OnAir March 2023

WKCR 89.9 FM

Station Manager

Ale Díaz-Pizarro stationmanager@wkcr.org

Program Director

Maria Shaughnessy programming@wkcr.org

Director of Operations operations@wkcr.org

Zachary Vanderslice

Student Life Director

Ted Schmiedeler studentlife@wkcr.org

Publicity Director

Georgia Dillane publicity@wkcr.org

Jazz Heads

Stephen Park, Melody Lu jazz@wkcr.org

New Music Head

Razvan Matei newmusic@wkcr.org

Classical Head

Melisa Nehrozoglu classical@wkcr.org

American Head Izzy Szyfer american@wkcr.org

In All Languages Head

Ann Vettikkal ial@wkcr.org

Latin Head

Leni Bryan latin@wkcr.org

News & Arts Head

Josh Kazali news@wkcr.org

Sports Head August Phillips sports@wkcr.org

Dear Listeners,

The behind the scenes of WKCR is a complicated place, especially at this time of year: board elections have come and gone and we are in the midst of a leadership turnover. This is, of course, something that a listener like yourself would not need to think about or care about, but it is a major event at the station and has a tremendous (albeit relatively invisible on your end) impact. If you are interested in knowing who makes up our new executive board, look on the left side of this page at the top 5 names on the contact list.

The one thing you can count on about this radio station is that it is ever changing - by definition, no one person can be in a leadership position for more than 4 years (and, on average, it is a maximum of 2 years). That means the priorities of one board may not be the same as the next one or the one before and, though that creates tension sometimes, it is ultimately the thing that has kept WKCR alive for 82 years. I urge programmers and listeners alike to be open to change. You never know what good could come from a foreign venture, or what masterpiece could come from a strange sound, or what Schaap could come from a new voice.

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get into what to expect from the March issue of OnAir. We are featuring our outgoing Business Manager, Olivia Mitchell, in our newest senior interview, and you can learn all about our library’s digital renaissance. Latin Department Head Leni will lead you through the history of Johnny Pacheco’s acclaimed record label, Fania Records, and (new!) Librarian Sam Seliger writes about Bix Beiderbecke’s life in honor of his birthday this month. The piece I’m most excited about is one entitled “The Captured WuTang Tapes”—I won’t say much about it other than make sure you strap in—it’s a twisty ride.

As always, this is a great issue of OnAir—I hope it brings in spring (you can see we are trying to force some brightness with this color palette).

Happy Listening!

Maria Shaughnessy Program Director

Cover: Sarah Vaughan Photo by William Gottlieb, 1946.

Passing of the Guard

Meet a Member: Olivia Mitchell

The Captured Wu-Tang Tapes

Bix Beiderbecke, Birthday Boy

Passing of the Guard

by Fenway Donegan

Josh Kapilian, a senior at Columbia College and WKCR’s outgoing Librarian, has begun the massive project of digitizing WKCR’s 30,000+ CDs and Vinyl. In addition to training programmers to help scan the library’s collection into his database, he has added to this seemingly insurmountable task by creating a website that programmers can use to digitally search WKCR’s extensive catalog. I sat down with him to find out if, as Camus says, the struggle itself toward the heights really is enough to fill a man’s heart.

What would you say have been your biggest contributions to the library?

The thing I’m proudest of is the library’s catalog, which I’ve started to work on. I think the project really started about three years ago when I was a first year. I was a jazz programmer and I found myself continually infuriated by the fact that we don’t have any consistent reference to check what WKCR does and doesn’t have. This could lead to minutes or hours of scrambling through the library only to find that we don’t in fact have this particular recording of some Roy Hargrove tune. My thoughts about this all became, unfortunately, irrelevant when

COVID hit, given that we didn’t have access to the station physically and therefore didn’t have access to the library. But then back in 2021, this great opportunity landed in my lap, when the previous director of operations Red Stein (CC ‘22) reached out to me with the possibility of becoming librarian. I thought, “This could be a cool chance to try to tackle this really big issue.” After talking with other programmers here, it seemed like there was a decent amount of support in trying to start such a monumental task. We have a massive library here at WKCR, but with the turnover during COVID, a lot of institutional knowledge was lost and I spent the first year and a half as librarian focusing on organization and cleanup. Luckily, around last April, we were able to start the cataloging effort and we’ve now worked through about 8-10% of the CDs and are still going strong. Seeing at least a glimpse of my initial goal come to life has been really promising.

How do you prevent yourself from being overwhelmed with such a monumental goal?

To be reductive, spreadsheets. Last summer, I was in New York, and I used that time away as

The music library at WKCR.

an opportunity to build out the web component of the library, which is searchable. The website functions similarly to how you can search Public Library databases to find authors, genres, year of publication, etc. Having that as a reference, and being able to see our progress in real-time, while we’re continuing to scan has been helpful.

How do you hope the digitization and the increased searchability of the library will encourage programmers?

My hope is that it’ll allow programmers to be even more creative in how they design their shows. One thing that’s always been an interest of mine is a show with different recordings of the same song, and just using the library’s existing structure, that kind of show is really impossible. Given how the library is organized by composers, searching for specific songs becomes physically difficult. Similarly, when someone’s a side man on a jazz recording, since you have a lot of guys who would bounce between different people’s bands, you can’t find them if the record was listed under only one artist. Having something searchable allows you to see all of an artist’s recordings and not just the recordings where they had top billing. It’s a huge opportunity to expand what we’re able to assemble.

How has an old-school, analog station like WKCR kept up with new technologies and the incorporation of internet databases?

Well, there’s definitely been some bumps in the road. I credit good old-fashioned stickers, which help us know what we’ve already scanned in the library. Once we have the entire library cataloged, it will be much less rocky, but right now we have a weird state where some sections are mostly cataloged and others aren’t, so having a physical representation of what we have scanned helps. It makes it a much easier situation to manage.

Have there been any cool finds while going through the library? Have you felt more in touch with the library?

Because of the sheer volume of what we have, it’s been harder to appreciate everything we have while digitizing and cataloging. I think that’s something we struggle with, taking the time to work with WKCR’s great collection while having to deal with the practicality of scanning and processing tens of thousands of items. Unfortunately, the logistics of the process has to become somewhat clinical. We’re always working on finding a good balance in the future.

Do you think library scanning, at least in the future, will become an integral part of new WKCR programmers’ journeys, or would you rather be able to snap your fingers and have everything scanned in an instant?

What I love most is how these scanning events have become a mini community for programmers and other members of the WKCR staff. A lot of times, when you’re going to the studio and programming your show, you’re sitting in a room by yourself and then you head out, and there’s something very isolating about that. I think having these communal events will help to bring programmers together. At the same time, even if we snapped our fingers and had everything scanned, there will always be more work in the library, so I think that the community aspect will always be there. There’s always organization, physically cleaning, fixing damaged records, etc, so not having any records to scan wouldn’t take away from the community aspect.

Finally, What can listeners expect from a more digitized Library?

More varied programming! In addition, more knowledge of WKCR’s library will give us a better sense of what we’re missing, and we’ll be able to expand our collection, meaning more new records on the air.

An Interview with Olivia Mitchell

by Sarah Barlyn

Director). And when I was younger, I thought it was cool to do college radio. So I joined WKCR, and the first show I ever programmed was 3 hours of IRA music.

Has WKCR changed since you joined?

What is your position at WKCR?

I am the Business Manager… soon to be the former Business Manager.

What do you normally like to program?

I normally program international music, specifically Seachrán, which is the Celtic show on from 12 - 1 AM every Monday.

Why did you join WKCR?

I joined KCR in the Spring of 2021 when I was a sophomore. I wasn’t happy with the extracurricular activities that I was involved in at the time, and it was during COVID, so I felt very isolated. I was stuck in a Barnard dorm by myself and wanted to get out more. It was just a tough time for me in general. But I knew some people in WKCR, like Red (former Director of Operations) and Mac (former Program

Absolutely. It used to be very small. I was appointed as the Business Manager during summer 2021. That fall, I finally got to go into the station. At the time, the station consisted of a small group of people, mainly the operations team (Josh, Red, and Benny). There weren’t many freshmen due to COVID. But last year it grew incredibly, definitely much, much bigger than it had in the past. I think KCR used to be more relaxed as well. When it became larger, it also became more structured, which I think is largely thanks to Benny. Red was doing everything for WKCR during the pandemic, so the new board was a great organizational effort. I think WKCR got happier as well. We grew a community, we grew as a community.

What changes would you like to see after you leave?

I hope WKCR becomes more diverse. I think we can always work towards a better reputation among Columbia University. People at Columbia think WKCR is male-dominated, which may be true. I just want everyone’s voices to be uplifted at WKCR, especially because we focus so much on Jazz, which is historically a Black genre. We need to see more diversity in gender, race, class, and overall I think we need to establish a better community within the university. I want to encourage our members to join other clubs, and to create an environment that isn’t so stressful.

Graphic by Sarah Barlyn.

If you could develop your own show, what would it be?

I already do Seachrán, but I would like to do a broader radio show of all modern Celtic nations (Ireland, Scotland, Wales, the Isle of Man, Brittany, and Cornwall), across all epochs and eras.

What are you doing after you graduate?

After graduation, I’ll be moving to Baltimore to teach middle school mathematics through Teach for America and get my certificate and Master’s in Education from Johns Hopkins University. I plan on staying in education and teaching for a while, and I’d love to eventually work my way into curriculum development and educational policy. I would also like to move back to New York eventually, probably Brooklyn or Queens, and teach mathematics here.

Greatest KCR memory?

Probably the first WKCR-B-Q that we did in Spring 2022. It was sort of a last-minute thing because a previous event we were planning fell through. We decided to use the time we set aside anyway, and Benny and I planned a barbecue down in Morningside Park. Benny and I pushed a blue Columbia moving bin, with a huge folding table and some supplies, all the way from WKCR on 114th and Broadway to 123rd and Morningside Drive. It turned out to be a really successful event. Tons of people showed up and we had a great time hanging out, eating some grilled hot dogs, and getting to know each other. It was a lot of fun, and it was amazing to see just how far WKCR had come since COVID.

Did WKCR change your perspective on music?

It definitely changed my music taste. When I started college at 17, I was exposed to more music like Jazz, gospel, and soul. My dad always played alternative 90s rock and weird British bands at home, like Nirvana, the Moody Blues, and the Smiths, so that’s what I was mainly used to. KCR has definitely changed how I

listen to music as well. Now I listen to albums in full, and in order, instead of just listening to random songs. I discovered a lot of musicians from programming shows on WKCR, and from listening to other WKCR programmers as well.

What music are you currently listening to?

In no particular order, Bookends by Simon and Garfunkel from 1968. I like how the album includes field recordings, and I love that song “Save the Life of my Child.” I just love Simon and Garfunkel. I also like the album Chutes too Narrow by the Shins (2003). It’s not their most popular album, but the one I like the most. I also love Mitski, especially her newest Laurel Hell album and older Bury Me At Makeout Creek record. I listen to the Cranberries a lot, and I love No Need to Argue. I also love anything by Charles Bradley, especially his album Changes. Also James Carr, Billy Joel, Weyes Blood (Bucks County represent). Kind of embarrassing to admit, but I also like the Blue Album by Weezer. They were the first band I really got into as a pre-teen. I don’t like Rivers Cuomo though. Weird man.

During WKCR, you used your voice to communicate with hundreds of people at a time. What have you learned about your voice, what it means, and how you want to use it?

I’ve learned to speak up more for what I believe in. I’m no longer scared to speak over people. I don’t let myself be drowned out by the voice of the majority like I once did. I’ve also learned about the importance of using my voice even when people may disagree with me, as well as how important it is to uplift the voice of marginalized individuals when other people won’t. I knew that already, of course, but my experiences in WKCR definitely solidified that act into my everyday life.

The Captured Wu-Tang Tapes

by August Phillips & Ted Schmiedeler

In 1993, Method Man first rapped, “Cash Rules

Everything Around Me / C.R.E.A.M., get the money / Dollar dollar bills y’all.” This iconic hook from Wu-Tang Clan’s most popular song “C.R.E.A.M.” comes from their 1993 debut album Enter the WuTang (36 Chambers), a project often placed among the greatest in hip-hop history. The album also introduced to the world Wu-Tang Clan’s original nine members and led to a myriad of legendary solo albums, including 1995’s unbelievable trio of releases: Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version, Raekwon’s Only Built 4 Cuban Linx… and GZA’s Liquid Swords. It is hard to overstate the skill, artistry, and influence of Wu-Tang Clan on the world of hiphop and music in general—but the group wanted to enshrine their legacy even more concretely.

To do this, they created the elusive, unique, unprecedented record Once Upon A Time in Shaolin. The album, produced in Morocco in the late 2000s and recorded in Staten Island, exists only as a single two-CD copy and is a protest against the modern era of music and the massive growth of streaming. Wu-Tang Clan wrote on its website, “The music industry is in crisis. The intrinsic value of music has been reduced to zero.” In response to this devaluation, they auctioned off the album, which is housed in a bejeweled silver box with the

Wu-Tang insignia embedded front and center, in 2015 with a stipulation that the music could not be distributed commercially until the year 2103. That time will come 88 years after the album’s release in 2015, which is symbolic due to the digits of 2015 summing to eight and an eight rotated ninety degrees becoming an infinity symbol — Wu-Tang is forever, of course. Once Upon A Time was produced by Cilvaringz and has features from Redman, Cher, and even soccer players on FC Barcelona, but some of the only people to ever hear it are select art collectors and critics present when 13 minutes of the album was played in Queens at a listening party before it was auctioned off.

Now, you may be wondering who the lucky winner of this one-of-a-kind gem was. The answer: Martin Shkreli. Yes, that Martin Shkreli. Shkreli was the CEO of the pharmaceutical companies Retrophin and Turing Pharmaceuticals and raised the price of an antiparasitic drug called Daraprim by 5,455%, sending its price from $13.50 a pill to $750. For a price of $2 million, the most ever paid for a piece of music at the time, Shkreli gained sole possession of a record that was created as a protest against the commodification of art and corporate greed. If ownership was not bad enough, Shkreli even promised to release the album online if Donald Trump won the 2016 election: he streamed

The Clan performing in Budapest in 2015

bits of it following the election, in direct violation of the agreement and wishes of Wu-Tang Clan. Wu-Tang was, unsurprisingly, not too happy once they figured out who won the auction and they ended up donating much of the money from the purchase to charities.

The plot thickened, however, when Shkreli was arrested for securities fraud by the U.S. government in 2018; he then spent time in federal prison for what U.S. Attorney Robert Capers called “a Ponzi scheme where he used each subsequent company to pay off defrauded investors from the prior company.” His assets, including Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, were seized, and the federal government came into possession of the album.

They would not hold on to the record for long, though, as it was sold in 2021 to cover Shkreli’s debts. While the buyer was not initially identified, it was later revealed that an NFT collector group named PleasrDAO purchased the album for $4 million. PleasrDAO describes itself as a collective that has “built a formidable yet benevolent reputation for acquiring culturally significant pieces with a charitable twist.” The group claimed that they planned to make the album more accessible, but have also been limited by the 88-year commercial limitation. Their concrete plans are hard to identify, if they exist at all.

The PleasrDAO ownership situation is certainly more ambivalent than that of Martin Shkreli. Shkreli embodies every aspect of corporate greed, and his ownership directly contrasts the views of Wu-Tang Clan. At the 1998 Grammys, Ol’ Dirty Bastard said, “Wu-Tang is for the children.” The Clan worked to expand hip-hop as a genre, push it forward, elevate up-and-coming artists, and do good by their community. On the contrary, Shkreli is certainly not “for the children.” Well, at least not for the sick children. He spent his career extracting

wealth from the very people Wu-Tang made music for, including people of color who experience the brunt of the inequalities infused in the American healthcare system. Wu-Tang hoped that the album would find its home with an artist or art collector who would be a good steward of their craft. RZA, Wu-Tang’s producer and de facto leader, even expressed interest in buying the album himself as a means to preserve it. However, with Shkreli, the opposite happened and the Wu-Tang masterpiece fell into the wrong hands.

In an apparent contrast to Shkreli, PleasrDAO’s Jamis Johnson portrayed the group’s goals and values as directly aligned with those of Wu-Tang Clan in a 2021 interview. He described how the collective was fighting against an unfair system and middlemen who steal artists’ profits, and how they want to give the album “back to the people.” On the group’s blog, Johnson wrote that the album is like “the OG NFT,” and that he hopes to treat the album as Wu-Tang originally intended. PleasrDAO and other cryptocurrency advocates would argue that NFTs and other blockchain-based systems offer artists the ability to retain the value of their art without sacrificing public accessibility. But although it remains to be seen the path PleasrDAO will take with Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, the brief history of NFTs is also one plagued by scams, corruption, and dubious get-rich-quick schemes devoid of artistic integrity.

The box that holds the only copy of Once Upon a Time in Shaolin

While it appears that the new owners at least have more respect for Wu-Tang Clan and its art than Shkreli, it is unclear how the members of Wu-Tang Clan themselves feel about current ownership and the difficulties of allowing the public to actually hear the music before 2103. In 2015, Method Man criticized the decision to prohibit the release of the album for 88 years, saying, “When music can’t be music and y’all turning it into something else, f--k that. Give it to the people … let them have it. Give it away free. … that ain’t making nobody rich or poor.” His frustration with the album’s journey reflects the fine but significant line between fighting against greedy labels who want to pump out meaningless art for profit and turning your own music into something that can only be enjoyed by ultra-capitalists and federal officials.

So what does this say about the state of music today? What does it say when a piece of art created to counter the movement towards digitization and streaming has passed through the hands of a pharmaceutical profiteer, the U.S. government, and now belongs to NFT collectors who largely embody the modern, digital age of art? Does giving music directly to the people, like Method Man urged, devalue the art? Or is it keeping music unheard behind a paywall that strips its artistry? In the age of streaming services, social media, and the internet, how do artists secure the value of their work without making it inaccessible to their listeners?

These are questions that we certainly grapple with as members of a student-run radio station. We are consistently trying to deliver music in one of the most accessible forms available while simultaneously crediting and supporting the musicians that make our work possible, from the pioneers of jazz music to the latest band performing on Live Constructions. Once Upon a Time in Shaolin is an extreme reminder of how difficult it is for musicians to balance the artistic and monetary value of their work, especially when third parties with questionable intentions are involved. Method Man’s words remain relevant in today’s day and age: Cash does, in fact, Rule Everything Around Me.

Works Cited

Leight, Elias. “Revealed: The Crypto Fans Who Secretly Paid $4 Million for Pharma Bro’s WuTang Album.” Rolling Stone, Rolling Stone, 4 Nov. 2021, https://www.rollingstone.com/ music/music-features/wu-tang-nft-albumonce-upon-time-shaolin-1244859/.

“Once Upon a Time in Daolin.” Pleasr.mirror.xyz, https://pleasr.mirror.xyz/PTzSIYe6LbNW55i_ Jo4S_fgqIiDp3d7YblpikQ1iRks.

Palathingal, George. “Wu-Tang Clan’s Method Man Slams ‘Stupid’ Release Plan for Once upon a Time in Shaolin.” The Sydney Morning Herald, The Sydney Morning Herald, 5 Mar. 2015, https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/ music/wutang-clans-method-man-slamsstupid-release-plan-for-once-upon-a-time-inshaolin-20150306-13wtxk.html.

Sisario, Ben. “Meet the New Owners of the Wu-Tang Clan’s One-of-a-Kind Album.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 20 Oct. 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/20/ arts/music/wu-tang-clan-once-upon-a-time-inshaolin.htm.

Torchinsky, Rina. “‘Pharma Bro’ Martin Shkreli Has Been Released from Prison.” NPR, NPR, 19 May 2022, https://www.npr. org/2022/05/19/1100019063/pharma-bromartin-shkreli-been-released-from-prison.

Wong, Kevin. “The Wild History of Wu-Tang Clan’s Mythical Album ‘Once upon a Time in Shaolin’.” Complex, Complex, 2 Aug. 2021, https://www.complex.com/music/wu-tangclan-once-upon-a-time-shaolin-explained.

BixBirthdayBeiderbecke, Boy

by Sam Seliger JAZZ

Why would WKCR take an entire day to honor a white cornet player who spent most of his life in a small city in Iowa and whose recording career lasted not even eight years? One can concoct answers about historical context, development of the music in society at large, and the importance of the recorded music community. These are all admittedly true; one cannot tell a story of jazz history that aligns with the historical record without Bix and his peers like Frankie Trumbauer and Eddie Lang, or even the Wolverines as a whole. Particularly to highlight the blurriness of the distinction between jazz, pop, and the often mediocre product that fell somewhere in between, the white jazz musicians of this time and place seem to offer an alternative history of popular music.

But the most important answer is simply his music. And this is the reason why we play Bix as opposed to some other talented white jazz musician from the 1920s midwest: nobody played like Bix.

With this in mind, let’s highlight some particularly noteworthy tracks from Bix:

Frankie Trumbauer and his Orchestra, “Singing the Blues”

Among Bix’s greatest innovations in the “jazz ballad” format, Bix and the band swung hard at a slow tempo, keeping the tune driving without overheating. In short, playing hot while staying cool. Bix’s solo here is by far the best example of this. He plays with supreme poise, staying back on the beat and never playing more notes than the tune needs. Bix is a class above the other musicians on this number, even the great Eddie Lang, showing them who’s the original boss.

The Wolverine Orchestra, “Jazz Me Blues”

Bix’s first ever solo laid to wax, or more accurately, shellac. These recordings were all released as 78s, although they were still recorded acoustically, as the invention of electric recording technology was still several years off. He was barely 21 at the time, younger than I am as I write this. If you can get

past the archaic sound, you won’t be able to resist the swing. When Bix’s cornet breaks in around the halfway mark, he seizes the song by the horns and makes it his own. Every phrase exudes confidence and cool, like a century of jazz blowers after him have aspired to do.

The Wolverine Orchestra, “Davenport Blues”

This one’s actually a Bix composition, and while the recording fidelity is still a century out of date to contemporary ears, the timekeeping is surprisingly modern. Bix shows off his dexterity, and again, his horn finds a way to command the tune, even without overwhelming the balance of the instruments. As soon as his solo starts, he seems to burst out of the song’s confines, issuing commanding flurries and frills with thrilling intensity.

Paul Whiteman Orchestra with Bing Crosby and Bix Beiderbecke, “Ol’ Man River”

One of the largest ensembles that Bix recorded with during his short career, this band—which would become the best-selling recorded ensemble of the jazz era—features a robust string section driving the melody, as well as a much larger quantity of horns than a Wolverines session. And that’s not to mention a young Bing Crosby doing the vocals, in the early days of his massive career. Even so, Bix manages to make himself the star here with a mere 2-bar solo.

Bix Beiderbecke and his Gang, “The Jazz Band Ball”

To the unfamiliar ear, the early jazz ban can sound quite almost like chaos, with horns of every register taking up space all at one, but there is a method to the madness. Bix’s cornet doesn’t quite command attention amid the cacophony like others of his day do, but that’s quite the point. Bix’ trumpet is constantly zigging and zagging with tremendous inventiveness, introducing levels of abstraction never previously heard before; if you didn’t know what the original melody was supposed to be beforehand, you wouldn’t be able to get it from Bix’s performance on that disc.

Jazz ‘til Dawn (cont’d)

Field Trip

Amazing Grace

The Moonshine Show

The Tennessee Border Show

Sunday Profiles

Raag Aur Taal

SoundStage

Live Constructions

Back in the USSR

Seachran: The Celtic Show

Coordinated Universal Time

Phil Lives

Notes

Special Programming

SPECIAL BROADCASTS

Wes Montgomery Centenniel

Monday, March 6th, all day

Celebrate famed jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery’s 100th birthday with 24 hours of his music on

Maurice Ravel

Tuesday, March 7th, all day

French composer Maurice Ravel is turning 148 years old! Along with contemporary Claude Debussy, Ravel is known for his unique impressionist style of composition and colorful orchestration. Dive deep into Ravel’s music with WKCR!

Ornette Coleman

Thursday, March 9th, all day

One of the pioneers of free jazz, saxophonist Ornette Coleman was a force to be reckoned with in his hayday. Still today, his influence is felt in contemporary jazz all over the world. Celebrate Ornette’s birthday with 24 hours of his music!

Bix Beiderbecke

Friday, March 10th, all day

A cornetist unlike any other, Bix Beiderbecke played with such musicians as Fletcher Henderson, Louis Armstrong, and Bing Crosby. WKCR will inaugurate his 120th birthday with a full day of Bix’s music!

Johnny Pacheco

Saturday, March 25th, all day

Tune in on Feburary 25th for a 24 hour long Johnny Pacheco birthday broadcast! For the whole day, we will be bumping the most influential voices and musicians of the New York salsa scene in the 60s, 70s, and 80s!

Sarah Vaughan

Monday, March 27th, all day

This has been a long awaited birthday broadcast at WKCR. Get excited to celebrate jazz singer Sarah Vaughan’s birthday with WKCR (did we mention it’s a whole 24 hours?)

THEMED SHOWS

SATURDAY NIGHT AT THE OPERA

Saturdays 9:00 PM-12:30 AM

Due to Columbia’s Spring Break, SNO March shows are to be determined.

Host: Ale Díaz-Pizarro

SUNDAY PROFILES

Sunday Profiles themes and hosts are still TBD for March 5th and March 26th. Stay tuned!

Richard “Groove” Holmes

March 12th, 2:00 - 7:00 PM

Host: Sid Gribetz

Labeled

March 19th, 2:00 - 7:00 PM

Host: Steve Mandel and J Cohn

SPORTS

Women’s Basketball (vs. Princeton)

March 4, 2:00 PM

Anouncers: Ted Schmiedeler, Bryan Zhang, Josh Kapilian

Women’s Basketball (Ivy League Championship)

March 11, 2:00pm

Anouncers: Ted Schmiedeler, Stephen Dames, Josh Kapilian

Baseball (vs. Manhattan College)

February 22, 3:30 PM

Anouncers: Josh Kapilian, TBD

Live Constructions Concerts

Closeby

Sunday March 5, 10:00-11:00pm

Golden Dreggs

Sunday March 12, 10:00-11:00pm

Godcaster

Sunday March 19, 10:00-11:00pm

Docents

Sunday March 26, 10:00-11:00pm

Show Listings

Daybreak Express, weekdays 5-8:20am

Out to Lunch, weekdays 3-6pm

Jazz Alternatives, weekdays 6-9pm

These three programs comprise the core of our jazz offerings. Programming consists of everything from New Orleans jazz, jazz age, swing era, bebop, hard-bop, modal, free, and avant-garde. In short, you’ll encounter the entire range of recorded jazz on these programs. Hosts rotate from day-to-day, offering an exciting variety of approaches, some of which include thematic presentation, artist interviews, or artist profiles

Birdflight, Tues.-Fri. 8:20-9:30am

Archival programs from the late Phil Schaap, one of the world’s leading jazz historians, who hosted this daily forum for the music of Charlie Parker for about 40 years.

Traditions in Swing, Sat. 6-9pm

Archival programs hosted by the late Phil Schaap, this award-winning Saturday night staple presents focused thematic programs dealing with jazz up until about World War II. Schaap presents the music, much of it incredibly rare, from the best sound source, which is often the original 78 issue.

Phil Lives*, Mon. 3-5am

This overnight show features archival broadcasts of longform programs from late NEA Jazz Master Phil Schaap.

CLASSICAL

Cereal Music, Mon.-Thurs. 9:30am-12pm

An entirely open-ended classical show to start your weekdays. Tune in to hear the most eclectic mix of classical music on the New York airwaves!

The Early Music Show, Fri. 9:30am-12pm

Dedicated primarily to European medieval, Renaissance, and baroque music, all from before 1800 (plus or minus 50 years).

Extended Technique*, Wed. & Thurs. 3-6pm

WKCR’s first interdepartmental show (in the New Music and Classical departments) dedicated to contemporary classical music. You’ll hear everything from 12-tone and minimalist compositions to film and video game scores, and all things in between.

* Indicates show was created after January 2022

Afternoon Classical, Fri. 3-6pm. Similar to cereal music, most of afternoon classical has no restrictions on what type of classical music to play. The last hour of the show, however, is dedicated fully to the music of JS Bach.

Saturday Night at the Opera, Sat. 9pm-12:30am. One of NYC’s longest running opera shows, Saturday Night at the Opera is a 3.5 hour show that allows operas to be played in their entirety, with room for commentary, descriptions, and some history.

NEW MUSIC

Afternoon New Music, Mon. & Tues. 3-6pm

Our daytime new music program features a wide variety of music that challenges boundaries and subverts categorizations. Shows include everything from seminal new music compositions to the most challenging of obscure deep cuts and new releases.

Transfigured Night, Tues./Thurs./Sat. 1-5am

Our overnight explorations into the world of new music, Transfigured Night rewards our late night listeners with a wide range of sounds and experimental music.

Workaround*, Fri. 9-10pm

WKCR presents Live DJ sets from Columbia students and local artists.

Live Constructions, Sun. 10-11pm

This weekly program features a live in-studio performance or a performance pre-recorded specially for the show.

AMERICAN

Honky Tonkin’, Tues. 10-11pm

One of WKCR’s longest-running American music programs, Honky Tonkin’ lands in the harder side of Country music. Emphasizing the greatest voices in the genre, Honky Tonkin’ is a country music dance party every Tuesday night.

Tuesday’s Just as Bad, Tues. 11pm - Wed. 1am

Tuesday’s Just as bad explores the world of blues prior to World War II. Shows weave their way through the first decades of recorded music history and turn to the postwar years in the final half hour.

LISTINGS FOR LISTENERS

Night Train, Wed. 1-5am

All aboard! One of our two overnight programs in the American department, Night Train rolls through the post-war R&B and soul tradition, from the genre’s emergence in the 1940’s and 50’s through the funk revolution in the 1970’s. Shows often feature extended live recordings and concerts.

Offbeat, Fri. 1-5am

Offbeat is committed to broadcasting undiscovered new hip hop music. Shows typically focus on exposing underplayed or up-and-coming new artists, including experimental instrumental artists not typically played on mainstream hip hop radio.

Across 110th Street, Sat. 12-2pm

Kicking off our Saturday afternoon American music run, Across 110th Street airs soul, funk, and dance music from the 1960’s through the 1980’s and 90’s.

Something Inside of Me, Sat. 2-4pm

Something Inside of Me is WKCR’s Saturday afternoon blues show, focusing mostly on the electric and post-war styles.

Hobo’s Lullaby, Sat. 4-6pm

Rooted in the folk revival of the 1950s and 60s, Hobo’s Lullaby airs American folk and traditional music styles from the early 20th century through the present day. From old staples like Leadbelly, Elizabeth Cotton, and Woody Guthrie to contemporary stalwarts like the Carolina Chocolate Drops and lesser known artists, domestic traditions are alive and well on Hobo’s Lullaby.

Notes from the Underground, Sun. 12:30-2am

Notes from the Underground showcases contemporary hip hop and rap music with an emphasis on emerging and experimental artists. The program also hosts local and visiting artists for interviews, freestyles, and guestcuration.

Amazing Grace, Sun. 8-10am

Greeting listeners on Sunday morning, Amazing Grace shares with listeners the world of the African-American gospel tradition.

The Moonshine Show, Sun. 10am-12pm

On the air for nearly 60 years, The Moonshine Show showcases the American Bluegrass tradition, from the earliest roots in vernacular string-band music, through

the genre’s pioneers in the 1940s and 50s and advancements in the 60s and 70s, through the leading innovators and stars of today.

The Tennessee Border Show, Sun. 12-2pm

One third of WKCR’s country music programming, along with Honky Tonkin’ and the Bluegrass Moonshine Show, Tennessee Border highlights the singer-songwriter tradition, from Hank Williams and Townes Van Zandt to Lucinda Williams.

LATIN

Caribe Latino, Mon. 10pm-12am

Caribe Latino is a music program that features the diverse, upbeat music from numerous Latin communities in the Caribbean. Popular Latin rhythms such as Salsa, Merengue, Bachata and Latin Jazz take center stage throughout the program.

Urbano Latinx, Tues. 12-1am

A weekly Latin show airing contemporary sounds from Latin America, the Caribbean, and the diaspora, Urbano Latinx features mixes of salsa, merengue, Latin punk rock, and more.

Sin Fronteras*, Wed. 12-3pm

Falling in the space of Out to Lunch on Wednesday afternoons, Sin Fronteras explores the tremendous Latin Jazz tradition.

Nueva Canción, Wed. 10-11pm

Nueva Canción is an exploration of protest music created throughout Latin America during the 60s and 70s and its numerous other manifestations throughout other countries and time periods.

Som do Brasil, Wed. 11pm - Thurs. 1am

From samba and bossa nova to MPB, hear the numerous and enchanting sounds and rhythms of Brazil.

Sonidos Colombianos, Fri. 10-11pm

Sonidos Colombianos presents music from one of the most culturally diverse countries of Latin America: Colombia! Our bilingual musical tour is guaranteed to include not only cumbia, but also the guitar-based bambuco from the Andean region, the harp llanero music from the Eastern Plains, the marimba-infused currulao from the Pacific Region, and the accordiondriven vallenato of the North Atlantic Coast.

* indicates show was created after January 2022

LISTINGS FOR LISTENERS

The Mambo Machine, Fri. 11pm - Sat. 2am

The Mambo Machine is the longest running salsa show in New York City. The program presently plays a wide spectrum of Afro-Latin rhythms, combining new and old into an exciting, danceable mix.

El Sonido de la Calle*, Sun. 2-4am

A companion show to Saturday night’s American Notes from Underground, El Sonido de la Calle highlights the diverse world of contemporary Spanish-language hiphop and dance music.

IN ALL LANGUAGES

Seachran: The Celtic Show, Mon. 12-1am

Seachran features music from across the island of Ireland throughout the era of recorded music, particularly focusing on traditional folk and vernacular music forms.

Coordinated Universal Time, Mon. 1-3am

Coordinated Universal Time brings our listeners the latest cut of music from anywhere in the world, especially highlighting music that does not get attention in America. Our programming tries to bring the hottest and the most recent tunes to WKCR’s airwaves.

The African Show, Thurs. 10pm-12am

The longest running African music radio show in the United States, the African Show brings you a variety of music from the entire continent of Africa.

Middle Eastern Influences, Fri. 12-1am

During the hour-long show, Middle Eastern Influences features a wide range of beautiful tracks from regions of the Middle East, North Africa, and even, at times, South Asia.

Sounds of Asia, Sat. 6-8am

Rechristened from Sounds of China, Sounds of Asia explores the recorded musical traditions and innovations of Asia and the Pacific islands.

Eastern Standard Time, Sat. 8am-12pm

One of New York’s most popular Reggae programs, Eastern Standard Time takes listeners through Saturday morning from 8 am to noon with the hypnotic sounds of Reggae and Jamaican dance music.

* indicates show was created after January 2022

Field Trip, Sun. 6-8am

Field Trip focuses on the music and practice of field recordings: music recorded outside of a studio. Tune in and you may catch field recordings that were recorded fifty years ago, others that were experimented with by your favorite Afternoon New Music artist, or even those documented in New York City by WKCR itself.

Raag Aur Taal, Sun. 7-9pm

Raag Aur Taal explores the sounds and rich cultural heritage of South Asia. The term “Raag Aur Taal” roughly translates to “melody and rhythm,” indicating the classical nature of this program.

Back in the USSR, Sun. 11pm-12am

Back in the USSR features music from across the former Soviet Union and soviet states across Eastern Europe and East and Central Asia, from the mid-20th century through the present.

NEWS & ARTS

Monday Morningside*, Mon. 8:30-9:30am

Monday Morningside is WKCR’s morning news broadcast to kick off the week, featuring news segments on events around Morningside Heights and upper Manhattan. If you’re not an early bird, all episodes are available as podcasts on Spotify!

PopTalk*, Mon. 9-10pm

PopTalk examines current developments in pop music and the latest top-flight releases.

SoundStage*, Sun. 9-10pm

SoundStage features audio dramas and radio plays from the WKCR archives as well as new compositions by students and contemporary writers. Some shows also feature interviews with dramatists and directors.

SUNDAY PROFILES

Sunday Profile, Sun. 2-7pm*

With the return of the five-hour profiles slot, programmers will showcase longform profiles as they have done for decades. While the primary focus remains on jazz music, we also feature other styles and traditions from across WKCR’s different programming departments.

From Fania to Fame

by Leni Bryan

On a sweltering August evening in 1971, bodies crowd the dance floor at the Midtown nightclub, the Cheetah. On the just as crowded stage, salseros circle around one mic, singing, dancing, and clapping to the rhythm. The band plays them in, together they sing “¡Quítate tú pa’ ponerme yo, quítate tú!”, and the crowd goes wild. One by one, each performer takes his solo, singing with charisma and vibrance, as if in conversation with his fellow soneros. The performers— Santos Colón, Cheo Feliciano, Pete ‘El Conde’ Rodríguez, Ismael Miranda y Johnny Pacheco— are all legends in the making. This electric night marked one of the first, and by far the most famous, performances by the Fania All Stars.

Fania All Stars represented the new sound of salsa in the 1960s and 1970s, leaning heavily into the Nuyorican-ness of the era. The All Stars —consisting of Ray Barretto, Joe Bataan, Willie Colon, Larry Harlow, Celia Cruz, Johnny Pacheco, Héctor Lavoe, Pete “El Conde” Rodríguez, Ismael Miranda, Tito Puente, and Eddie Palmieri to name a few— highlighted the current biggest names in Latin

music at the time. Through their lively and dynamic performances, the Fania All Stars enmeshed music from mambo to boogaloo to merengue, and they stood as an emblem of what it meant to be proud and Latino in the United States. As Salsa was closely associated with the Latin American communities of New York City, particularly in neighborhoods like Spanish Harlem and the South Bronx, the local clubs and dance halls like the Palladium, the Tropicana, and the Cheetah became hubs of Latino culture, attracting dancers and musicians from all across the city. The Fania All Stars would not have been possible without Johnny Pacheco and Jerry Masucci, the founders of Fania Records. Founded in 1964, Fania Records brought together the most soulful Latin voices and musicians at the time, pumping out hit after hit and spreading their sound all around the globe. It played an important role in the cultural and political landscape of New York City, bringing together people from diverse backgrounds, and helping to foster a sense of pride and identity among Latinos. Oye Cómo Va (Tito Puente, 1962), Bang! Bang! (Joe Cuba Sextet, 1966), Subway Joe (Joe Bataan,

Fania All Starst Live at the Cheetah

1968), and Quimbara (Celia Cruz And Johnny Pacheco, 1974) are just a few commercially successful hits that came from the label, though possibly the best tracks are hidden within their respective albums. Many artists’ influence even broke out of the salsa music scene, with crossover hits like Pete Rodriguez’s “I Like It Like That” (1986) sampled by Cardi B in her chart-topper song “I Like It”. After running strong for over 15 years, Fania Records ceased operations in the 1980s, but its legacy lives on and the music continues to soundtrack Latinidad in New York City and beyond.

This month at WKCR, we are highlighting Johnny Pacheco and his contributions to Fania Records with a birthday broadcast on February 25th. Pacheco’s contributions to salsa music were numerous, but perhaps his most important legacy was his role in bringing the music to a wider audience. Born in the Dominican Republic, he brought the sounds of the Caribbean to New York City and helped enrich music for the better. As a singer, instrumentalist, band leader, and business partner, he helped to popularize salsa music not only in the United States but also around the world, paving the way for future generations of Latin musicians.

I have put together a listening guide to highlight some of my favorite tracks to come out of Fania Records. As I mentioned earlier, the all-time greatest hits aren’t my favorite. Some of these are more known, but some are just close to my heart.

Works Cited

Blistein, Jon. “Johnny Pacheco, Storied Salsa Bandleader and Fania Records Co-Founder, Dead at 85.” Rolling Stone, Rolling Stone, 16 Feb. 2021, “Fania Records Artists - Fania Records.” Fanis Records, 9 Feb. 2021, https://fania.com/artists/.

How Salsa Music Took Root in New York City - History. https://www.history.com/news/salsamusic-origins-new-york-city-mambo-machito.

Listening Guide

Live at the Cheetah, Vol.1 (1971), Quitate tú by Fania All Stars

While I have already mentioned this track, I thought it needed another highlight. To me, this live album captures the shared feeling of love for salsa and community. You can hear the smiles on each sinegrs face, and you can feel the energy in the crowd. If you close your eyes, it’s almost like you are at the Cheetah yourself.

Que Viva La Música (1972): Que Viva La Música by

Ray Barretto

The album art hangs in my abuela’s house, which (to me) means the album is a symbol of music mastery since she eats, sleeps, and breaths salsa. The album stars with “Que Viva La Música,” a song that talks about the beauty and soul of Latin music. Ray Barretto, Puerto Rican born conga player, signed to Fania Records in 1967. In this record, he plays in the band through the emotional highs and lows of the track- a passionate tribute his music!

Lo Mato (1973): Calle Luna Calle Sol by Hector Lavoe & Willie Colon

Willie Colon on trombone and Hector Lavoe on vocals—the collaboration of a lifetime. Colon and Lavoe were some of the biggest names in Fania, and also longtime friends. Their rapport translates to a record with flow and storytelling. “Calle Luna Calle Sol” cautionary tale of a dangerous street, reflecting a strain and unrest that developed in their relationship over time. This album captures sualing feelings of love and bitterness in a life long, fame riddled friendship.

Celia & Johnny (1974): El Tumbao y Celia by Cruz & Johnny Pacheco

This album was the first collaborative work between Celia Cruz and Johnny Pacheco. While this album holds the famed song “Quimbara”, my favorite track is El Tumbao y Celia. Celia Cruz, La Guarachera de Cuba, brings an amazing richness and Afro Cuban influence to any song with her voice.

Listener Comments and Questions

WE ASKED AND YOU ANSWERED!

These are the unflitered comments from OnAir readers

“It’s great to have the program guide. So helpful!”

- Glenn Dornfeld

We love and enjoy the OnAir email information. It keeps us informed of what’s coming next!

- Kenneth and Gael Madrigal

“I love the On Air Guide but I’m wondering if you can enable downloads or at least publish it as a normal PDF file? Also, it would be great if you there are any copies of the old On Air Guides from 20 years ago that can be scanned and published as PDFs due to their historical interest? Thank you and keep up the great work.”

We’re so glad you enjoy OnAir so much! Unfortunately, due to the host site we use, we cannot enable PDF downloads. If you email us at board@wkcr.org, however, we will send you any PDF copies you request!

“I don’t know about this on air guide. will it tell me when I can tune in to listen to classical music?”

Yes! You can check out the weekly schedule (page 12) to see when classical shows air or the show listings (page 15) for times and descriptions of each classical show.

SUPPORT WKCR

TOP 5 REASONS TO DONATE TO WKCR

1. You’d be helping a student-run, listener-funded, and volunteer-based radio station continue to bring you the absolute best in what radio has to offer. Music, arts, news, and sports— we’ve got the works!

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3. WKCR donations are tax-deductible (so make sure you donate before tax season). For more info on that, or anything else business-related, email business@wkcr.org

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HOW TO DONATE TO WKCR IN 4 STEPS

BY MAIL

Step 1: Locate your nearest checkbook

Step 2: Indicate “WKCR” as payee and fill out as usual

Step 3: Mail cheque to CU Gift Systems, 622 West 113th Street, MC 4524, New York, NY 10025

Step 4: ...and VOILÀ! Just like that, you have become a WKCR supporter!

WKCR also accepts cheques to our direct address. Just Follow the same steps listed above but mail the cheque to:

2920 Broadway, New York, NY 10027

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Special thanks to Ale Díaz-Pizarro, August Phillips, Fenway Donegan, Josh Kapilian, Leni Bryan, Maria Shaughnessy, Olivia Mitchell, Sam Seliger, Sarah Barlyn, & Ted Schmiedeler.