Good to hear that Gerald Kaufman’s having a go at Radio 3 now. OK – he’s not alone in his attacks, with plenty of others complaining about the inclusion of non-classical music, and easy-listening like, er, Gershwin.
I think the real objection seems to be that Late Junction and Andy Kershaw both pop-up on the station. Maybe they have a problem with Jazz? I don’t know. I daresay World Routes isn’t there cup of tea either. Needless to say that these are all my favourite programmes on Radio 3.
A total of 17 hours a week of non-mainstream music is not a lot to ask. “Andy Kershaw used to be a Radio 1 disc jockey” is not much of an argument. John Peel still is, and he’s much loved on Radio 4. The point is, that if not Radio 3, then where can we hear this music. Not on commercial radio, that’s for sure. Radio 2? Unlikely. It’s the usual, NIMBY attitude.
With maybe one or two exceptions a year, the main evening performance on Radio 3 is a traditional classical concert and not “bongo drums”. It’s unfortunate that many people’s world views of music extend only to Europe and North America. There’s a whole world of music out there, and very little of it is actually in primetime.