Sunday 7 December 2008

The demographics of Jazz

I was in for an unpleasant surprise yesterday when I set off to do the weekly shop. Switching on the car radio, instead of jazz, 106.8FM was playing some bland, repetitive, background twaddle. When a human voice mercifully intervened, I was informed that I was no longer listening to Radio Jazz on this frequency, but to "Radio Chili Zed" (Chill-E-Zet, Chilly-Z or any permutation of the above).

Instead of classics from Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Sarah Vaughan, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald or Count Basie, I am subjected to sounds made by people unheard of at their own breakfast table who are recording 'music' for spaced-out clubbers too fragile to face the day. The aural equivalent of ten mils of Diazapam, this elevator music de nos jours lacks any redeeming features that will enable it to withstand the test of time. Will any of this stuff be listened to and revered half a century from now? I sincerely doubt it.

I wish this awful radio station a speedy journey to the footnotes of Polish broadcasting history. I want my jazz back.

But I won't get it back. The largest number of Poles today by age are 25 years old. It is their tastes that determine the Polish media market. It is for them that Radio Jazz has been taken off the air and replaced by this formless guff. Chilloutowo-undergroundowe brzmenia are no substitute for be-bop, funk or big band swing.

I shall continue listening to Radio PiN (though it plays interesting music, announcers never say what they've played - which I find annoying) and of course to TokFM where half of Jeziorki can be heard commenting on economic issues. But my favourite music station has gone.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Pity :-(
There's still Radio Classic and then CDs or casettes :-(

BTW - try to google screamer.exe - a nice free software to listen to world radio on the net - hundreds of stations, there's one from such remote place as Antarctica :-)

Best wishes,

Michael Dembinski said...

My 1993 Micra does not have a CD or MP3 player, plus the cassette player broke years ago. But with Radio Jazz, not having state-of-the-art in-car entertainment was not an issue. Now it is. Radio Classic - or RMF Classic as the original Agora-owned Classic FM modelled on the successful British station (jingles and all) went bust long ago. RMF Klasyk is dire. "To było Fur Elise Ludwiga van Beethovena. A teraz główny temat z filmu Morderczy Morderca Dwa."

At home, I shall try Google Screamer.

Anonymous said...

Unfortunately, Eurozet group bought Jazz Radio. That's the reason, why Radio Jazz is gone =(

Michael. Did you find my emails, about the new investment near Rampa na Kruszywo?

Michael Dembinski said...

Hey KG - I was looking for it today but could not find it - about Sampo, the Spanish developer putting up 180 houses in Phase 1 of the scheme - please resend!

Anonymous said...

Here's Screamer radio:
http://www.screamer-radio.com/

Happy listening,

Anonymous said...

No problem.
I resent emails (check your gmail) but, as I can see, You know everything about Sando...heh =)

Michael Dembinski said...

Got it KG thanks (I was looking for the wrong 'from' address). We shall see whether the current frosty global financial situation is a good one for Sando to develop the Rampa site into a big housing development.

Anonymous said...

Sando owns 25 hectare site and plans 2,500 flats to be built in several stages. First phase is located at the far end, close to Iwiczna. The development will be mostly low density 3-4 level apartment buildings, because the site must maintain 50% green areas ratio (remaining 50% is buildings, roads and any built-up surface).
In current market situation the development will be spread over 6-8 years.

Best regards,