Calum
I agree entirely with your sentiments. Jazz has become increasingly marginalised on the radio but i think the negativity felt about "Jazz on 3" isn't as widespread as this board would suggest. Several friends that I have in the "jazz community" are regular listeners and one friend in particular has stated that it is by far the best programme on the radio as it gives an airing to what is happening in the current scene. In my opinion, jazz should be given a platform that mirrors Classical music and it is certainly worthy of serious debate and discussion.
My grumble would be that the coverage of jazz needs to be representative of the whole oeuvre. By this, I would expect to be able to hear 1920's acoustic recordings right through to contemporary styles of jazz. The problem with "Jazz on 3" is that is seems to search out the radical and different and therefore misses the more typical kind of developments in the music. I feel a lot of the newer names in the European scene are good musicians but the results of their endeavours seldom seems to be maintaining the kind of standard that i feel is attained from the Black-Afro-American tradition from which the music evolved. It is curious to read John Wright's comments on this thread for although I don't agree with his assessment of post-1940's jazz, I do feel that "Jazz on 3" often focuses on artists who seem in denial about jazz's origins.
The fact that the programmes are now all on so late and that "listen again" is only an option if you have the time to sit at a computer as opposed to having a radio on in the background probably reflects the changing nature of media. It is not a development I welcome but was curious to read a comment by (I think) Chaka Khan over the weekend which suggested that the diminishing power of record companies , etc that has come with the evolution of the internet will actually prove to be a good thing for music because the medium makes the music far easier to be made available. It will be interesting to see how an organisation like the BBC will rise to the challenge.
I agree entirely with your sentiments. Jazz has become increasingly marginalised on the radio but i think the negativity felt about "Jazz on 3" isn't as widespread as this board would suggest. Several friends that I have in the "jazz community" are regular listeners and one friend in particular has stated that it is by far the best programme on the radio as it gives an airing to what is happening in the current scene. In my opinion, jazz should be given a platform that mirrors Classical music and it is certainly worthy of serious debate and discussion.
My grumble would be that the coverage of jazz needs to be representative of the whole oeuvre. By this, I would expect to be able to hear 1920's acoustic recordings right through to contemporary styles of jazz. The problem with "Jazz on 3" is that is seems to search out the radical and different and therefore misses the more typical kind of developments in the music. I feel a lot of the newer names in the European scene are good musicians but the results of their endeavours seldom seems to be maintaining the kind of standard that i feel is attained from the Black-Afro-American tradition from which the music evolved. It is curious to read John Wright's comments on this thread for although I don't agree with his assessment of post-1940's jazz, I do feel that "Jazz on 3" often focuses on artists who seem in denial about jazz's origins.
The fact that the programmes are now all on so late and that "listen again" is only an option if you have the time to sit at a computer as opposed to having a radio on in the background probably reflects the changing nature of media. It is not a development I welcome but was curious to read a comment by (I think) Chaka Khan over the weekend which suggested that the diminishing power of record companies , etc that has come with the evolution of the internet will actually prove to be a good thing for music because the medium makes the music far easier to be made available. It will be interesting to see how an organisation like the BBC will rise to the challenge.
(not just because of the lateness of the hour at which it is broadcast) - but it doesn't mean I think it shouldn't be broadcast.
- I do however miss its exclusion from the (now defunct - as referred to by FF in another post) Saturday afternoon "jazz zone". Jazz Library is similarly missed, as I tend to forget about it at its new broadcast time. 
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