Lazaro Vega

From Chi-Improv. This is the letter [Marguerite Horberg] sent to both the Sun-Times and Tribune and one I will send to Torey Malatia, station manager at WBEZ. I think that fans of this list should write letters to the newspapers and the radio station and use forums like the Jazz Institute's Jazz network to urge a sit down with Daniel Ash, Ronald Jones and others to help give them a vision for a kick ass new music station that includes the music championed on this list serve --------------------------------------- Admittedly most of us in the professional jazz community were no fan of the former music director Chris Heim’s regime at WBEZ. In her tenure she managed to ceremoniously rid the station of most of its lively jazz stable (Tesser, Ruffin, Parra ), only reluctantly kept local treasure Dick Buckley on air, banished the local collective AACM and other noisy upstarts (notably Ornette Coleman, Charlie Parker and John Coltrane) from the airwaves citing “that people were trying to sleep” and further alienated music presenters, artists, and critics by a heavy handed exclusive policy that did little to promote the local jazz community. The “smooth/snooze” music she favored eventually drove most serious fans of jazz away from the station to other more creative enclaves like WDCB, WHPK and WNUR. Unfortunately the station never seriously regarded the vigorous criticism of the jazz community and now erroneously concludes that the dwindling support for music at the station is a forgone conclusion rather than a result of antagonizing the base audience with bad music. WBEZ loses a huge opportunity to recapture its jazz fans by further shedding its music programming in favor of a talk format, and in essence “throwing out the baby with the bathwater”. Chicago is one of the planets most thriving centers for contemporary jazz, Artists as diverse as: Jon Faddis, Paul Wertico, Tortoise, Fred Anderson, Fareed Haque, and Patricia Barber, and Hamid Drake all make this city their home . Chicago-based record labels: Atavistic, Thrill Jockey, Okka Disc, Delmark, and Alligator, are known around the planet. Venues like HotHouse, The Green Mill, and The Jazz Showcase are among the top jazz presenters in the country and countless other indie promoters at smaller storefront venues have established Chicago as one of the most dynamic showcases for traditional and experimental jazz. Other venerable institutions like DownBeat magazine ,the Jazz Record Mart, and the Jazz Institute of Chicago are also part of a thriving jazz community that is the envy of cities from New York to Tokyo. We hope that WBEZ will finally listen to the chorus of critics this time around and use this opportunity to engage with its many diverse and knowledgeable constituents. We believe that there are indeed many resources available to the station that would strategize and partner with station management in order to revitalize and create music programming that honors the historic traditions and is as magnificent as the talent in Chicago’s legendary jazz community. Marguerite Horberg Executive Director HotHouse Marguerite Horberg Executive Director HotHouse, The Center for International Performance and Exhibition 31 east Balbo Drive Chicago, Illinois 60605

From the Chicagolist web site: Interview: Daniel Ash; Vice-President, Strategic Communications; Chicago Public Radio For an organization that depends on good communication, Chicago Public Radio <http://www.wbez.org/> discovered yesterday that the plans for the future of their programming aren’t being heard clearly by their audience. 2006_04_cpr.jpgAfter we posted yesterday on Chicago Public Radio’s move towards a more talk-based format at their three broadcast properties <http://www.chicagoist.com/archives/2006/04/17/wbez_now_with_less_music_more_talk.php> (WBEZ in Chicago, WBEW in Chesterton, IN and WBEQ in Morris, IL), we were contacted by Daniel Ash, the Vice-President of Strategic Communications for CPR. In an interview with Chicagoist, he acknowledged that “the way [WBEZ] 91.5 sounds during the day is going to be the way it sounds 24/7,” and that strictly music-formatted programming blocks will no longer be featured. But he stressed that CPR still plans on serving Chicago’s jazz, blues and other music communities through a new broadcasting service on WBEW and WBEQ that will rely on contributions from the community at large. Thanks to a recent upgrade in WBEW’s signal strength, this new service will be heard throughout Chicago. What this new programming will sound like is still being discussed internally, and CPR hopes to hear from leaders in Chicago’s music community as well about this venture. “Because we didn’t say ‘We’re going to drop this in 2007 and here’s what’s going to replace it,’” Ash says, “it created a vacuum for those who were very loyal. We have no intention of creating a station where people talk about music.” Ash also talked about the station’s plans for the new service, why CPR abandoned its plans for music-formatted programming, and what role musicians and artists will play in this new venture. *Chicagoist: So is Chicago Public Radio really going all talk? * *Daniel Ash:* To clarify, the way [WBEZ] 91.5 sounds during the day is going to be the way it sounds 24/7. The original plan is to build a 24/7 service for WBEW [and WBEQ]. The new service is not a talk format, although it may include some traditional talk elements, just as it will most definitely include music. Our aim is to develop a service that is highly localized and a reflection of the Chicago area, which would include music. We plan to build this service with the community in mind. The folks who are the local artists, the local musicians, who were quite frustrated with our old music programming, will work in a much more intimate way, with the station, in developing content. *C: What’s going to be their contribution? * *ASH:* [Chicago Public Radio CEO] Torey [Malatia] wants to create a public radio station that has a different sensibility than the daytime 91.5 [frequency] has. It’s music-rich, sound-rich, and not just people talking about music like a symposium about jazz, but it’s part of a discussion about life in the community. The segments could be a jazz group or a folk group that includes that art form but reflects the region. We’re hesitant to talk too much about this because it’s still in development. We’re developing it with both people internally and folks in the community, so [artists] will actually have more opportunity to have their content [on the air]. We don’t want something that sounds like NPR, we want it to sound like Chicago. *C: As of last month, there were still plans to create music programming <http://suntimes.com/output/feder/cst-fin-feder161.html> on WBEW and WBEC. What changed? * *ASH:* We thought if we want to do what we want to do, we have to create a new style of radio, which sounds ambitious, even arrogant. But the thing is, no single format is going to work if we want to reach beyond our current audience. But we can’t make all of our decisions based on our members. In many respects, we’d be a commercial station if that were the case. We have to program for the region. *C: Are you worried about losing subscribers as a result of these changes?* *ASH:* We’re going to lose some. But we hope to get them back when this new service is up and running. And I’m very confident that we will. The jazz musician that was very passionately disappointed in what he read, once he sees that he can be more involved in the public radio station, I think he’ll come around. We have no intention of creating a station where people talk about music. That’s exactly the opposite of the direction we want to go. *C: Why not make this new format part of WBEZ’s nighttime programming and use those other two stations as a music-formatted compliment? * *ASH:* We thought about it. It becomes a business decision: how do you afford that type of programming and try to do something new at the same time. To do something new, you have to invest time and resources in the new project. Most of our music team is working on this new ide*Ash:* They actually see it as a new opportunity. *C: Did you discuss these changes with your program hosts, especially the stuff that’s produced locally? I’m thinking of Dick Buckley, specifically, here. * *ASH:* Although Howard [Reich] was able to reach [buckley] late last week, he’s had surgery recently and he’s not in the office ever so his producer had a hard time reaching him. But every other on-air host and producer was fully informed about where we were going with this. /[When Chicagoist contacted Ash for more detail on this question, he said the following: “Chris Heim is no longer with the station; she was the host of Passport and our music director. Passport is now hosted by Tony Sarabia. Niles Frantz and Dick Buckley will be reassigned, if they so choose. We think both, given their deep knowledge of blues and jazz respectively, have much to offer the new service in development.]/ *C: In an interview in 2003 <http://www.airmedia.org/spotlight/transcripts/090903.php>, Torey Malatia said it’s difficult to measure the public radio audience. How do you determine what it is that your audience wants to hear? * *ASH:* Because we’re non-commercial, we don’t get the kind of ratings information that [commercial stations] get. We’re planning on having a series of public meetings and a lot of web activity where people can directly talk to us—and each other—about this new service. *C: When you want to create community social programs, it’s important to go to the leaders in the community to talk about what’s needed. Are there people in Chicago that you’re reaching out to or that you’d like to hear from to develop this programming? * *ASH:* We’ve developed a list of folks we want to consult. We want to talk to leaders and we want to talk to practitioners, people who are active in their community. *C: Who have you been talking to? * *ASH:* We just introduced the concept to staff. Their task is to take the concept and assess the strategy for engaging this external audience. They haven’t reached out yet, but I can say unequivocally, many producers, when they heard about the concept, though they were sad about music, many of them were coming to me to start talking about it publicly. They’re moving aggressively on ideas because they see the possibilities. We have to speak to those leaders, those musicians, those artists, who are going to be key to the co-construction element that this service is going to demand. It just hasn’t gotten underway yet. *C: What’s the biggest need that you want to fill for the Chicago blues and jazz community that isn’t currently there? * *ASH:* I think the biggest need is more young people need to be introduced to the form in a way that isn’t a backdrop to another genre, like hearing a jazz sample in hip-hop. People may listen to it but not understand the context. This new service was one where, rather than have two hours of jazz, two hours of blues, two hours of world music, we’re going to integrate it so we have a better chance of attracting the attention of curious people. Younger audiences are more likely to move across genres than we’re likely to admit.

DISPATCH FROM THE CHURCH OF ST. JOHN COLTRANE At the Pantheon of Jazz, a Musical Ministry By Evelyn Nieves Washington Post Staff Writer Monday, March 27, 2006; Page A02 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...er=emailarticle

Which begs the question: what did everyone think of Joe Lovano's Tadd Dameron tributes on recent recordings?

Picked up three from this sale. Jackie McLean "Let Freedom Ring" to replace the vinyl; Booker Little, "Booker Little 4 & Max Roach" (never owned); and Lee Konitz and the Gerry Mulligan Quartet, "Konitz Meets Mulligan." Love that stuff on the Mosaic set, so, again, replacing an LP.....

From Lauren Deutsch AACM Chicago presents Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith in a rare solo concert Friday May 5, 2006 @8PM Fulton Recital Hall on the University of Chicago Campus 1010 E. 59th St (northeast corner of Ellis and 59th enter through the archway, turn left at courtyard, (door on the left-4th fl) Tickets are $25/$15 students and can be purchased at the door This concert will also feature New Voices of the AACM's 5 after & project with Leon Q. Allen, trumpet; Isaiah Jackson, trombone;Art Turk Burton, percussion; Khari B, spoken word; Junius Paul, bass; Ann Ward, piano and vocals; Saalik A. Ziyad, vocals and Taalib-Din Ziyad, flute and vocals. Support your local AACM! aacmchicago.org

I spoke to Eckstine once and in the course of conversation touched on the subject of Gene Ammons, and happened to mention that Gene Ammons played with Woody Herman ("More Moon"), too. Eckstine's only comment was, "For a minute." What makes a more interesting comparison (and potential discussion) than racism is the music, say the difference in how the Eckstine and Gillespie bands played Tadd Dameron's "Cool Breeze" (Eckstine's is slower). Or how different the tenor solos of Dexter Gordon and Gene Ammons coming out of Lester Young were with Eckstine compared to the Four Brothers sound coming out of Lester Young in Woody's Second Herd. Maybe that's all been covered by other writers, an exhausted subject: the confluence of Pres and Bird in the sounds of the star soloists of both bands; and Dizzy Gillespie, Tadd Dameron and even Ellington's influence on the ensemble approach. Or the different dynamic of the ensemble figures written by Jerry Valentine for Eckstine's version of "Blowin' the Blues Away" compared to Shorty Rogers scoring on "That's Right," which tried to retain more of a small band feel. The Valentine arrangement sounds close to Dizzy, the evaporating sections a la "Things To Come," and powerful support of Art Blakey, making that Eckstine band bolder than Herman's, which seemed more streamlined until it was time for the tutti's on "Lemon Drop," with license to kill trumpets. Woody's band was still dealing with Duke back then. When you're an alto player coming to the blues through Johnny Hodges or a clarinettist dealing with the New Orleans pioneers.....what else is there? You might even bring up the forgotten band of Earl Spencer to further cut the legs out from under the racism dealy-o.

I'm just forwarding this message which came across Chi-Improv at Yahoo Groups.

Greetings to all Beta:Sound is proud to annouce the release of a long lost piece of Chicago Jazz history. The Joe Daley Trio -Live at Newport 1963 Below is the link to the page for dowloading the full record. Enjoy, Beta:Sound http://www.archive.org/details/Joe-Daley-T...Live-Newport-63 For more amazing work free to download please visit : www.betasound.net

This one, The Magic Touch and the Clifford Brown Memorial Album put Dameron's sound in ideal perspective. Sort of combining the small band with the big. Allen, guitarist Gene Bertoncini recorded in a medley "On A Misty Night/Giant Steps" and I heard him do it in concert several times. Interesting insight.....

What a scene. Heard some great music from that stage over the years, especially a Teddy Edwards/Harold Land set, some great Roscoe Mitchell, Hal Russell. Congratulations Organissimo! I wonder who will be playing on the stage the same day you're on, if you're part of a "theme"? Look out for that Chris Foreman.

Steve Schwartz wrote: The "tradition" stopped being a process of renewal and increasingly became a static body of knowledge. That sure enough nails it.

The Windsor/Detroit Jazz Club will present a very special jazz concert of historical significance on Sunday, April 23, 2006: The concert will be a reunion of the New McKinney's Cotton Pickers. The New New McKinney's Cottonpickers will perform at the Troy Elks Club from 12:30 PM till 3:30 PM. The Troy Elks Club is located at 1451 E. Big Beaver Road in Troy, MI (just east of 1-75). The New New McKinney's Cotton Pickers is saxophonists: Dave Hutson, George Benson, Dave Flanagan and Ernie Rogers; cornetists Paul Klinger and Tom Saunders; trumpeter John Trudell; trombonist Al Winters; pianist Jim Dapogny; drummer Pete Siers; bassist Paul Keller; and banjoist Orrin Faeslin. The New New McKinney's Cotton Pickers will play music from the original 1928-1933 McKinney's Cotton Pickers book including arrangements and original compositions by Don Redman, John Nesbitt and Benny Carter. Special appearances by saxophonist Dave Hutson (co-leader and transcriber of the charts) who will return to Detroit from Oregon and banjoist Orrin Faeslin who will return from Minnesota. Tickets are available at the door.

Fred Hersch concert broadcast this Sunday -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunday, April 16th at 7:00 p.m. as part of Foley Schuler’s “Jazz From Blue Lake Sunday” the solo piano performance of Fred Hersch at the Urban Institute For Contemporary Arts in Grand Rapids will air as a full hour long concert. In honor of National Poetry Month Foley’s program will also feature Fred Hersch’s octet and two voices in musical settings for the poetry of Walt Whitman, “Leaves of Grass.” Tuesday, April 18th at 10:00 p.m. please tune in to “Jazz From Blue Lake” with Lazaro Vega for a live performance by The Wonderland Jazz Ensemble, the Grand Rapids based jazz quintet featuring saxophonists Tom Elferdink and Ken Morgan, with pianist Eric Thorne, bassist Jeff Beavan and drummer Mike VanLente. Their new CD “A Wish” is available by writing wonderlandjazz@earthlink.net .

Just saw A.J. in a promotional DVD for Anita O'Day's new Cd, "Indestructable."

An Evening Of Jazz And Improvised Music With THE REMPIS PERCUSSION QUARTET (482 Music/Chicago/members of The Vandermark 5, Triage and more!) http://www.482music.com/ http://www.482music.com/albums/482-1046.html featuring: DAVE REMPIS: saxophones ANTON HATWICH: bass TIM DAISY: drums FRANK ROSALY: drums "The name of Dave Rempis's latest group is fair warning: never before has the local saxophonist led a band that hit this hard. Bassist Anton Hatwich provides a stable fulcrum with his thrumming, insistent vamps, around which drummers Frank Rosaly and Tim Daisy, both on trap sets, play a dynamic array of swinging beats, interlocking Latin motifs, martial cadences, and nuanced, meterless textures. Even at full throttle the two drummers mesh precisely, despite their divergent styles: Rosaly's is fluid and sinuous, busy with double- kick flutters, while Daisy's is more spiky and agitated. Rempis sketches keening alto and tenor lines across the surface, taking a more overtly melodic tack than he does in Triage or his free-improv quartet with Jim Baker. At other times he switches to baritone and plunges down into the ensemble's dense and surging rhythms, using his horn like yet another percussion instrument--and it's then I start thinking this might be the best new jazz band in town. The set I caught a couple weeks ago at Hotti Biscotti created an unstoppable momentum with its seamless transitions, opening with a polyrhythmic whirlwind worthy of late- 60s Pharoah Sanders and building from there." - Bill Meyer, Chicago Reader Saturday, April 15, 2006 KRAFTBRAU BREWERY 402 E Kalamazoo Ave Kalamazoo, MI (269) 384-0288 www.kraftbraubrewery.com http://www.myspace.com/kraftbrau 9PM Doors 10PM Show 18 & Over $6.00 http://www.myspace.com/blackjack_productions

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cup/catalog/dat.../023113682X.HTM The Velvet Lounge On Late Chicago Jazz Gerald Majer "Gerald Majer's propulsive, rhythmic essays celebrate the history and spirit of jazz. Like a seasoned improviser, he varies and syncopates his delivery, casting rim-shot fragments against long, slalomlike sentences—pushing, probing, and staying on the run through fast-track narrative and lyric measure. The prose fluidly shifts between earthy vernacular and reflective mood swing. And yet Majer's technical gifts as an essayist never betray or eclipse the emotional heart of these engaging, memorable meditations." —Sascha Feinstein, author, Misterioso; editor, Brilliant Corners: A Journal of Jazz and Literature "The Velvet Lounge is a book like none other. Part memoir, part homage, Gerald Majer's remarkable odyssey through the world of late Chicago jazz is a haunted, vertiginous account of both the music and the lives it was made from. This is finally a book about soul—no, about the soul—rapt by essence and experiment. Majer writes with an exhilarating passion and a rare elegance, and his book is sure to be a classic." —J. D. McClatchy, author of Hazmat: Poems "Interesting descriptions of the jazz scene emerge--most notably in the chapter on the Velvet Lounge." —Library Journal "His descriptions actually make you want to hear again--or listen to for the first time--the music described." —Ken Waxman, jazzword.com "A quietly visionary autobiography, the story of a life and of a complex, ugly/beautiful city." —Sunday Herald "Far closer to capturing the experience of listening to music than any jazz book you've read this year." —Matthew Lurie "He is a virtuoso writer, wrapping the reader in his lush descriptions of concerts." —Elizabeth Hoover, Chicago Tribune "A quietly visionary autobiography, the story of a life and of a complex, ugly/beautiful city." —Brian Morton, Sunday Herald (Scotland) "A deeply moving memoir in tune with the rhythms of jazz music itself and its influence on American society." —James A. Cox, Midwest Book Review "A deeply moving memoir in tune with the rhythms of music itself and its influence on society." —James A. Cox Troubled urban neighborhoods and jazz-club havens were the backdrop of Gerald Majer's life growing up in sixties and seventies Chicago. The Velvet Lounge, an original hybrid of memoir, biography, and musical description, reflects this history and pursues a sustained meditation on jazz along with a probing exploration of race and class and how they defined the material and psychic divides of a city. With the instrument of a supple, lyrical prose style, Majer elaborates the book's themes through literary and intellectual forays as carefully constructed and as passionately articulated as a jazz master's solo. Throughout the work, issues of identity and culture, art and politics achieve a rare immediacy, as does the music itself. In portraits of Jimmy Smith, Gene Ammons, Sonny Stitt, Sun Ra, and others, Gerald Majer conveys the drama and artistry of their music as well as the personal hardships many of them endured. Vivid descriptions and telling historical anecdotes explore the music's richness through a variety of political, social, and philosophical contexts. The Velvet Lounge, named after the famous Chicago club, is also one of the few works to consider the music of such avant-garde jazz musicians as Fred Anderson, Andrew Hill, and Roscoe Mitchell. In doing so, Majer builds a bridge from the traditionalist view of jazz to the world of contemporary innovators, casts a new light on the music and its makers, and traces connections between jazz art and postmodernist thought. Present throughout Majer's spirited encounters with the worlds of jazz is Majer himself. We hear and appreciate the music through his individual sensibilities and experiences. Majer recounts growing up in racially divided Chicago—his trips to the famed Maxwell Street market, his wanderings among its legendary jazz clubs, his riding the El, and his working in a jukebox factory. We witness his awakening to the music at a crossroads of the intimately personal and the intellectually provocative. Contents Jug Eyes Stitt's Time Proxima Ra Monstrosioso Batterie The Velvet Lounge Le Serpent Qui Danse Dreaming of Roscoe Mitchell Intuitive Research Beings Discography About the Author Gerald Majer is professor of English at Villa Julie College. His poetry and essays have appeared in a variety of journals including, Callaloo, The Georgia Review, and The Yale Review.

Hey Ogie, http://www.wyce.org/ The stream sounds great. LV

Hey Scott, After late morning listening to College of Dupage, caught Terry Gross on GVU today, the Jackie Mac interview, and heard your high powered marketing department in action for the funder. Though they work hard, I'd like to think the station turnaround is because of you, Werf. I hear your program everynight on the drive to work. Who were those people screaming on the air tonight? WEEEEeeeeeeee!!!!!!

I caught that Fresh Air today on WGVU. That was nice, especially the segments on Bud Powell and Miles. This came across the Jazz Programmer's list from Stevebop : In 1993 Jackie McLean was awarded a "Jazz Achievment Award" by the New England Foundation for the Arts. Part of that award was to have a half hour radio documentary produced about him. I was luky eough to be chosen to co-produce that program. The show is all Jackie, in his own voice and words and music talking about his life and career . This show is now available on demand from the WGBH website Go to: www.wgbh.org/jazz Under the color photo logo is a list of five current on-demand jazz features. You'll find our tribute to Jackie there. Please spread the word to your friends about it's availability Enjoy! Steve Schwartz Jazz from Studio Four Friday, 8p-midnight WGBH, 89.7FM, Boston www.wgbh.org/jazz www.wgbhblogs.org/jazz Had a good talk with pianist Hod O'Brien lately who admires Schaap, talking about how as a young person Schaap took a questionairre around to various artists in his neighborhood, Buck Clayton, etc. I can see why Schapp is so well loved in New York, and with the long, long history of the station championing all kinds of different jazz in depth, how they've become the gold standard for non-commercial jazz radio. All that being said it's a basic thing -- you're either listening to a talk show about jazz or you're listening to a music program. When Phil comes on it becomes the former and should be marketed that way. Interviews are great, but lectures -- you'll find a smaller audience for that no matter where you live (and no matter who's doing the talking).

Nice web site. I've had several Chicago residents who summer in West Michigan say they listen to The College of Dupage station everyday.

Very well then. Points taken. Which station are you talking about: "Instead of celebrating the full market signal station that broadcasts jazz between 16-20 hours per day in Chicago" ? I haven't heard WDCB.

A lot is changing. Frankly, I can't imagine WBEZ's news talk reflecting the character or personality of Chicago the way WGN does. But I'm sure it will fill an information void. That radio, of all things, is turning it's back on real music after their long involved history together speaks to bigger changes in society. For instance the major news media's inability to report the news, leaving a huge vacuum for NPR to fill, which they have, and people are paying attention. Through the Clinton administration his popularity during the Monica Lewinsky ordeal stayed around 70 per cent, and every wag on t.v. was saying off with his head. Today Bush's ratings are the lowest of a President since the depression and the pundits waive his bullshit off. T.V. news is insulated from the American public, and NPR's programs, despite their attempts at covering pop culture, are worthwhile for mearly doing the old job description of "journalist." The investment in culture and public education that America (and Americans) made after WWII is nearly run it's course. Public Radio's committment to fine arts music programming was part of that investment. So were the tremendous music programs in the high schools of Chicago, Detroit and Philly, to name just three. And the independant thinking engendered by such an educated populace is anathama to the locked steps of our time. I believe jazz music can change people's lives, inform them of inner depths and outer communion, tell people instinctually how to detect falsehoods surrounding the gluttony of power, and imbue them with a sense of cultural history, of place and righteous purpose. Maybe the NPR news model can do the same thing in a different way. But I doubt it. Opinion today is an expendable commodity used primarily to consolidate power, not reveal truth, while music and art are timeless and at their best ONLY deal with the truth. WBEZ's choice was to take the easy way out.

LOL, Rostasi Ken: "But I doubt that the management's decision was made without serious review of these matters, vs. potential opportunities with alternative programming." After my paranoid ramblings about WUOM this might sound equally as off base, but I DO doubt management's choices...right now, and for the last many years, the NPR network management in Washington is trumpeting the news model and local management is eating it up. Sometimes without thinking about anything other than making more money. A good local example is Werf's station, WGVU, which nixed it's day time jazz several years ago to chase the siren song of the news model, not thinking they'd be doing the same thing that WUOM was doing in the same market. It really took the air out of the place and now, at long last, they may have recovered from the change, that is, re-won an audience and their support. But it was clear in the first several years after they made the switch that they lost their audience and their funding but, you know, hubris and ego come into play, and they just sat there betting on the come because that's what NPR in Washington said would happen. Ghost and I are in a similar boat. Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp is not going to change formats. That's the message in all of our fundraising campaigns. The result is, of course, we stay small. Our budget is $780,000 a year and we have a full time staff of 7. That's a pretty tight ship for a 100,000 watt station. And there's a quite a bit of competition for public radio listeners in Grand Rapids. They can hear the NPR stations from Ann Arbor, Kalamazoo, Mount Pleasent, maybe East Lansing, as well as Werf's station at Grand Valley State University, Blue Lake and a small but well loved community station, WYCE. Ann Arbor has WEMU, too, but they can also hear WDET. In general public radio in Michigan is diverse and competitive enough to make things interesting. Thank God for people who listen to and care about music.

Rotasi, Daddy-O Dailey was the handle this annonymous person used when speaking to me. Ken, I really don't think BEZ's numbers were bad for local programming, and their fundraising during jazz was powerful. The station was raising good money. While what you're saying is true, greed before mission comes into play with this choice. And it's not like they don't have options to keep jazz. See below.... I would say yell and scream. Write them letters and tell them that they're turning their back on more than just a "small but devouted" following. Chicago Sun-Times All that jazz gives way to all public affairs April 6, 2006 BY LESLIE BALDACCI Staff Reporter Chicago public radio station WBEZ-FM (91.5) is eliminating music programming next year when its signal strength increases nearly tenfold and it switches to an all-public affairs format, the station's staff was told Wednesday. Gone will be the jazz programs that now run Monday through Thursday from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m., Friday night's world music lineup and Sunday afternoon's jazz programming. As first reported by Sun-Times media columnist Rob Feder, Chicago Public Radio has been planning to broadcast two full-time programming services on separate frequencies. The move became possible with the acquisition of WBEW-FM (91.5) in Chesterton, Ind., and WBEQ-FM (90.7) in southwest suburban Morris. The station had considered moving music to the second station, but they are taking the riskier step of doing public affairs on those two stations as well, said Daniel Ash, the station's vice president of strategic communication. "The WBEW and WBEQ signals will be rooted in public affairs, with the sensibility of attracting a more diverse and a bit younger audience," Ash said. He said WBEZ's music programs, about a third of the station's schedule, have "a small but loyal audience." About two-thirds of the station's schedule already is news, talk, arts, culture and National Public Radio programs. In coming weeks, the station will form creative teams to address new programming, Ash said.