Listeners to CBC Radio Two will hear a different sound starting Labour Day. Three new shows will take over the airwaves during the day, with considerably less classical music in the morning and none in the “drive time” afternoon.
The new weekday shows are:
- Mornings (6-10): Less classical, more light contemporary like Diana Krall and Joni Mitchell. About half of the music will be Canadian. No decision yet on who the host will be.
- Mid-day (10-3): Entirely classical, both recorded and live music. About 40% Canadian content.
- Drive time (3-6): No classical — instead, a wide variety of genres from world music to blues to contemporary. The show will spend more time on emerging artists and recently released songs.
In addition to the all-classical time block from 10am to 3pm, CBC will launch three new Internet-only radio stations — classical, jazz, and singer-songwriter.
CBC’s head of radio, Jennifer McGuire, reports that ratings haven’t dropped as much as was forecasted with the previous schedule change, indicating that while some people (perhaps skewing older) leave the station, new listeners join in.
So what do you think? Are we making the right decision here with these three shows?
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It sounds like Radio 2 will continue to decline instead of correcting the mistakes made in the last major schedule change. The goal of the people making these changes seems to be to have Radio 2 replace Muzak as adult contemporary replaces lively classical and the cutting edge Radio 3. Their measure of success will be how many office use Radio 2 as telephone on hold music.
I am deeply disappointed with the CBC. You can hear pop on every station -CBC was the only radio station for the classics, and now these are disappearing as well. It is all very disheartening. Tom Allen and Music for Awhile used to be my favourite programs. Gone soon, along with people like Lister Sinclair. Remember him? This dumbing down of radio and TV will produce a nation of morons.
For many years as a Canadian singer I worked with many American artists who would tell me how lucky we were to have a national broadcasting station like the CBC and that we should beware of letting anyone spoil it. Well it is rapidly getting spoiled. Pleeeeese don’t continue with this dumbing down.
a lot of this sounds scarily like what’s going on in the overnight slot: mindless pap that the commercial stations are already playing.
I too am deeply disappointed with CBC Radio 2. It used to be a class act. They have managed to dumb it down to a very mediocre broadcast and now it sound like it will be even worse. I want quality. I used to be able to listen to Radio 2 most of the day. Now I am turning it off all the time. Music and Company is one of the few remaining good radio programs. If that goes, they have lost me as a listener. I hear that Studio Sparks is soon to be history too, and while I don’t like it sometimes it often is a good show. I am not in the over 65 age bracket. I’m not near it.
Offering more online is not much help. I rarely get a steady signal online, it constantly drops. I have a high speed version of cable, not a lite version at all, and it is very inconsistent.
I hate the constant promotions that interrupt every program now, have no interest in popular or folk music. I want quality ‘classical’ music which for me includes Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, 20th century and 21st century music. I want it presented by knowledgeable people who have interesting things to say. The popular Romantic period can be left out thanks.
Where am I going to go to find what I want?
I’m afraid the changes to Radio 2 are a mistake. I find myself listening more since the most recent change, but NOT particularly to the new programs. Indeed, it is the classical music programs I seek out throughout the day and night, and it is getting increasingly difficult to find them. The CBC is creating a huge opening for commercial broadcasters to fill the void; a space that was created, sustained and celebrated at one time by the public broadcaster. Yes, let’s do some web based radio, but allow Radio 2 to be a thoughtful, intelligent and classical based alternative.
Tossing out Jurgen Gothe’s DiscDrive is a major, major blunder. I cannot imagine a suitable justification for such a bungle, apart from the misguided notions of a dilettante who craves his/her own mark upon the Radio 2 network at the expense of good sense. Shame on the CBC for allowing this nonsense.
No - I do not believe this is the right decision.
I have been a regular listener to CBC2 for years - and over the last year I find I am tuning out more and more and I can see that come September I will most probably tune out entirely - If its CBC’s purpose to dump long time listeners - they are being very successful.
I am deeply saddened. I have listened to CBC from many countries as I have moved extensively and was greatly looking forward to getting it on the radio now that I am home. My two favourite shows in the morning and afternoon have been cancelled, my favourite genre has been downplayed and I am going to have to - gasp - consider turning to satellite radio or commercial. What a way to trash a wonderful Canadian resource.
Oh course you realize this means war…
Why fix it if it ain’t broke? Where will I get my Vultures report?
I NEED classical music, commercial free, to sustain me. It feeds my brain and soul.
This is madness.
I noticed in the Globe and Mail national classified some group had formed to protest the new Radio 2 decisions. I will have to add my voice to their petition.
Why chase a demographic that is well served by commercial interests?
Someone stop these people.
Whoa, people, hold on - I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: disagree with the changes if you want, but please don’t call it "dumbing down." That’s an insult to people who make and enjoy music other than classical. Pop and singer/songwriter music is not inherently "dumb."
I would also like to point out that the musical choices are not going to be the same as the "mindless pap" played on commercial radio. The emphasis is going to be on pop, singer-songwriter, world, jazz, etc that does NOT get play on commercial stations - Canadian, independent, quality music.
Again, it’s understandable if people are upset with the changes, but at least get your facts correct - the music to be played on R2 will be music you really can’t here anywhere else, and the anything that’s not classical does NOT automatically mean it’s dumb or lesser in quality. Just different.
I too have been a faithful and loyal listner of CBC radio2 for many years… I have an office job and this station with rich classical based formats sustains my soul. My appreciation and understanding of classical music is attributed to all the years of great programing you have provided. Commentaries on the lives of composers and their composition has truly been an education. I know that if it wasn’t for this media.. many would be deprived of the rich blessing it has provided many Canadians. If I choose to listen to main stream pop.. there are countless stations dedicated to this mind dumbing garbage. Going mainstream for sustainability is a huge mistake for Radio2. I echo the sentiments of many of the comments submitted. ..saddened, disappointed and betrayed. CBC radio2 is a priveledged unique experience found nowhere else on the airways. Please reconsider the proposed format change.. I too will consider the satelite radio alternative.
Are the changes mandate-driven? If they are, I assume there is some form of public consultation process. There is definitively a need for a 24-hour (or 12 hour) classical music station not on the net but across Canada’s airwaves. You want to add new Canadian music at night? Fair enough, but not at the expense of programs such as "Music and Company"…
As a U.S. citizen in Detroit…All I can say is I am disappointed.
kate, you clearly haven’t been listening to the overnight slot where I’ve heard, among other things, the Barenaked Ladies. I’m not buying the line that somehow we’re going to play "pop and singer-songwriter" stuff that’s somehow been overlooked by pop stations.
Please no Joni Mitchell. There is enough of her on other stations and in grocery stores.
I could live with a change 3 to 6 pm but please find a host and producers/researchers that can get a groove going like they do on Espace Musique. Jurgen and crew are excellent at that. Also please limit the idle chat. Do not take a key Of Charles approach.
Also - I don’t know how BC residents give feedback to the public broadcaster anymore with the Vancouver telephone system no longer offering a local way to get opinions recorded in a daily log. Calling CBC BC is all voice mail prompts and pressing zero which is never mentioned, takes you to a busy Toronto switchboard. At least it is not India like the web editing. But I think we have to watch out for that. I bet the newsrooms are getting a lot more calls.
ahem.
So what do you think? Are we making the right decision here with these three shows?
are ‘we’ really making ANY decisions here!!??
I listen to the CBC practically all the time I have my radio on. Changes to your programming [which I enjoy immensly] or your hosts [you have the very best] could have me considering looking elsewhere. Right now you are distinctive. The more you become like others, the more indisinct you become.
I listen to the morning show more because of Tom Allen than because of the music, although I enjoy most of what he plays, and really enjoy his insights into the music. I also enjoy his enthusiasm for everything - a great way to start the day.
If you take away Tom, you will probably take away me. Glad you are leaving 10:00 to 3:00 full of classical music. I find the 3:00 to 6:00 time frame just great as it is, and hope you don’t change it too drastically. You have the best hosts on radio, so please don’t mess it up by losing them, due to programming changes! I think you have a very good mix of music right now, and reducing the classical content makes you become more like other stations, and there are many of those to choose from.
Let’s see 11 comments. 10 against the current changes at radio2, and 1 (cbc staff?) defending. I would like to see the program director replaced, perhaps the more replacements are needed higher up. Return radio2 to where it once was. You can get Pop music elsewhere, you cannot get classical music elsewhere.
No.
I think that the phrase “dumbing down” refers to more than the type or quality of music played on Radio Two. There are many elements to a quality radio program as has been exemplified by the CBC. The first and most important of these is the quality, knowledge and intelligence of the presenter. Second is the selection and flow of the music presented. I began listening to the CBC in the seventies when Peter Gzowski ruled daytime radio for me and As It Happens and Ideas was required evening listening. Each of those shows helped to shape my character, develop a personal philosophy, inform me about Canada and entertained me. As I grew older, I began to listen to the music provided by CBC Stereo until the CBC was on my radio from early morning until late at night. It remained that way until as recently as the lockout.The “dumbing down” of the programming begins with presenters who have little music training or background. Their offhand, casual comments do little to add to the experience of the music and in some cases this is reflected in the mispronunciation of artists, composers or titles. I greatly miss intelligent presenters like Danielle Charbonneau, Larry Lake and Andrea Ratuski. Then, programs focused on a particular genre of music have been replaced by a catch-all of classical, world, pop, jazz, etc. With items that are three to four minutes in length. Even contemporary works that are fifteen minutes long are played in chunks to fit that format. I remember the outrage generated when Gavin Bryars’ “Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet” was played for the first time on the CBC. It challenged the audience but needed the full hour to achieve the full impact. I fear that those challenges will no longer be a part of the CBC.Now I use the internet to listen to the BBC or Public Radio from the US. And I pick and choose regional radio programs of the CBC (when I want to listen to an hour of Newfoundland music for example). I have even switched to Radio Canada for classical programming or when Radio Two fails to pick up a fantastic production from the Metropolitan Opera as they did last Sunday. Perhaps that is what the programmers have in mind, that their audience should become used to pick and choose. But more and more the choice will not be Stereo Two.
Go ahead CBC. Go ahead and delete your last redemptive elements. I advise you to give your future competition a handsome severance package.
I thoroughly disagree with the changes. Tom Allen’s show is one of our favourites, as is Eric Friesen’s and Jurgen Goth’s. Like many of the other people who have responded, we will not be tuning in. You are rapidly making CBC redundant with no distinction from commercial radio stations. As such, it will be hard to justify public funds to continue operations. unrecognizable is also a go is
It was the CBC affiliate in Windsor, Ontario, back in the 1950’s, when I was in my very early teens that awakened me to my first love: classical music. It has been a lifetime love and CBC has been a lifetime companion. Now I am dumped in the quest for relevance and new listeners. Gee, I pay taxes too. Am I not an important statistic?
Please don’t get any further away from your original mandate. We have been tuned exclusively to CBC Radio2 for many years and bemoan the decline. Every time there is a change, something good is lost. "Music for Awhile" was a treasure. I’m only sorry that 94.5 WNED doesn’t come through very well in Toronto and most evenings I listen to it on my computer. Please don’t take away all our listening pleasure.
I like listening to classical music. I don’t like listening to the radio during midday. Where does that leave me? Classical-music-less, I believe. I like coming home and lying on the couch and listening to something orchestral, while eating dark chocolate. Now I have to hear Tonic’s easy-listening-jazz, which simply irritates me.
DiscDrive provides the perfect mix of classical and folk. Please don’t throw it away! This entire idea of dictating what time of day is allowed to have what kind of music is simply backward-thinking.
I thoroughly disagree with the changes. Tom Allen’s show is one of our favourites, as is Eric Friesen’s and Jurgen Goth’s. Like many of the other people who have responded, we will not be tuning in. You are rapidly making CBC redundant with no distinction from commercial radio stations. As such, it will be hard to justify public funds to continue operations.
This plan will render radio 2 to be as unsavoury as you have made radio 1. You are trying to please people who do not, and will not be listening to radio 2. In the mean time you will be losing may of your existing radio 2 listeners, myself included. The music you plan to introduce is presently available on radio 1. I think Joni Mitchell is great, but radio 1 is where this should be. Also 4o% Canadian content on classical music is sure to send a lot of cacophony to the air waves, as you have done with radio 1.
Kate is, as usual, correct. The sky is not falling. If the CBC were properly funded we might have three or four radio channels, as they do in Australia for example - and one of them could be devoted to classical music, another to local, another to pop culture. Perhaps the real question needs to be "Why do CTVgm and Corus, each get to have four radio outlets in this city, while the CBC, the public broadcaster, has only two (in each official language)?" When did we abandon the notion of a public airwaves to the private, commercial sector, and why did we allow it to happen?
I take solace and refuge in classical music, and in the intelligence and knowledge of Radio 2 hosts.
Although I agree with Kate, (I was a big fan of Brave New Waves and Radio Sonic) programming commercial free classical music is, in my mind, a public broadcaster’s duty. Call me elitist. Please.
Colin (March 7th) said - "I am deeply saddened" by the cancellation of his favourite CBC radio programs.
Even though the CBC spends $1Billion a year of taxpayers money, nothing that they do can deeply sadden me. Nothing the CBC does can deeply anger or please me. It’s a public media outlet for God’s sake. There are hundreds (nay thousands) of media alternatives to the CBC for ones’ soul: CDs, iPod, NPR, CNN, Fox, live performance, internet, Youtube, etc.
No wonder CBC zealots are dismissed. They are the people who are in love with the idea of being in love. It’s not the love itself that they need.
I have listened to CBC since I moved to the West Coast in ‘76. I am a classical musician and member of one of the country’s best choirs. I work from home and CBC Radio 2 gets turned on as soon as we wake up & rarely gets turned off until after dinner.
By compressing the classical music into hours that guarantee many people won’t be able to listen CBC is effectively sounding the death knell of its classical coverage. I predict within 5 years there will be nothing ‘pop’ style variants, all chasing a demographic that doesn’t look to CBC Radio 2 for their music in the first place.
It’s a very very sad day for classical music in Canada.
Way back in the 1970’s, I learned about classical music from CBC FM (as Radio 2 was called at the time). I was in my early 30’s then. Over the years, Radio 2 provided me with a great deal of pleasurable listening and education. Last year’s changes were bad enough, but this!!! How very sad for young people who want to learn more about classical music. How very sad for shut-ins like my 91 year old mother who loves classical music, but who can just barely turn the knob on her radio (kept set permanently to Radio 2).
It is interesting that you wish to put the full classical music menu on the internet! This should make it really easy for people to access (NOT)!!! Remember, some of us older folk are internet-savvy - many are not. Why not put the pop stuff on your internet channel and bring us back a Radio 2 that those of us who listen to you now will keep listening to (and the young, as they come to need classical music in their lives, will still have around.
Listening to Tom Allen in the morning cheers my heart and soul. I always learn something and it makes me so proud to have him on the CBC. What are you thinking of?? One can listen to other music on any other station but there is no where else to listen to classical music. THINK AGAIN before you change the few good things you have left on radio 2.
I am increasingly disappointed with both CBC 1 and 2. It used to be that I could listen to either and find interesting music/ideas.
Now, I am constantly changing to a commercial station because I can not endure the music on CBC 1 and 2. Why do they both have jazz music on Saturday nights at the same time? Why is there not more organ music as on the French national radio?
I’m disappointed with the changes I hear are about to happen. I used to enjoy the classics on CBC during the day. I as well may have to move to satelite radio to find what I want, please don’t force me to make this move. If its CBC’s purpose to dump long time listeners, they will be very successful if this insanity prevails.
It was bad enough when they did away with "Music for a While," with the incomparable Danielle Charbonneau. "Tonic" is unlistenable, and so I no longer turn on CBC 2 when I’m making dinner. (I do like "The Signal.") But eviscerating the classical programming is a huge mistake. Do we really need more pop music on the radio, even alt-pop? I work at home and keep CBC on until Disc Drive (which reached it’s "best by" date a while ago). I’ll have to find something else to listen to, I guess. I don’t think the internet option is really viable, but we’ll see.
Ruth (above) says it all.
I am an oldster and I’ve listened to CBC all my life. Come the fall I probably won’t any more. Perhaps we need a Radio 3, devoted to, well, the things we listened to 3 or 4 years ago. CBC doesn’t seem to realise it but it has two franchise players: Tom and Jurgen. And you’re going to wreck them, or dump them? Yikes!
Why the obvious anit-classical bias? What is the explanation for retiring the most knowledgeable, articulate, best-in-class hosts and replacing them with less-credentialed hosts? Is it because an in-bred senior management is filtering out the best to line up more of their own kind? And please, can the announcers please pronounce "concerto" correctly — they sound like they’re saying it for the first time in their lives.
I have not yet recovered from the cancellation of After Hours. Tonic is acceptable, but certainly not in the same league as After Hours, and the time slot is impractical for me. I prefer the later evening quiet time, and The Signal just doesn’t do it for me.
And now to hear that I will also lose Studio Sparks and Disc Drive - seems to be the ultimate slap in the face. I sympathize with the classical music fans as well. Music and Company is a little early in the morning for me (I love my Radio One local morning show!), but when I do tune in, I enjoy it considerably.
It has been a source of frustration for me that, for years, CBC has not been able to offer late night/middle-of-the-night easy listening music when we might have need of it! "Alternative" genres are just NOT relaxing!!
Please, please - reconsider all of this shifting of genres away from our classics, light classics and jazz! I’m afraid my Radio Two listening time is going to be drastically diminished, if not ended, when the new programming is instituted.
What seems to be missing is some kind of rationale for these changes? Are they taken with the listener in mind –first and foremost?
With the demographics indicating that in a few years most Canadians will be over 50-55 years old, I wonder why this rush to make everything "young", "cool", "edgy".
Alienating the CBC’s core audience does not seem like a wise way to initiate change.
The "dumbing down" isn’t a comment on music styles - it’s a reflection of the inane choices being made by the CBC brass in their vain attempts to spice up CBC 2 and make it more "edgy" and "street-wise". Absolutely pathetic. I suspect, come the fall, the inevitable drop in listeners will prompt a lot of confused head-scratching. Even after they’ve managed to completely shutter the place and render CBC2 officially dead these yahoos still won’t get what went wrong. It’s sad to watch - and listen to.
No, those decisions are not right for me. I have been listening to the classical music and voice programs and Disc Drive on CBC for years and learned a lot about composers, singers, and genres from the knowledgeable hosts.
I already listen to CBC 1 and 2 via the web and as talk programs are not my favourite radio, I have been switching more often lately to WGBH (Boston) which is an all classical station (minus the interviews and analysis I enjoy so much on CBC 2). I also have XM satellite radio and listen to their classical stations, as well as the folk one which plays quite a few Canadian artists.
So, for me, the differentiators that currently make CBC radio a first listening choice will diminish and I’ll listen less. But I assume the market research analysts at CBC (you do have those, right?) have determined that I’m part of an increasingly unimportant demographic, and needs must.
Sucks to be me.
It’s good to hear the changes - love "The Signal" and "Tonic", still miss Radio Three, and after twenty-three years it will seem strange without "Disc Drive". You should make a point of shaking up the schedule at least every other decade.
Yes it is ‘dumbing down’. Classical music is, by definition, music that appeals primarily to the intellect, composer-centric, academic and is or was leading edge. Anything that fits within that gamut is considered ‘classical music’. Anything that does not is ‘dumbing down’. It may still be quality, but at a visceral level, not an intellectual one.
I miss "Pearls of Wisdom" with host David Wisdom. I only started listening just over a year before they dropped it in March of last year. What a shame. A great variety of retro music that you never heard anywhere. And he was great as the host. It was such a big loss. I don’t mind the present programming. It’s a shame we will loose Disc Drive (I remember Jurgen’s first episode way back in fall of 1985!) and the others. I won’t say these new changes are the death nell of CBC Radio 2, as I’m ready to listen and keep an open mind, but unless they convert Espace Music into a bilingual station, lots of classical fans will suffer. I also feel we need good, intelligent, knowledgeable hosts who at least sound professional (no gushing at guests, good diction, no talking at the same time as others, and SLOW DOWN! So many hosts talk like excited teenagers. CBC Information Radio from Winnipeg comes to mind). I miss the early 1980’s (I was just a kid) when we had Gzowski, Bill Guest and many others with those great voices and characters. Today it’s all like, um…you know, like, um, young excited teenagers.
change is hard when it is imposed upon us by someone else. but change is good.I’m not willing to vilify the network that has brought us so much smart programming we love simply because they’re going to try something new. not yet, anyway…. let’s not assume the sky is falling until the chunks land on our heads. changes to Radio 1 have brought us some great new shows… far from being dumbed down, the new shows are fresh and seem to be smarter and better produced than the ones they replaced. Yes, I’ll miss Jurgen and Eric and especially Tom, but even the pros need a change to keep them at their best. I wouldn’t be surprised if we heard more from all of them…
I still miss "Two New Hours" immensely… the occasional bones thrown to contemporary "serious" music during "The Signal" does not make up for its loss, and the loss to Canadian composers. I increasingly find both Radio 1 and 2 irrelevant and off-putting, from the smarminess of the journo-comedy bits in "The Current" to the deer-in-the-headlights interview style of Jian Ghomeshi on "Q" (please, please give back more arts reporting time to Eleanor Wachtel!). My Radio 1 "must-listen" time has been reduced to "Ideas" and "The Age of Persuasion", and as for Radio 2, it is to my ears becoming MOR soup, far removed from the distinctive programming choices found only a few years ago. And in case there’s any brass wondering where I fall in the demographics…I’m in my mid-30s. I enjoy classical and jazz. And sorry, you’re losing me.
Looks like the "nays" have it.I too will be tuning out.
Very disappointed with the continuing changes to Radio Two! Don’t understand how alienating your audience is an improvement and how not losing as many listeners as you thought can be considered a success. Seems like an example of too many managers with too much time on their hands who are unwilling to admit they have made a mistake and are hell bent on carrying on regardless. Change can be a good thing if the existing programming isn’t working but definitely not the case with Radio Two! Too many of my favourite shows will have disappeared after this latest round of "improvements" and really have no other outlet for the kind of programming I enjoyed. It’s a shame that such good quality programming will disappear. For the record I hate the promos (especially the awful Tonic spots). I have tried to get to know the new shows but sorry nothing there that appeals. And like Bee from Regina I am in my mid-30’s, enjoy classical and jazz and yes you will be losing me too!
All I can say is that I hope CBC Radio programmers are reading their mail. Mercy!
Nobody likes change. Especially changes to their favourite radio station: the sleepless companion.
It will be up to the new producers to select high quality music from all genres, including classical, to set the new contemporary sound, reflective of the mosaic of Canada and the world.
I hope the new programs reflect the thoughtfulness required to do its best for long-time listeners.
While some people have left ( skewed older), others have joined in, says Jennifer McGuire. Those older people are people for whom CBC was a lifeline. They were deeply loyal AND vocal. The CBC can’t easily or quickly re-create this kind of audience, especially in this multi-platform world.
I still miss Two New Hours too! I stopped listening to CBC2 after that show went off the air.
I lamented the loss of classical music on the CBC back then. And now they’re getting rid of even more classical music. And I heard that the midday classical slot will be mostly "popular and accessible" classical music — this would tire me very quickly.
And by the way, I’m 23 years old — so not all the listeners that have been lost are older people. CBC may be trying to attract younger listeners, but it repels me now.
Every time you make major changes, I find myself listening less and less. And now it will get worse, I fear. Like many others, I am at work during the middle of the day. I will now hear virtually no regular classical music from CBC. The Signal is genuinely interesting but the hosting is weak. As for the rest, it is very similar to commercial smooth jazz and easy listening formats. I sometimes have it on for a while but do not seek it out or care about. You are abandoning a loyal audience which has supported CBC for decades and which has also encouraged governments to fund it. Remember "I Vote CBC?" Joni Mitchell in the mornings, sigh. Whatever can you be thinking about.
Over the years I have invited people like: Clyde Gilmour, Bob Kerr, Leon Cole, Richard Ouzounian, David Wisdom, Jurgen Goethe, Max Ferguson, Howard Dyck, the fellow who hosted that Sunday afternoon show "Here Come the Bands", and many many others in to my home, car, workspace and headspace. These individuals always behaved with intelligence and courtesy when I let them in and I always looked forward to hearing from them again. I wish that could be said of their masters in CBC management. I find my listening tastes are no longer welcome on CBC Two and am at a loss as to what I have done to offend. This pining for what once was leave me very melancholy.
I’m gone, too, if these changes take place.
Incidentally, a quick scan of the membership of the Facebook group "Save Classical Music at the CBC’ reveals a very large number of young people: high school, and college students, as well as recent grads. So WHOM is the CBC trying to attract??
Bye-bye!
It’s not that change is inherently bad, but the kind of change CBC is planning leaves a void for those of us who love classical music presented by knowledgeable, articulate hosts. Worse than that is how you can contemplate taking away such a wonderful morning man as Tom Allen — so many of us rely on him to educate us, humour us, cheer us and just be with us every morning in his own inimitable style. And losing the treasure that is our national classical request show — a way of linking strangers all across the country with our stories, our life events and our music loves, so that we became neighbours — it’s irreplaceable. CBC — you’re way off base in trying to become what every other station is rather than staying unique.
It used to be that Radio 2 was on in our home almost constantly. With last year’s changes, it is no longer on after 6 p.m. And I suspect that in September it will rarely be on. The things we like to listen to will have been replaced with things that are not of interest. I’m not an oldie, but I’ve listened to CBC for the better part of 25 years. I find myself listening to BBC3 through my computer (on dial up!) more than Radio 2 these days. And, believe it or not, the BBC comes through better on dial up than CBC does!
Wouldn’t it be simpler just to replace Jennifer McGuire?
I used to have my radio glued to CBC radio 2 for many years until the last round of changes. The upcoming proposed dumbing down is unbelievable. as it is CBC is useless after 6pm. PLEASE let,s get back to the basics of what the CBC is for. Bring back the Arts Report. It was an excellent way to keep informed on the Arts news across the country. Let’s return to intelligent information on the music etc, rather than the idle chatter that seems to be popular now. So often the remarks about the music are just plain wrong! Where are the people who check the details?
Also, one should not have to change the dial to keep informed on world events. Please bring back the news and the World at 6. I miss the CBC very much, but every time I turn it on, I find myself diving for the OFF button within minutes. So much for another loyal listener. All that is left is Choral Concert and the Opera.
I just heard that Rick Phillips has jumped ship. No more Sound Advice starting in April. I think that’s a HUGE loss!
I wasn’t impressed with the changes made to Radio 2 last year, and am even more unimpressed with what’s going to happen later this year. While I love listening to Internet radio stations, I disagree with the idea of having an all-classical station on the Net exclusively, since you can tune into any commercial station to hear pop music. (If it’s independent music the CBC is thinking of playing, isn’t that what Radio 3 is for?) As far as I’m concerned, the classical format should remain on Radio 2, and the other genres, with the exception of good Jazz music, should be moved to the Internet. And while you’re at it, get rid of Tonic! I listened to the show’s debut broadcast last year, and that was enough for me. I miss Music for Awhile with Danielle Charbeneau and After Hours. Now there was some good music!
Just found out about this from Russell Smith’s column in the Globe and Mail today. We can hear Joni Mitchell and Diana Krall anywhere - where else are we going to get the other thousand years of the world’s musical culture? This will shame Canada in the eyes of lovers of real music around the world. I agree with Gary above - keep classical music on Radio 2 and get rid of Jennifer McGuire.
For what it’s worth, I am deeply disappointed at the changes proposed for Radio2. I "discovered" the old CBC FM some twenty years ago and have derived untold hours of pleasure from the various classically-oriented shows ever since, not to mention a wealth of information that I would never have gained from commercial radio. Now at 46, I am appalled that the Corporation is continuing to dumb-down programming, causing me to turn to the French language service or CFMX (which is not really an alternative). Please consider that your listeners tend to mature into Radio2; changing the format so drastically gives younger listeners nothing to grow into except more of the same.
I am in shock. Is Jennifer McGuire completely nuts? I don’t want to have to subscribe to satellite radio to get intelligent music that makes my brain think and my heart sing. If the CBC brass wnat aneasylitening station, create Radio 4. Don’t decimate Radio 2.
There is no elected official in Canada who has as much power over my quality of life (and the quality of life of the thousands of Canadians who love and engage with Radio Two and its hosts and, through them, each other) as CBC’s Head of Radio. Please grant me the power to vote her out of office. Now, please.
Looks like the consensus here that these are not the right decisions for the Radio 2. There is no one who can do what Tom Allen does every morning. I am quite saddened to hear that he and other classical music show hosts will have a lesser profile on national radio; what they are given is already so little!
Well, that’s that, I guess - so much for me even bothering with Radio 2. I was willing to give the last set of changes a fair shake, and at least they left Tom Allen on the air, even though they took away his witty foil. Tom cracks me up, perks me up, informs me, and makes me keep CBC 2 on my dial instead of some other station. I like classical music and can hear it on 96.3 in the mornings if I have to (my second choice would be a jock-rock station, just FYI), but it was Tom Allen that made my mornings. Without him, I’ll just take my listening business elsewhere. I hope he leaves a forwarding address - I’m goin’ where he’s goin’, babies.
Isn’t there enough "dumbing down" going on in this world? I invite CBC to bravely return to the traditional mandate for Radio Two…continue to offer a mix of inspiring, stimulating, challenging and (why not?) even, beautiful classical music to its listeners? Also, a reminder to CBC to recognize the very important and irreplaceable role they have in helping many talented Canadian classical musicians to build their reputations and their careers…
I listen to CBC at work and like the light, classical music. And even the heavy classical music. Why "fix" this? Joni Mitchell? Yuck. No thanks.If anything, increase the variety of classical music that gets played, instead of abandoning it.
I began listening to CBC radio 2 as a teenager, and now twenty years later, I have gone from passionate interest and constant listening to bitterness, hatred, and rushing across the kitchen to turn off the offending tripe and and inane blather. I disagree with the above comments only in that I think CBC 2 is already half pitiable… I used to love greeting the evenings with "Music for a While".. such a classy and interesting show. CBC is already dead to me.
I am extremely disappointed at the imminent cancellation of Tom Allen’s Music & Company. As a young student at McGill’s Faculty of Law, I can attest to the fact that Mr. Allen’s program attracts more than just an aging demographic. Indeed, I am disheartened to see the complete absence of targeted advertising aimed at younger professionals - the very types who would most appreciate Mr. Allen’s engaging references to music history, cognitive science and his college music school hijinks.
Music & Company is a wonderful blend of refreshing humour - such as its "cage matches" and "swag exchange" - and serious musical themes. As a lover of Russian culture, I particularly appreciate Mr. Allen’s apparent fascination with Eastern European orchestral music.
The announced midday replacement of a classical music program emphasizing "the most popular and accessible " classical music will hardly distinguish CBC Radio 2 from Radio Classique Montreal and Classical 96 in Toronto, two prominent radio stations in major anglophone markets. Indeed, why does CBC Radio 2 seek to make itself less distinguishable from its ostensible rivals?
CBC Radio 2 should both keep alive and better promote Tom Allen’s splendid morning program. Should they insist on killing his show, at least select Mr. Allen as the host for the new classical program. His energetic, witty, delightful personality contrasts markedly with other longtime, yet relatively colourless radio personalities such as Jurgen Gothe and Catherine Belyea.
Most people I talk with have completely given up listening to the evening schedule, " I don’t even try anymore…" seems to be the usual response. With the daytime change I take it that the goal is no listeners at all.
I’d like to know since when is the mandate of a PUBLIC Broadcaster to only play music for a very select few? I would think that a true PUBLIC broadcaster should reflect the PUBLIC that pays for it and the PUBLIC that would like to listen in but don’t find anything that reflects them.I thought we were all Canadians with real Canadian values. Come on, share the airwaves. Stop hogging everything for one style of music and judging everyone, who doesn’t like it or would like to listen to something else too, as common or inferior. I would hope this all or nothing attitude is beneath us as Canadians. What happened to the spirit of inclusiveness and our pride in being a multi cultural mecca? How can we say that we’re a welcoming country when we try, through our narrow mindedness, to impose our limited music values on this nation of immigrants who work hard, pay taxes and have every right to hear their music, from time to time, on the PUBLIC broadcaster?
If the CBC is betraying Canada’s classical music community to this degree by cutting down the classical music content on Radio 2 and dumbing down what’s left, the world will not end but we’ll go elsewhere for our classical radio content. But when the next round of cuts happens at Radio 2, don’t look for our support if you’ve already abandoned your support for us.
Chris Foley
The Collaborative Piano Blog
Decimating CBC2 to reach an audience that does not exist, using promotional announcers with that ironic, hip, ‘inflection down’ style of ending a sentence. CBC’s international radio was killed off, now its CBC2’s turn I guess. Apparently, the managers of CBC2 never listen to radio, which is how commercial radio management operates. With all of you on this board, I also mourn the demise of CBC2 as it races to the bottom. I just don’t understand CBC Radio management—they must be very inexperienced and intellectually barren people.
I’m deeply disappointed by these changes. I absolutely rely on the classical music programming on CBC, especially during the commute to work and home again when it is classical music on Radio Two which I always rely on to get me through the traffic — the very times when you’re cutting the classical music. ACK. I have listened to nothing but Radio Two for years and now you will lose another devoted listener (who’s never written before to say how much she appreciates your programming — wish I had — it WAS superb). Tonight I turned off the station during the commute home. What god-awful noise was that even? My children tell me just to play my CDs, but the reason I bought so many lovely CDs was by discovering new pieces and performers on Radio Two. I’m really surprisingly bereft about what you’re doing. You are doing a disservice to a great many people like me who have no interest in another "contemporary" station. We are a minority, to be sure, but unlike potential new listeners who can listen to what you’re now feeding them in a lot of other places, we would have been a loyal minority. In London, there is no other classical music station. Perhaps more sadly even than our plight is your disservice to the incredibly talented and under-acknowledged classical musicians in our crass commercial world. Perhaps we should re-paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel while we’re at it. It’s old and not very hip.
world music and blues are great, but "light contemporary"? isn’t there enough of that on the radio already?
Just what the world needs…more play for Diana Krall and Joni Mitchell. I like Joni Mitchell, don’t get me wrong, but there are plenty of places on the airwaves to hear Big Yellow Taxi. Yes, Jennifer McGuire, head of CBC radio, the ratings may remain stable, and even actually increase, but don’t interpret this as success. I’m 37 (hopefully not too old for my opinions to be taken seriously), grew up on CBC Stereo, as well as Radio-Canada (which was even better, actually), but both now, sadly, are shadows of their former selves. I only listen to CDs and Radio One in my car now. Greater variety I accept readily, but easy on the easy listening, dammit.
Radio Two, this is not the right decision. I listen to the station because of the music I can hear, not because it is CBC. My loyalty is to the music, not to your station. If you make a change as drastic as this to your programming, I will make a drastic change to the station I listen to. I will regret not being able to listen to great music in a Canadian context, but make no mistake, the great music will stay, and the CBC Radio Two Canadian context will go. This is not a good decision. It’s not good for Canadian composers, performers, artists, or the music making community as a whole; it’s not good for Canadian music lovers; it will not be good for the CBC because you will lose this listener, and many, many others like me. I would strongly urge you to reconsider the changes you have indicated you intend to make.
I have been very disappointed with the CBC Radio 2 programming changes from the past year. Music for a While and In Performance were great shows; now I rarely have the radio on in evening. If you get rid of Tom Allen and classical music in the morning, then I won’t have my radio on then either. Which leaves the middle of the day… when I’m at work. I agree with all the other commenters who say that Canadians have enough pop music radio to listen to. We have a dearth of classical music stations, and CBC2 used to be the best. My Facebook profile says "if it’s on CBC radio 2, chances are I’m listening to it" but not for much longer!
This is really sad. Is there a place I can file a formal petition or protest? Can someone tell us the link to the globe and mail ad page regarding the protest?
Given that CBC is public radio, maybe we should all call our MP to voice our opposition to the planned change.
I have always loved the option of avoiding all the pop music and turn on Radio 2, where I used to be guanranteed beautiful classical music. It sounds like it will become just another station I skip over. If CBC is concerned about Canadian artists getting air-time, they shouldn’t be disregarding all those musicians who have been involved in classical recordings as members of talented orchestras and ensembles across the country. I loved being introduced to pieces I had never heard. I am in my 20s, and love classical music (as well as other genres) this change will just force me turn off the radio and listen to my own CDs. CBC really needs to keep some intellectual integrity, and not dismiss their current listeners.
I grew up listing to CBC radio two in the mornings during the drive to school, on long trips to the cottage and while doing homework. The exposure to quality classical music played a significant role in my subsequent decision to pursue post-secondary studies in classical music . If this dumbing-down of the radio broadcast goes ahead, I will have lost a source of of unending pleasure and inspiration, and i will no longer have any reason to tune in. There are plenty of stations were one can get characterless, dull, mindless music, please don’t make CBC Radio Two another one.
To all of you who have decided to do away with art on Radio 2:I implore you to please save music in this country! CBC in general and Radio 2 specifically has a wonderful history of providing musical art in this great nation and it is deplorable to learn of the intention of the CBC to turn Radio 2 into one of the many pathetic elevator music stations that fill our airwaves come September. What is the point of a Government subsidized station that oozes out music that you can hear on almost every other radio station on the dial? It is remarkable that CBC has decided that the value of intelligent and complex music is no longer valuable to our public being. It is only a statement of the CBC’s intention to become unimportant and irrelevant. Why do this? You only contribute to watering down our culture and social sophistication and education. I beg of you to reconsider your decision to destroy a fine radio station. If you continue with your plans you will loose your audience and the best of what is on radio in Canada.Respectfully yours,Lawrence Wiliford
You can add me to the list of those who think this is a wrong-headed move. I am stunned that the CBC fails to understand the how important it is to have classical music available throughout the day. When every orchestra in the country is trying to build its audience base, Radio Two’s wide range of classical programming presented by knowledgeable hosts is vital. Why would you mess with the one station that meets this very real need? There is no easy equivalent available in Canada. Stations such as CFMX don’t cut it because they seldom play longer works in their entirety without interruption, and because of the commercial breaks which I find completely irritating.
The classical programming on Radio Two is what sets it apart from any other station on the Canadian airwaves. It is a source of education, inspiration and joy. By trying to be more "popular" Radio Two will just lose its identity, and eventually its audience, at which point it might just disappear entirely. Or is that the whole idea?
I just want to say how strongly I agree with the majority of the comments expressed to date and how deeply I feel about the loss of wonderful, intelligent, soothing, stimulating (I could go on) programming on CBC 2. I can’t understand how loosing such great shows such Disc Drive, Music and Company, Studio Sparks, Sound Advice etc and their amazing hosts is supposed to "improve" CBC 2.It was upsetting enough when Danielle Charbonneau’s wonderful Music for a While went and then After Hours, now the wheels seem to be coming off altogether. I thought CBC was funded by the people of Canada (through taxes), I don’t recall being asked an opinion, it all seems to be a done deal.Programming is a wasteland after 6:00 pm, we just switch to WNED where they are still providing excellent (though not as good as CBC 2 used to be) shows. An earlier writer has said it would be easier just to replace Jennifer McGuire with someone who understands what CBC 2 really means to Canadians, I totally agree!
I just want to say how strongly I agree with the majority of the comments expressed to date and how deeply I feel about the loss of wonderful, intelligent, soothing, stimulating (I could go on) programming on CBC 2. I can’t understand how loosing such great shows such Disc Drive, Music and Company, Studio Sparks, Sound Advice etc and their amazing hosts is supposed to "improve" CBC 2.It was upsetting enough when Danielle Charbonneau’s wonderful Music for a While went and then After Hours, now the wheels seem to be coming off altogether. I thought CBC was funded by the people of Canada (through taxes), I don’t recall being asked an opinion, it all seems to be a done deal.Programming is a wasteland after 6:00 pm, we just switch to WNED where they are still providing excellent (though not as good as CBC 2 used to be) shows. An earlier writer has said it would be easier just to replace Jennifer McGuire with someone who understands what CBC 2 really means to Canadians, I totally agree!
I grew up listing to CBC Radio Two. Every morning during my ride to school, on long trips to the cottage, while doing my homework, Radio Two accompanied me. The variety of stimulating and insightful shows and hosts exposed me to forms of art and ideas that few other children my age did. Radio Two has impacted my social, intellectual and artistic developed, and certainly must have contributed to my decision to peruse classical music at the post-secondary level. I urge the CBC to not take away this source of inspiration and artistic education. The CBC has always played a significant role in the development of Canadian classical musicians, by offering the kind of exposure that is so hard to find. If these current plans are carried out, I will have lost a source of deep pleasure and will have no more reason to listen to CBC radio.
I suggest an obituary should appear in all the newspapers across Canada. "We regret to announce the death of classical music on CBC Radio 2 in 2008. The death, although preventable was, due to neglect, and possible ignorance by unknown programmers and managers. No flowers, just regrets may be sent to President, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Toronto. Handwritten and typed letters only" Why? Because the only way to contact the President of the CBC directly is via snail mail. All electronic contacts get filtered by that wonderful oxymoron called "Audience Relations"
I did send a snail mail letter to the President weeks ago and the silence has been deafening.
The CBC management has forgotten that listeners are CBC customers as well as being their source of funding. In the commercial world companies behaving in such a way would soon be out of business. I will be very surprised to see my comment see the light of day on the website!
I am another disappointed Canadian who will be listening to less CBC Radio 2 this coming fall. In smaller markets such as mine, it will be hard to find a replacement for classical music.
This is absolutely ridiculous. The previous changes were bad enough. If anything, CBC Radio 2 needs to go deeper into modern erudite composition and support our living composers.
These changes will spell the end of me listening to Radio 2 - not out of a grudge, but simply because it won’t be worth listening to any more.
The changes CBC has recently seen were a little upsetting but I still kept listening for the morning programming and DiskDrive. Now it’s going to be more Tonic, at best.
I think I - along with everyone else I know - might just stop listening to radio altogether.
And yes, just to comment on the demographic skew - I’m under 25, and uninvolved in Classical music otherwise.
Absolutely not - the only thing this will do is alienate all the current listeners. Plus, it will discontinue any hope that Canadian orchestras, choirs, or composers will be heard on live Canadian airwaves. Bravo CBC - you’ve ruined what ever culture we might have had. Also, if you are worried about the demographic - I’m a mid 30’s male - exactly the kind of listener you are trying to attract. People - write your MP TODAY about this devastating decision.
Where are the classical musicians of our future going to come from? We’ve already lost so much music education in schools and you’re now jumping on the 2-chord, guitar-strumming bandwagon. I was fortunate enough to be brought up in a country which treated classical music with the respect it deserved and was surrounded by inspirational live performers & classical radio programmes from an early age. I am totally embarrased to live in this country and now listen illegally to good classical music radio stations from abroad on the internet. You should be ashamed of yourselves.
Another disheartened listener chiming in. To remove these programs would be a terrible mistake. For every one who speaks up thousands don’t but feel the same way.
Stripping Radio Two of it’s unique and exemplary classical programming is a death stroke for the station as a cultural entity. There are lots of alternative programs out there. Universities and city stations so a reasonable job, but NO ONE delivers advertising-free, diverse, multicultural classical music like CBC, puntuated by intelligent, entertaining, educational commentary that has solid research behind it. Oh don’t ditch the only station that I can bear to listen to - and where I learn new things about great music constantly! I won’t listen to a new pop, bread and circuses station. Keep it classical. It’s a signature part of my country.
I should add that I echo Nicholas Bentley Richards’ comments above about Tom Allen and Music and Company. It is without a doubt the BEST show out there and should be the one show to be kept at all costs. There is so much variety of classical music played that it would be outrageous to say that it does not reflect the diverse cultural origins of Canada’s multicultural citizens!
There has always been ‘popular’ music, and there always will be. ‘Classical’ music, is simply the music that is of sufficient quality, relevance and craftsmanship that it becomes ‘classic’ - or ‘timeless’. Whether it is the B minor Mass of Bach from 1749 or The Houses Stand Not Far Apart, by Canadian composer John Estacio which premieres this week, this music is an elite art form… an art form that delves deep into the timeless mysteries of the human condition and seeks to shine some light of understanding on it. To compare the import of this material to a standard 3 minute ‘pop’ song by even the finest of all ‘popular’ composers is just plain silly. Because of its elite nature, ‘classical’ music has never had a broad ‘popular’ appeal, and has always needed support from patrons - in earlier times, barons, princes and kings, and in more modern times by enlightened democratic societies - the same way that the elite in the visual arts has needed support. To somehow decide that the B minor Mass is irrelevant to modern society is the moral equivalent of dumping the Mona Lisa because it is old and expensive to look after.
Furthermore, to spend taxpayer’s money to support music that is already popular is akin to the founding of a House of Commons committee to encourage more middle-aged wealthy white guys to run for a seat in the house.
Let me add my voice to Russell Smith’s; If the Radio 2 management brain trust wants to take away Radio 2’s only justifiable reasons for being: the preservation and celebration of the serious art music of the last 1500 years and the support and nurture of Canadian artists and composers of serious art music, then truly - what’s left? Without the fulfillment of that purpose, Radio 2 is a colossal waste of taxpayers’ money, and stands completely indefensible. As much as I have loved Radio 2 in the past, I also pay taxes, and Radio 2 as envisioned by this management doesn’t deserve a penny of them. By making the decisions to cut the heart out of the programming that has such a longstanding tradition of supporting the art music literature and its creation…. programs like Two New Hours, Studio Sparks, Disc Drive, Music for a While, and Music & Company… there is no real reason for Radio 2. Instead of this ‘death of a thousand cuts’, please - just kill Radio 2 now outright and get it over with.
This is a big mistake. As a music education student, CBC radio 2 has been an important part of my exposure to classical music, and now you are taking it away. The classical music on CBC radio 2 is something I grew up with and is near and dear to my heart. If you–the management–had your heads screwed on correctly, then maybe you’d pay attention to the growing number of voices of young people–yes, young people–who want the old programming to stay. GET A GRIP!!!!!
My first reactions upon hearing news of the planned changes to CBC radio 2 were shock and disbelief. Since I am a high school student who listens to Tom Allen’s "Music and Company" every day on my way to school, I rushed to my first period class in order to announce to those assembled that the CBC has lost it’s mind. (The reactions of my class, by the way, were also shock and disbelief. My teacher suggested throwing bricks.) Classical music is so invaluable to my everyday life that I find myself struggling to find words strong enough to capture my sincerity. Eliminating "Music and Company" would effectively remove any access I have to the classical genre. Classical CDs are expensive, far more so than the latest Diana Krall album, and I regularly encounter interesting new pieces and composers on Tom Allen’s show that I would never have had the opportunity to hear otherwise. What good is a mid-day show for those of us who are students? Or work full time jobs? I am 18 years old. I have a profound love of good music, of all genres. And I am a member of the demographic I can only imagine the CBC is attempting to reach through these mutilations to the program schedule. Please, please believe me when I tell you that this is a futile effort that will result in nothing more than degraded content and disappointed listeners. Young adults who have not grown up listening to CBC, or who have not been attracted to it of their own volition because of its sophisticated content, WILL NOT move from the pop stations for "light contemporary". They are perfectly happy to listen to commercialized content. I am not. Inevitably, my question is this: what would persuade you that the proposed shift in programming is a phenomenally bad idea? Should I beg? Flood your offices with irate letters? Skip school, hop a greyhound to Toronto and stand outside the CBC headquarters with a billboard, shouting at the top of my lungs? I hope I have communicated how deeply upset I am clearly enough to make a difference. If nothing else, I can promise that if the morning slot is stripped of it’s classical content and brilliant host, the CBC will have lost a listener for life.
I can’t believe someone would think cancelling Tom Allen in the morning would be a good idea. Who are these people??? Tom Allen, Eric Freisen and Jurgen Goethe are articulate, interesting, charming hosts who, along with their production teams, come up with wonderful programming for the CBC. Why anyone in their right mind would choose to cancel or reformat any of these shows is beyond me. I’m very disappointed with these changes and I WILL NOT be listening to CBC as often as I do now. This is a bad, bad move.
Gail H.
How come playing the music of the last thousand years is considered "all one style", but playing the music of the last fifteen minutes is inclusive and multicultural?
It would seem to me that the comments here are a good slice of the opinions of loyal CBC listeners. Be warned that if you continue on your present path that loyalty WILL be lost. The message is clear. STOP what you are doing now and give us back the radio2 we used to enjoy. I first became enraged by your current direction when I learned of the loss of Two New Hours and Jazz Beat. Now to my disbelief it is getting even worse. If you’d told me it could get worse during the round of changes that saw those two programs axed I wouldn’t have believed you. You are not attracting a bigger audience you are alienating and loosing the audience you have. If its the youth audience you’re after then you must be oblivous to the fact that among the chorus pleading with you to restore radio2 to its former glory are many in that most coveted demographic. I am 25 and grew to love what was then a terrific and stimulating radio station in my late teens. If you are not already aware there is a 4000 strong and fast growing facebook group of young people who share the opinions of many of those who commented here. It is about time to stop this catastrophic wave of programming changes.
first of all, i’m 19 and a university music student, so no, cbc radio is NOT just for the older generation. many of my friends also listen to cbc radio…for the classical music. not cause we want to hear joni mitchell/alanis morisette/diana krall nor do we (never ever ever NEVER) ever…avril lavigne.
If I wanted to listen to jazz/pop/soft rock/adult contemporary, there are @ least 4 other radio stations in Vancouver where I would not have a problem doing so. i ain’t gonna listen to the cbc for that. heck, i can just download some of that off of limewire for free! How does CBC expect to compete with this? Part of why interest is declining in classical music among my generation, is because stations like the CBC decide they’re not going to play classical music anymore.
well. how is my generation supposed to enjoy and learn about classical music, when we have no easily accessible exposure to it????? in other words, RADIO. it’s free. as long as you have a radio, electricity and airwaves, and BAM! you get classical music!
what’s next? playing 50 cent on cbc? let’s just get rid of jennifer mcguire.