Lowell Folk Festival, WGBH edition

["Bill O'Neill" <billo@erols.com>]

Scott Fybush/NERW writes:

>The Lowell Folk Festival kicks off Friday night, <snip>   And Boston's WGBH
>(89.7) will once again broadcast from the festival during Mai Cramer's
>Friday night blues show and Dick Pleasants' Saturday folk show.

Per my post on this subject last year (yikes!) it will be interesting to see
if WGBH doesn't take the high road during their Boarding House Park stage
broadcast.  In the past 2+ years, the main board feed has been split and
sent to ALL takers, WCAP, WLLH, WJUL, local cable, etc. versus a split feed
from the mic.

Why is that a problem?  The festival organizers, in their interest in
putting Dick Pleasants on stage as master of ceremonies (he fits the bill
masterfully), has neglected to provide an 'un-Dicked' feed to the other
stations, akin to TV news stations not yanking their mic flags from the
podium.  Just plain hack.  Radio 101 Etiquette.

Couple that with the fact that Pleasants seems to become
uncharacteristically in L-O-V-E with the WGBH call letters up on stage and
the words "Folk Heritage Program" and his name, "Dick Pleasants" while he is
up there.  After EVERY act.  Over the PA, over every signal.  (I am not
kidding, and this is WGBH we're talking about.)  This makes the entire stage
event (at least from 1-5 Saturday) into a WGBH event.  (BTW, this stage has
evolved into THEE stage to broadcast from, given that the acts are much
better blended and balanced relative to genre, sound, etc.)

Any vets in the crowd can tell you that there are two simple and practically
free solutions to all of the above, and WGBH knows it - 1. Work with the
sound tech (hired by the city) to split the main feed from the board, one
with Dick-mic and the other mix-minus Dick-mic.  That way, the other users
get all of the main mix with no-Dick/WGBH and can personalize the feed to
meet their interests.  (In my years with WJUL both as a student-PD-alum., we
always opted to say nothing but for a golf-whisper re: who is next to the
stage then shuddup and eat.)

Oh, and 2 - If a feed-split is not possible (can't imagine why, even
RadioShack could help with that one) then ask Pleasants to keep it generic
and have his station ID over when necessary.

FYI, my bet is with WJUL, given their historical effort in maximizing
simultaneous feeds from as many stages as possible, just for the fun of it.
The other stations tend to hunker down in one spot.  And play spots, and
inject their 'personality' into a show that runs itself.  Out of the WJUL
loop for quite some time, I hope the volunteers keep the focus simple and
pure, minimize mic time and maximize the stage.  Oh, and interview kids with
ice cream on their faces during down time.

Will try to critique after all is done.  Have walkman, will travel.

FYI, for those on the fringes, the stations at the event:

WJUL Lowell 91.5 FM, 1.4 kW, UMass Lowell, decent reach within 20 mi. in
most directions. (Many stages, incl. Market Mills Courtyard, Market Mills
Stage, Boarding Hse. Park, JFK Plaza and other locs.)
WGBH Boston 89.7 FM, 100 kW, If you can't get 'em, you're on AM by mistake
(Boarding House Park Sat. afternoon only)
WCAP Lowell 980 AM, 5 kW, 'big five' hitting most of So. NH to No.
Manchester, Woburn, Hudson, MA, etc.  (I opted to decline WCAP's invite to
host Sunday's b'cast. to host my wife and two kids at the festival.  Family
life has its priorities.....)
WLLH Lowell//Lawrence 1400  AM, 640 w//1 kW, for communities approx.
contiguousx2-3 to COLs.
Both AMers likely to focus on Boarding House Park and JFK Plaza (city hall
area).

Bill O'Neill

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