Radio 3: Beyond Classical 💬

Dada de Dada will from time-to-time highlight our own work but it is also interested in spotlighting those who pioneer new ways of thinking about what music is and how it can be created. This article reflects the latter and focuses on the BBC which in the UK still remains a major dissemination channel for all things musical. Its Radio 3 channel, however, is too easily presumed to be the home of ‘serious’ classical music when, in reality, it has become much more.

The UK’s BBC is somewhat beleaguered by critics who threaten radical reforms to its funding model. The fear is the critics risk having it reformed out of existence. It is currently funded by a UK-wide premises television licence fee which applies whether the BBC is the viewers’ choice or not and some politicians seem to believe it should be based on a subscription model like Netflix et al. I believe that would be a catastrophic mistake. The TV licence fee also pays for the wide range of local and national BBC radio stations. While the quality of the BBC television output gets much of the attention and some justifiable criticisms, its radio/podcast output is still broadly innovative and admirable although the inflexible interface of the BBC Sounds mobile app does not, perhaps, reflect the apparently vast sums spent on its development.

While BBC Radio 6 Music is assumed to be the channel for highlighting ‘new’ music staid old BBC Radio 3 is also doing so. Radio 3, the home of BBC ‘classical’ music has quietly reformed itself into a channel for documentaries, spoken word, contemporary, electronic and experimental music, plus its mainstay classical music.

HD or not to HD?

Radio 3, is also the only BBC radio channel that transmits in higher definition (HD) audio, i.e. its stream is not subjected to processing (frequency compression) before transmission. Consequently, audiophiles or just those who like to hear something closer to the original sound will tend to be happier with BBC Radio 3. The other BBC Radio channels also stream a high quality sound signal as long as the receiving device can process it (technically, that means a suitable device can receive the BBC’s now standard 320kps AAC-LC codec stream). If a device cannot then it will receive a lower quality stream. Audio compression is, however, applied to the other radio channels which filters out some audio frequencies and makes the sound ‘fatter’. This processing is now so normal in some genres of music that its absence would be perceived as an aberration.

Despite their fairly high quality all current BBC audio streams, including Radio 3, are based on ‘lossy’ processing. Lossless transmission requires higher bandwidth and would have associated costs at both the transmission and receiving ends of the chain. There are, however, a number of internet radio stations around the world transmitting in ‘lossless’ formats like FLAC so those with a reasonably modern computer and an adequate broadband connection can receive high definition audio the equal of, or better than, CD Audio. Having said all that, it is one of the great ironies of life that by the time one can afford high quality listening devices and media the deterioration in human hearing with age (from our early 20s onwards) reduces what is received to ‘lossy’ for most of us anyway.

The Influencers?

So apart from the BBC Radio 3 itself who and what are the influencers? Here are a few.

  1. Night Tracks presented by the music author and broadcaster Sara Mohr-Pietsch and sometimes the composer, artist and musician Hannah Peel this offers a broad mix of music from the classical to the contemporary and the two curators are excellent guides to playlists that can seamlessly flow from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to John Martyn without missing a beat.
  2. Composed with Emeli Sandé
    Emeli Sandé is brilliant singer and songwriter in her own right but she also makes an ideal curator of quality music. Her thematic ‘Composed’ series is always worth a listen and her themes are inclusive of all genres and styles from Claude Debussy to Grace Jones.
  3. Late Junction
    Presented by Verity Sharp and Jennifer Lucy Allan. This is the programme that is the home of the more experimental and the avant-garde. Exploring the sonic world as much as music it provides a platform for some unlikely synergies of theme, style and instrumentation. For example, at the time of writing for one edition the focus was on music made with shells. It can sometimes be a challenging listen but this is one for enriching the sonic diet and seeking ideas to explore.
  4. Unclassified
    Presented by Elizabeth Alker the focus here is electronic and ambient music but by composers/producers whose work cannot easily be categorised. At times a quirky, eclectic, experimental, avant-garde, vibrant, textured, sculpted experience where creatives blend and bend conventional instrumentation with electronica. Great.
  5. Gameplay with Baby Queen (aka the singer Arabella Latham)
    Games on staid Radio 3? Yet the sonic landscape of computer and online games is infinite and now infinitely important to the world’s established and would-be composers and producers. As big as or even bigger than the world of film and television. Worth a listen for the brilliance of some of the compositions which can be epic in both their scope and creativity.
  6. Sound of Gaming also explores the gaming landscape guided by the gentle and persuasive Scottish burr of Louise Blain who as well as addressing the musical background of each composition outlines the nature of the game itself. The weekly programme also usually contains an interview with a featured composer. Like Gameplay above if you were wondering where the world’s composers can find projects for their creative endeavours then the gaming world is now top of the list.
  7. Sound of Cinema is the sister Radio 3 programme Sound of Gaming above. Presented by the film historian, author and broadcaster Mathew Sweet. As its title suggests its focus is the music of the cinema and the sometimes epic pieces that are essential parts of the audio-visual experience that makes for a memorable film. For example at the time of writing the theme for 25 June 2022 episode was the Sound of Vangelis where as well as the music we find out much about the late composer.
  8. Music Planet co-presented by Lopa Kothari and the composer and musician Kathryn Tickell is a weekly feature on the music from throughout the world and so brings different cultural traditions and perspectives to the fore; as well as sometimes highlighting how other cultures can reinterpret and localise our western genres of music. From Siberia to New Guinea, from San Salvador to Alabama, a stream of musical diversity to expand the mind.
  9. J to Z presented by the vocalist Jumoké Fashola is the jazz focused offering from BBC Radio 3 with music and a regular ‘inspirations’ spot with a leading figure in the jazz world curating a short sub-playlist of those who have influenced them. At the time of writing the most recent guest slot was taken by Somi the American vocalist of Rwandan and Ugandan heritage who provided the commentary to her playlist of influencers (Hugh Masekela, Nina Simone, Miriam Makeba).
  10. Between the Ears first broadcast in 1993. It continues to explore soundscapes where the sounds of both the natural or human built environments contribute to the theme of each diverse and sometimes very quirky episode. A broad range of topic extends from birdsong, bees, container ships, the internet and Karl Marx. Sometimes more of a documentary and sometimes an audio adventure and sometimes both. Sometimes poetry, sometimes music and sometimes commentary or reflections. As the title of the programme suggests a good pair of headphones pays dividends with this production because this is the feature for immersive (binaural) sounds which represents the work of some very creative radio producers.

The list above is certainly not complete and will undoubtedly need updating when presenters move on, or the BBC refreshes its schedule. As indicated at the top of this article the perception of BBC Radio 3 as the rather staid channel just for ‘serious music’ is now in urgent need of revision. The corporation seems to have made some very necessary changes in its view of what can now be considered ‘serious’ music. What is had done should now be of interest to audiences spanning the age spectrum and all musical genres. Perhaps it needs to shout rather more loudly about what it has done and be seeking new recruits to this channel.