sedivy (piano)
Info from https://www.ebu.ch/files/live/sites/...May%202021.pdf

Really enjoyed the Tallis - just what I needed after the Piano Flow shock.