Last week, the initial public offering of Pandora—the Internet radio service that recommends music based on a listener's tastes—put the company's colossal impact in the headlines: Its technology had set new standard by connecting 90 million registered users to music they barely even know they wanted.
Matthew Septimus courtesy of New York Public Radio NYWNYC
Steve Martin, above center, and the Steep Canyon Rangers performed last month at New York Public Radio's Greene Space.
In its shadow, terrestrial radio stations might seem destined for oblivion, especially the listener-supported public stations that specialize in niche markets like classical music and jazz. But in fact, two of the area's top purveyors in these genres—the all-classical WQXR and all-jazz WBGO—are embracing digital tools to position themselves as thriving multi-platform hubs. Even as the jazz and classical music industries face their own troubles with record sales and concert attendance, the stations that distribute the music are poised for a renaissance, fueled by live-streamed performances, HD broadcasting, social media and mobile applications. And it's not a moment too soon: As jazz and classical are increasingly abandoned by commercial radio, embracing digitization supports the music and expands their artistic communities.
"The overall numbers have been relatively flat over the past several years," said Cephas Bowles, president and CEO of the Near-based WBGO, of terrestrial radio. "Digital technology and program delivery is ushering in what could be called the second golden age of radio by making radio content more accessible to more people wherever they are."
On Wednesday, WBGO will kick off its new jazz performance series, the Checkout: Live from 92YTribeca, which can be watched via live stream on the station's website, seen in person at 200 Hudson St. (advance tickets are $12), or heard over the radio and Internet. Hosted by Josh Jackson, the series is an extension of the station's current hour-long radio program and podcast, the Checkout.
This comes as WBGO—which became New Jersey's first public radio station in 1970—is adding an HD broadcasting channel at 88.3 FM that will focus on emerging jazz artists—as well as installing a broadcast antenna in Manhattan to improve reception throughout the metropolitan area. "Everything we do is centered around broadcast, but then we branch off into these other distribution platforms because people are going there," Mr. Bowles said. "You want to reach people where they are."
Vincent Soyez
Pianist Dan Tepfer will kick off WBGO's new jazz performance series on Wednesday.
The idea of "reaching people where they are" renews the concept of "wireless," which, though it resonates as a modern innovation, was originally a term that referred to radio, before the format was superseded by television and the Internet. Today WBGO boasts between 350,000 and 400,000 listeners weekly, as measured by the media and marketing research firm Arbitron. The largest segment of that audience is between the ages of 35 and 65. When the station added video years ago, notably of shows at the Village Vanguard, younger viewers started watching and commenting. "While 75-year-olds may be tweeting and 55-year-olds may be online, the video experience is something younger people are embracing in a bigger way," Mr. Bowles said.
Video of performances is also a key element for WQXR, which is owned by New York Public Radio and boasts some 700,000 weekly listeners. "We see ourselves increasingly as a trans-media company," said Thomas Hjelm, chief digital officer of New York Public Radio, which also owns WNYC and the Greene Space, the street-level broadcast studio and stage at Charlton and Varick streets. "We're leading with audio. It's what we do best. But we do have opportunities with other platforms."
In the fall, WQXR.org will be redesigned to emphasize accessibility. Its website regularly live-streams classical performances from the Greene Space. The station broadcasts in HD (the stream emphasizes contemporary composers who are working today), and a mobile application is in the works—for both WQXR and the entire New York Public Radio company. "We want to create a hyper on-demand experience so you can customize your radio listing experience and optimize it for your mobile device," Mr. Hjelm said.
In the classical genre, the opportunity for radio, he noted, exists because of two conflicting developments. "The old traditional recording industry is pretty much moribund. However, classical music doesn't really lend itself to the download, iPod culture." (Digital music players are ill-equipped for the nuances of classical: they often scramble the sequencing of a classical CD.)
But the genre does lend itself to streaming Mozart on your computer all day. "Our online audience is growing," Mr. Hjelm said. "There will be a day when our online audience eclipses the on-air audience. And we want to be ready for that."
Indeed, across radio, online listenership is growing steadily, according to a recent Arbitron study. In 2011, 22% of the American population (ages 12 and up) reported having listened to online radio in the last week. That was up from 12% in 2006 and 5% in 2001.
The jumps follow the proliferation of faster broadband connections and radio stations embracing digital platforms, said Arbitron's senior vice-president for marketing, Bill Rose. Video won't kill the radio star this time around. Quite to the contrary, it may make radio. As Mr. Jackson, the host of the Checkout, put it: "What good radio does is provide context—and that's no different if you transfer it to another platform."
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