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10 Oct 03 - 03:48 PM (#1033327) Subject: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: GUEST,Tunesmith Do you realize that BBC Radio airs over 100 hours of classical music a week ( with every single piece of music lovingly listed in the Radio Times) BUT can only find an hour to devote to British/Celtic/American folkmusic! This elistist attitude is part of the very fabric the BBC. Nothing changes! When I was growing up, the BBC bosses almost totally ignored early rock music while secretly hoping it would go away. |
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10 Oct 03 - 03:55 PM (#1033330) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: Susanne (skw) They had a very good folk programme in the '70s/'80s 'Folk Review. Anybody remember Wally Whyton? I listened to it via BFBS in Germany, learning about my new-found hobby. Then it got dropped - folk wasn't 'in' any more ... Needless to say, we have the same problem in Germany (although just now I'm listening to an hour-long concert by one of Germany's foremost - and oldest - folk groups!). |
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10 Oct 03 - 04:14 PM (#1033338) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: John Robinson (aka Cittern) The axing of Henry Ayrtons show in Yorkshire apart, local BBC radio does contribute worthwhile output (e.g. Radio Derby's Folkwaves). Tim Moon's programme on BCB Radio in Bradford (a community station) is also worth a listen. Both air on Monday nights and both are available live via their websites. Best regards John Robinson http://www.JulieEllison.co.uk |
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10 Oct 03 - 04:24 PM (#1033344) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: Q (Frank Staplin) Classical music elitist? I hope BBC3 doesn't change. Enjoying it now, the Ulster Orchestra concert. I like folk music as well, but interests are so divided among devotees that no selection would satisfy. Moreover, the combined listeners would be a fraction of those listening to classical repertoire, and listener count is important even to publicly supported broadcast media. |
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10 Oct 03 - 05:21 PM (#1033380) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: GUEST,Tunesmith It's funny how people will accept the norm and not question it. For example, in the wake of Riverdance, there was a world-wide explotion of interest in Irish music. How did the BBC respond to this interest? Well, let me think! Ah, yes - they didn't! In Northern Ireland, The BBC's feeble output of traditional music is a scandal. And as to the popularity of Classical -v-Folk, there was a time in the 60s/70s when - I bet - more people in Britain watched live folk music each week than attended classical concerts/recitals.Even now, I would think more people attended folk music festivals this summer than went to classical events. I know there are many regional BBC folk music programs but the BBC have to put those on to show that they are supporting local culture BUT by only devoting 60mins a week to folk music on national radio the BBC are announcing to the world that they don't consider our folk music heritage to be important. After all, it is a product of those unwashed working-class types. |
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10 Oct 03 - 07:25 PM (#1033438) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: smallpiper I keep saying this! |
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10 Oct 03 - 07:27 PM (#1033441) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: Trevor There's a pretty good prog on Radio 3 at about 10pm - is it called Late Junction? Very varied music, including some folk. Had a whole evening of it a few months ago |
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10 Oct 03 - 08:17 PM (#1033463) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: Padre At the BBC web site www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/folk_promo.shtml I found the following list of folk shows: Celtic Connections Celtic Heartbeat Folk Club Mike Harding: Folk roots and acoustic based music Take the Floor: Scottish dance music The Brand New Opry The Reel Blend: Scottish Folk music Travelling Folk In addition, there were several country music programs listed including old and new, plus two programs of pipe music. This seems to be far more than the "one hour a week" that Tunesmith complains about. In fact, I think you can find more folk music weekly on the BBC than on MOST American radio stations. Padre |
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10 Oct 03 - 08:22 PM (#1033466) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: AliUK Ditto with padre above. I listen to about 10 hours of folk/blues/country over the internet and it´s all from the bbc. Actually it´s better now ( with internet streaming technology) than it ever was. |
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10 Oct 03 - 08:31 PM (#1033473) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: McGrath of Harlow Nothing elitist about playing classical music.They just need to exrtend their definition of "classical" a bit. |
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10 Oct 03 - 08:39 PM (#1033479) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: Greg F. If you want to get pissed off at the BBC for something, they need to resume shortwave broadcasting to North America. |
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10 Oct 03 - 08:41 PM (#1033481) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: Malcolm Douglas There has been some narrowness of perspective here in some of the early posts, I think. BBC Radio 2 UK does only have one hour per week, and that carries rather an over-preponderance of American and American-style singer-songwriter stuff for my taste -much of it has very little at all to do with folk music in my own view- but Radio 3 has World Routes (one hour weekly); Andy Kershaw (75 minutes weekly), and Late Junction (five hours weekly): these all carry a certain amount of material both from traditional sources and from singer-songwriters. Additionally, Radio 4 carries folk music features from time to time, both "stand-alones" (a few days ago there was a half-hour feature on the Sami music festival in Norway) and features in magazine programmes like Woman's Hour. Most of the programmes Padre mentions are Scotland only; though transmissions can be received in parts of England, this is variable and cannot be relied upon. From the point of view of someone living outside the reception area, these are no more accessible than somebody else's local radio. Internet broadcasting redresses this to some extent, but is not a substitute for direct-to-air broadcasting available throughout the UK. It has to be understood that there are several aspects to folk music from the point of view of programme planners and regular listeners of the various stations. There is "serious" folk music; that is to say, genuine traditional singers and musicians, top-end Revival performers like Martin Carthy, and, on the song-writing side, fashionable performers like Gillian Welch. This is the kind of thing likely to appear on Radio 3, with the emphasis strongly on the fashionable and foreign much of the time. Then there is the Radio 2 "easy listening" kind; essentially the material that Mike Harding plays, though he does air a certain amount of more substantial music as well. Radio 4 carries some of each, with the accent more on the "serious" end. This is still not enough, of course, but it is more than has been recognised so far. It would be pointless to demand equal representation with "classical" (or, more properly, "art" music) but there is no reason why folk music should not be treated equally with, for example, jazz. There is also no reason beyond fashion why English music should not receive equal air-time to Scottish or Irish music; but programmers of all kinds are frequently driven by fashion, whether or not they would openly admit it. |
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11 Oct 03 - 03:44 AM (#1033571) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: GUEST,Tunesmith Think about this. In the last year, BBC Radio have devoted much more air time to West African kora music than the uilleann pipe music. If the general public are not exposed to certain types of music then, obviously, the demand for that music will be small. Irish folk music, for example, is very poorly served by the BBC. ( Is there a political reason for this?) |
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11 Oct 03 - 04:29 AM (#1033578) Subject: RE: BBC Radio - Elitist 'til the end! From: treewind Irish music is well served by Irish radio. Scottish music is well served by BBC Radio Scotland and local stations English music - er... wot's that? For every new BBC local radio folk programme that starts up, another closes down (and there aren't many of those) Late Junction on Radio 3 is my best bet, both for hearing trad British music and interesting other stuff. I listen to R3's classical output a lot too, and there's that a lot more folky stuff creeping in there. A few months ago a CD review of a recording of Delius' "Brigg Fair" started with Grainger's wax cylinder recording of Joseph Taylor singing the song! But we could do with more, and surely Radio 2 with its bigger and less specialist audience could afford to take a few more risks. What have they to lose? Anahata |