The way forward for Radio 3 and Sunday Mornings?

[Bax-of-Delights]

I'd second ferneyhoughgeliebte's reply.
NO texting
NO emailing
NO listener participation
NO news/newspapers/waffle/blether/jokey banter

Music that is diverse and which does NOT consist of the 100 Best Tunes currently aired most mornings. Perhaps interspersed with poetry (as in Words and Music).

But of course we had all that in times gone by and my bet is the production company you are interning for doesn't have that kind of agenda or mindset.

The frightening part of all this is there should be any need for an outside production company to come up with an idea. If the suits at R3 had any idea of their audience as opposed to casting their thin nets ever wider in the hope of catching listeners - any listeners - while allowing their core audience (the BIG fish) to bust through the net and off to quieter waters they would have changed the format by now.

[french frank]

Hello Laura!

When you listen and what you are doing while you listen?

Since giving up on R3 as a routine of daily listening, I mainly listen on the iPlayer now, probably in the morning, possibly in the afternoon, rarely in the evening (except for a play). I will just be listening, probably with headphones, as it will be because the programme is something I have specially selected to listen to.

What music you like to hear - era/composer, familiar or unfamiliar, vintage recordings/ new releases etc.

A selection carefully chosen in an intelligent sequence by a knowledgeable producer and, over a period of time, covering most kinds of 'classical' music, all eras from medieval to contemporary. Unfamiliar works a particular attraction, overplayed warhorses would make me less inclined to listen at all. Emphasis on full length works, never single movements. In a 2-hour programme I would hope to hear about 6-9 works, including one or two short 'fillers'.

How much info like to be given about a piece, and what information - biographical/ analytical/ anecdotal?

If the programme is designed to be a music sequence, a few sentences of context: Composer, full title, (approx.) date of composition/publication; biographical if there is a known close link with the work; minimal analysis for this kind of programme - though it would be very welcome in other types of programme; anecdotal on the whole to be avoided because the same anecdotes tend to be dragged out time after time.

Do you like the Sunday morning presenters and their style and why?

I don't 'like' presenters, full stop. Which doesn't mean I dislike them as people but I'm only interested in how well they present the music, getting the facts right and with a reasonable attempt at pronouncing foreign languages accurately. Giving an impression that what matters to them is the music (not the audience) and musically knowledgeable enough to dig out unfamilar facts which are relevant. Reading out bits of Wikipedia not good enough. Relaxed seriousness

Do you like the music played on Sunday morning and why?

No comment. Gave up listening shortly after Sunday Morning first began (as Iain Burnside); too cluttered with extraneous matter; tiresome 'themes' and guests; presenter whimsy. If it's like what I described above I'd like it.

Do you like the innocent ear challenge, and interactive quizes in general?

In general, no, interactive quizzes or any sort of interactivity would probably put me off listening altogether

Do you ever write/text in?

Haven't, wouldn't - unless I had a specific piece of information, relevant to the music (unlikely, actually), for which I would not need or expect to be invited to text in. I'd just do it off my own bat.

Do you like to hear other listeners comments and anecdotes?

No. A complete turn-off.

[dilipa28]

Are we allowed to ask where this production company stands in relation to Radio3 or for that matter BBC? If it currently has no working contact with Radio3, what makes the company think R3's Sunday morning programmes needs improving?

[ed] Are you a R3 listener by any chance? If you are not, I doubt if the members’ answers will make much sense.

I am indeed a radio 3 listener. If you don't think the Sunday morning program needs changin, I'm interested in hearing that too!

[dilipa28]

[QUOTE=DracoM;118631]Well, actually, generally speaking, I loathe the Sunday morning mix and I find myself trying it most weeks and then switching to BR Klassik or WQXR.]

would be great if you could expand - why you loath it/ what you'd like to hear - + some background on your listening habits/musical tastes...

[french frank]

I forgot that Sunday Morning is now three hours long since the schedule changes. Not a production company's concern but, in my view, it's the kiss of death for Radio 3. Programmes which are that long encourage either dipping in and out, in which case there is no way to balance listening intelligently, or listening with half an ear while being only intermittently fully engaged with the music. Neither, in my view, is ideal.

[Frances_iom]

another total negative - I keep my radio alarm still tuned to R3 - it has about 5 min to start a Bach piece otherwise switched off as soon as I can reach the switch.
I gave up on the Magazine format some years ago - a few times I've switched on and heard a few minutes before giving up on waffle etc and settling back to CD's - I used to look at schedule to see if worth listening to but find the vox-pop interaction waffle etc off putting - personally I'd prefer a few programmes with some definite focus eg if I knew that 10.30 on Sunday would be a chamber concert then I'd switch on for that without checking schedule in advance - in the pre Wright era we had interesting feature bits around 8am in which the musical heritage of various (mostly London based) churches of all faiths were illustrated and discussed - we also had the Bach cantata for that Sunday - again this could be at a fixed time and usually last about 20min so easy to fit in

[Chris Newman]

Hi dilipa28,
Firstly, I wish to third or fourth the eloquent summary of Sunday Morning as put by ferneyhoughdeliebte. I listen to music because I want to hear it, usuallly at an established or convenient time. I do not wish to hear verbiage from guests and twaddle from listeners. I have become selective about the kind of things I wish to hear. I hate modern wallpaper sound whether music or speech. Radio 3 has shot itself in the foot with so much of its programming. Go to the Radio 3 Website, Radio Times and it is well nigh impossible to find out what is on and when. There are three composers mentioned in their publicity for this Sunday morning:

James Jolly presents three hours of great music, featuring the best recordings from the archive and the present day. Today with music by Szymanowski, Martinu and Finzi.

All three of them I like to hear. But what is the music being played? When is it being played? Who is playing it? I often go out on Sundays. If I do not know the basic facts about Radio 3s scheduling it is highly unlikely that a broadcast will keep me in, especially when the music is so lackadaisically and tawdrily presented. There might only be 5 minutes of Szymanowski. Am I going to sit around doing nothing for 175 minutes? You bet I am not. I have no objection to James Jolly and his knowledge and enthusiasm but I dislike the way he and other very professional people are being told to "sex up" the programmes. Sunday Morning is so direly publicised and eventually broadcast that I shall not even be bothered to listen on iPlayer. I refuse to be treated as some kind of sponge who'll absorb anything poured over it. I listen elsewhere on the Radio schedules if the information is given clearly. Tonight I am listening to records because I wish to hear certain music. Vague scheduling like that above is a huge turn-off for me.

BWS
Chris.

[DracoM]

Top stuff, Chris

[Panjandrum]

My blueprint for a Sunday morning show.

• Publicise, as far as possible, the works to be played in advance on the website and other listings.

• Play only full works (i.e. not "bleeding chunks" of multi-movement repertoire). Obtain a list of the 100 most played pieces on radio 3: do not play any of these.

• Themed programmes are fine (e.g. seasonal; performer or composer related) but not essential

• Extracts from complete works is permissible in the case of opera arias, choral movements, individual songs from song cycles, movements from suites (as opposed to symphonies). Single movements from symphonies, concertos, chamber works, and sonatas should be avoided at all costs, unless either: a, the complete work is extremely long (i.e. over 50 minutes); b) and/or the movement in question is over 15 minutes in duration. Some producer discretion is obviously required here, but the main point is that a strict preference for complete works is adhered to as far as possible.

• There should be no reading out of texts, tweets, facebook posts etc, unless there is a clear musicological significance in so doing. Items of the kind of "Your Call" should be banished forthwith.

• Music should be predominantly classical in nature (i.e. at least 90%). Musicals and other popular idioms (e.g. jazz, folk, country, world) should not be played, unless by a "recognised" classical composer (e.g. Bernstein's forays into musicals). The reason is that this mixing of musical genres does not work with this audience. There are also innumerable other radio channels dedicated to providing popular music in all its guises.

• Presenters should be limited to announcing the music, with no extraneous waffle. No reading of papers, or news summaries (we can get this elsewhere thank you very much).

• Any studio guests should be chosen with care and be solely from the classical music profession (eg composers, conductors, other musicians, occasionally musical administrators). Any subjects discussed with them should be musicological only (i.e. no chit chat).

• Talk, in any case, should comprise less than 15% of the total programme running time.

[Paul Sherratt]

>>There are also innumerable other radio channels dedicated to providing popular music in all its guises

One can't move for them, in fact

[Norfolk Born]

My (modest) revolutionary proposal for Sunday mornings:
(a) Introduce an item of music - possibly familiar, possibly less so - saying a few words about the chosen item, the circumstances surrounding its composition, the recording and the performance.
(b) Play the item in question (all of it).
(c) Repeat (a), but with a different item.
(d) Repeat (b), but with the item introduced under (c)
Hang on ...I realize I've just described TTN.
OK.....
Here's my revised (modest) revolutionary proposal for Sunday mornings:
Extend, or repeat, TTN until, say 12 noon.
Simples!

[doversoul1]

Hang on ...I realize I've just described TTN.
OK.....
Here's my revised (modest) revolutionary proposal for Sunday mornings:
Extend, or repeat, TTN until, say 12 noon.
Simples!

Come to that, why not extend/repea it from Sunday to Friday? Simple.

[EdgeleyRob]

To win me back, the programme would have no "chat", no "guest of the week", no quiz, no "let's see what's in the papers today" and no "audience participation". Instead it would seek to include a wide range (in duration, familiarity and styles) of Music presented with just enough background information to put the works and their performances into focus.

Not too much to ask?

Agreed.
No tweets or twits.
I only tend to listen to Radio 3 on listen again these days (Evening,lunchtime concerts and TTN)

[aeolium]

I only tend to listen to Radio 3 on listen again these days (Evening,lunchtime concerts and TTN)

Rob, that's pretty much what I listen to, plus CDR on a Saturday morning, CotW (sometimes) and Do3 (sometimes) on Sunday evening. Every morning other than Saturday is an opportunity to Listen again or listen to CDs.

[Anna]

And another plea for comprehensive playlists. I looked at the schedule for Sunday Morning, it said amongst others there would be works by Martinu and Finzi but nothing by them was listed at all, a mere 4 items by other composers were listed, totally frustrating and I therefore didn't bother to switch on.