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KUNC
- Community Radio for Northern Colarado SJ.COM: Tell us about your market. What range does KUNC cover? Kyle: Our market is really diverse. From working ranches to high technology and everything in between. Kirk: We have a really good reach with over thirteen translators across the front range and beyond. (Translators are strategically placed transmitters to extend the listening range of KUNC.) From the Greeley/Ft. Collins area to Breckenridge, Steamboat Springs, Vail, Yuma, Cheyene. You can even listen to us on the Internet. SJ.COM: KUNC is a public radio station? Kirk: We are. We have been an affiliate of NPR (National Public Radio) for nearly 20 years. SJ.COM: How long have you been with the station? Kirk: 16 years. SJ.COM: Kyle? Kyle: 7 years. SJ.COM: Tell us about your programming. How much is NPR and how much do you program in-house? Kirk: We program our own "Diverse Music" programming from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm every week day. Additionally we run BBC World Service, All Things Considered, World Cafe, Echoes and Jazz After Hours and on the weekends we have additional programs that run including Prairie Home Companion and E-Town. SJ.COM: Sounds like a well-rounded radio station. What musical genres make up your "Diverse Music" programming? Kyle: A mix of Smooth Jazz, Folk, AAA, Classical, New Age, World. SJ.COM: What artists might come up in an hour? Kirk: (Handing over a song list from a recent two hour period of Diverse Music programming). On the Smooth Jazz front, the two hours include Lee Ritenour from "Rit's House", Patti Austin from "For Ella", and Ray Obiedo from "Sweet Summer Days". Other artists that cross over to Smooth Jazz on the list are Jesse Cook from "Vertigo", Julia Fordham from "Concrete Love", Shawn Colvin from "A Whole New You", and James Taylor from "Greatest Hits". Also included are songs from Wayne Gratz, Marc Cohn, Johann Michael Haydn, Poncho Sanchez, Ian Matthews, Christine Lavin, Leo Kottke, Vivaldi and The Modern Jazz Quartet. Kyle: We pulled away a bit from the Smooth Jazz format because there just weren't enough solid recordings. But we didn't want to abandon the format entirely. We have been trying to be selective with the Smooth Jazz and focus on the artists that are unique. If we're going to add something to our rotation it can't sound like everything else that's coming out. SJ.COM: What artists come to mind that are creating new, unique Smooth Jazz? Kyle: Lee Ritenour is one that comes to mind. "Rit's House" is just great and it totally caught me by surprise. Kirk: David Benoit is going on a different theme with his stuff. His music doesn't sound the same, each recording offers a new direction with new ideas. A lot of the music sounds so much alike these days. You can recognize Pat Metheny's guitar playing but you can't tell many of the sax players apart from the others. SJ.COM: Couldn't help but notice that you play more than one track from a CD. How deep will you go on an album? Kyle: We don't just focus on one track, we'll play the entire album if it's right. We'll get singles mailed to us from labels and then we'll get calls asking if we're going to play it. And my answer is always, "Waiting on the full CD." SJ.COM: It seems like the labels like to work the CD for as long as possible by servicing radio with one single at a time. Kirk: Yes. And they'll call us and ask, "Are you on this record?" and we'll say, "No. We played that two years ago." SJ.COM: Do you play indie artists? Kyle: We play a lot of independent artists. If the music sounds right we'll play it. SJ.COM:
Are you hearing any artists that you think will be Smooth Jazz leaders
or stars in the near future? Kirk: I'm trying to think the kind of people that would have the same impact as a Lee Ritenour in say 5 or 6 years and I honestly can't think of anyone. SJ.COM: Does the Denver Smooth Jazz station come into your market? Kirk: We really don't pay much attention to them. We don't even share listeners. The 2 or 3 that we share with from Denver include KBCO, KOA and the other public station. SJ.COM: KBCO is a cool station. Do you like them? Kyle: I love them. They do a great job. SJ.COM: Kirk, you've seen a lot of changes in the Smooth Jazz format over the years, from back in the day when it wasn't even called Smooth Jazz. What is your opinion on the current station of the format? Kirk: I've been reading your interviews with the commercial Smooth Jazz stations and several of the program directors are saying that they would like to play more of this or more of that. I think that they would be surprised if they played things that they are inclined to play. I don't think their ratings would necessarily change, and they might actually go up. KHIH used to be the Smooth Jazz station in Denver and years ago, when the station was newer, they included New Age and a good amount of vocals in their mix. That station showed up much higher in the ratings than the new station does now. Back in the day when the MAC Report existed, the format was very progressive. But when BA moved in and started getting involved with the format the more homogenized the music became. And artists like Willie & Lobo, Michael Tomlinson, etc., were squeezed out. SJ.COM: Why do you think stations play older songs from artists like Acoustic Alchemy and Spyro Gyra, but not the new stuff? Kirk: We've been playing Acoustic Alchemy since the beginning. Their music progressed over the years, as it should, and it's still great. I just think that BA has helped with taking the format to a more homogenized sound. SJ.COM: Do you think it's doing any good, playing one saxophone song after another? I mean is that selling any product or offering listeners an interesting listening experience? Kirk: I don't think that approach is helping anyone. SJ.COM: Do you research your music? Kirk: We don't do formal research. But we do get feedback from our listeners through email, calls, etc. Kyle: The feedback we get is a good balance. Our listeners are knowledgeable and intelligent. And they don't mind sharing that wil you. SJ.COM:
What are you doing to connect with your community? Kirk: We host a large event every year at the end of August that benefits the Food Bank. It's an outdoor event that's held in Loveland at an amphitheater. You bring either a cash donation or a bag of food. We started it 11 years ago with a Colorado band called Wind Machine. They played it every year until they broke up and now we book other artists to perform. We draw a good crowd. SJ.COM: What's the event called? Kirk: Tuna Fish & Peanut Butter. SJ.COM: Are you serious? Kyle: We're so used to the name that it seems perfectly normal for us. But when someone outside hears the name, I'm sure it sounds funny. Kirk: We got the name because the Food Bank requests food donations that are high in protein and tins of tuna fish and jars of peanut butter will provide just that. SJ.COM:
What's the best way for a new Smooth Jazz artist to develop their career? SJ.COM:
How do you utilize Internet presence to further your radio station's image
and your programming? Kyle:
We have our PSA info on our Web site as well as an events calendar. And
anybody can go in and submit their event. Kirk:
The Folks Festival just outside of Boulder in a beautiful outdoor venue
where a river runs through it. The festival features 3 days of great artists.
I caught Randy Newman, who is one of the funniest people I have ever seen
in my life. Also saw Amiee Mann and Catie Curtis. Kirk:
Louis Prima Kirk: I'm really into Model trains, I'm building a layout in the basement. I work on them in the evenings and weekends. I also like to fly fish. |
