Classic FM most profitable radio station in the UK

February 1, 2009 at 09:08 PM ·

Well, this auction to the highest bidder stuff for radio spectrum is a faulty application of capitalism to a *public* resource--the radio spectrum. Same thing is a problem here in the U.S. The public aspect of radio spectrum has been consistently marginalized as time goes by.

The whole business smells. Here's a good link:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/letters/article5621315.ece

February 2, 2009 at 03:04 AM ·

License issues aside, what I found interesting is the fact that a classical radio channel is the most profitable one in the UK, not some pop channel.

February 2, 2009 at 03:43 PM ·

It is interesting, but "profit" depends on the cost of the entity. They are only profitable measured against a very low capital valuation.

We had almost the exact same thing happen to a classical music station in a major US city about 15 years ago. It had a 40,000 watt license, and was profitable. The station had been around a long time, had low expenses....then the ownership changed for some reason. Maybe sdomebdy died, I can't remember. At any rate, somebody who owned the station realized how much money that 40,000 watt license was worth--so they sold it to the highest bidder. Of course the winning bid could never be paid off with advertisements for oriental rugs and Mercedes sedans, with a rather small listenership--even though they were the sort to buy expensive cars...

Needless to say, the new owner turned it into pop, and that didn't make enough money (not high enough ratings) so they switched to oldies, then "urban contemporary" etc etc ever couple months. They lost lots of mney, the station was sold again (in other words somebody paid too much...)

Ultimately the classical audience was outraged but had nowhere to go. All the non-profit licenses were already filled, mostly now with "university" stations that were anything but (actually commerical but called non-profit) and so one of them, an all-jazz station, brought all the DJs and the classical music over, and gave up the daytime slots to classical. So now this city, which used to have 24 hour classical, and 24 hour jazz, had only 12 hour of each, and yet another pop station.

Of course it smells. That is because radio spectrum is a *public* resource and it has been totally coopted for *private* gain. That is bad in any political framework.

February 2, 2009 at 04:16 PM ·

well, I can only hope that the UK licensing conditions are such that the classical nature of the channel is mandated. The article seemed to hint that might be the case but then it might not be so.

Still, I wouldn't have thought that the most profitable channel was a classical one, that really surprises me, in a good way though.

February 4, 2009 at 06:55 PM ·

Classic FM has become popular in the UK because it markets classical music as 'music to relax to'.  It plays exclusively what it refers to as 'smooth classics,' usually in easily digestible, small fragments, for example, single movements from Vivaldi's Four Seasons or Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. There are frequent voiceovers,  reiterating that classical music is...you guessed it...music to relax to. Needless to say, the voice is invariably deep, slow, breathy and female. 

Radio 3 also plays classical music, but a much more varied, sometimes challenging selection, with thoughtful commentary by the presenters. It is a BBC radio station, supported by the licence fee, and can therefore afford to be less popular.

February 5, 2009 at 02:59 AM ·

Yikes!

February 5, 2009 at 09:11 PM ·

More on Radio 3 - There is a fascinating programme each week entitled 'Building a Library,' which compares different recordings of a particular piece of music . The presenter recommends a top recording and often a budget alternative and a historic recording.

Here are some recommendations for you to mull over and, no doubt, in some cases disagree with:

Bach Sonatas and Partitas: Rachel Podger [baroque violin]

Bartok VC: Kyung Wha Chung, City of Birmingham SO

Beethoven Violin Concerto: Thomas Zehetmair, Orchestra of the 18^th century, 1997

Berg VC: Josef Suk, Czech Phil, 1965

Brahms VC: Gil Shaham, Berlin Phil, 2000

Bruch VC:  Anne Sophie Mutter, Berlin Phil, 1980

Dvorak VC: Isabelle Faust, The Prague Philharmonia, 2003

Mendelssohn VC: Joshua Bell, Camerata Salzburg, 2000

Prokofiev Violin Concerto no2 G minor: Heifetz, Boston SO, 1959

Shostakovitch VC: Maxim Vengerov, LSO, 1994

Sibelius VC: Joshua Bell, LAPO, 1999

Stravinsky VC: Zimmermann, Stuttgart RSO, 1990

In case you were wondering, the choices were made by different presenters!

February 6, 2009 at 06:15 AM ·

I have the CD set with Rachel Podger playing the Bach Sonatas & Paritas, as well as the one where she plays the accompanied sonatas together with Trevor Pinnock (harpsichord).

I like her solo Bach a lot, especially I like the sound of the gut strings. I also like the softer way in which she interprets Bach, I personally find the typical modern interpretations too aggressive. What I was surprised about is Podger's interpretation of the Partita No.3. There are many accents/dynamics in there which I can't find in the score (I use the Baerenreiter Urtext) and it puzzles me because I had assumed that historically informed performance was based on the principle not to play anything that isn't in the score. Her Partita No.3 seems to me like she got carried away and does what modern interpretation does, play herself, not Bach. Of course I am not an expert, that's just my impression when I listen to it. Overall I still like the set better than most modern interpretations, but there are two other recordings which I like better than her's:

1) Viktoria Mullova, unfortunately she only recorded the partitas, not the sonatas. She uses a modern concert pitch and modern strings, not gut, but still plays without the usual agression, very gentle. Perhaps my favourite partitas recording.

2) Sigiswald Kuijken, also a HIP recording, but more closely than Podger following the principle not to play what's not on the page, also very gentle.

I would recommend these two over Rachel Podger to anyone who would like to try Bach S&Ps "off the beaten track", although, I'd recommend to get all three: Kuijken, Mullova and Pogder ;-)

February 6, 2009 at 07:23 PM ·

We're a bit off topic here, but I don't mind if you don't.

One of the first classical recordings I ever bought,  many years ago, was Viktoria's Mullova's Bach Partitas, It's an old friend and dearly loved and has a lot to do with my subsequent love affair with both the violin and Bach. It's difficult to be objective about any other interpretation because this one is now so ingrained in me. It's good to find someone else who appreciates it. 

I think Rachel Podger, and HIP in general, may be an acquired taste, which I have not yet fully acquired. I haven't heard Mullova since she started playing with a baroque violin but I'm sure it would be interesting to hear the results.