By Brenda Payton
At KCSM radio, the disc jockeys perform a version of the
improvisation central to the jazz music they play.
"We do it on the fly. It's all about ears and heart.
We're always listening," said Melanie Berzon, a
DJ and program manager for "Jazz in the Afternoon." "You listen
to what's playing and you try to figure out what to play next. What goes with
that tune. I play a few vocals an hour, a few new
tunes an hour. You're trying to get the mix across."
KCSM (91.1 FM), a public radio station based at College
of San Mateo, is a rarity. Radio
stations that don't use preset playlists that repeat
the same songs are disappearing. The DJs at KCSM choose from more than 50,000
titles.
But KCSM's claim to fame is being
the nation's only 24-hour jazz station. Even New York City,
considered by many to be the center of the jazz world, does not have a station
that plays only jazz with no news and information breaks.
"The station in Newark (N.J.) has 20 hours. A lot of
stations went to smooth jazz," said Alisa Clancy, host of "A Morning
Cup of Jazz" and "The Desert Island" weekly show, which
interviews musicians about the recordings they would take to a desert island.
"We're the only wall-to-wall jazz station."
Clancy attributes the station's ability to sustain the
24-hour format to the previous Bay Area station, KJAZ.
"Those other cities that went smooth ordropped the music didn't have the history of jazz on the
radio we had here," Clancy said. KJAZ went off the air in 1994, and many
KCSM disc jockeys once worked there.
Being the only game in town has its drawbacks. Berzon said it is often a challenge to satisfy the varied
tastes of jazz lovers.
"You've got big band, blues, Latin, contemporary
fusion, bebop," she said. "If there were more than one jazz station,
they could specialize. But with just one, you realize you can't please all the
people all the time. We actually hope we can turn each other on to new things. To open each others' ears."
Each DJ has a particular niche in the music.
"I love music that tells a story. I like the
crooners," Berzon said.
"Keith Hines is the late'60s, '70s fusion," said
Clancy. "Sonny (Buxton) is the blue note man. Dick Conte is blue note and
Brazilian."
Jesse "Chuy" Varella is an aficionado of Latin jazz. Clifford Brown Jr.
hosts the weekly "American Jazz Countdown." Greg Bridges is the DJ
for "All Out," spotlighting the more experimental music that is
hardly ever heard on the radio. Kathleen Lawton is "Crazy'Bout
the Blues." Chris Cortez, Bob Parlocha, Jayne
Sanchez and Michael Burman add their tastes and
expertise to the rich mix.
Clancy describes her own taste as weird and freaky: "I
like all kinds of stuff; I love it all."
Besides the music, the station features the daily Jazz Datebook, listing live performances around the Bay Area. DJs also interview musicians and offer historical and musical
insights. You can't listen for long without learning something about
jazz.
"Our mission is to entertain and educate," Berzon said. "We learn from each other and the
audience. I can't tell you how much I've learned from the old KJAZ announcers.
And we have the most vocal, intelligent audience. They tell us stories, let us know what they like, what we should know
more about. It's a wonderful community."
Jazz fans tend to be passionate about the music. Their
intensity belies the size of the jazz audience. If you are a jazz lover, you
will probably be shocked to discover only 2 percent to 3 percent of the
country's music audience listens to serious or straight-ahead jazz. Some find
it ironic that the quintessential American music is more appreciated in Japan
and Europe.
"I would say jazz is an acquired taste," Berzon said. "You don't necessarily come out of the
womb liking jazz. It takes some listening."
Clancy agreed. "It takes exposure. A lot of people
don't listen or don't know how to listen. You have to listen to get jazz. It's
not a three-minute pop record melody. I think there is a danger associated with
it because you don't know where the music is going. That makes some people
uncomfortable."
KCSM-FM radio is at 91.1 and streams over the Web at
kcsm.org, 24-7.
Oaklandish, the unique, funky
gallery celebrating Oakland, is back. Sort of. It hasn't found
another actual venue, but it is staying alive in cyperspace.
At oaklandish.org/forum/ friends of Oaklandish can
stay in touch, share news, post events and spread the "local love."
According to an e-mail (with the subject line Long Live Oaklandish),
current topics include History & Roots, Secret Spots, Local Personalities,
East Bay Arts & Theory, Oakland Music and conspiracy theories about the
gallery closing.
Listings
- Friday, Saturday and Sunday — Glass Studio Exhibit and
Sale, vases, bowls and sculptures by Oakland glass artists Bruce Pizzichillo and Dari Gordon, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (also Dec.
3, 4, 10 and 11), 2680 Union St., Oakland.
- Friday — Lavay Smith & Her
Red Hot Skillet Lickers, doors open at 7:30
p.m., show at
9:30 p.m., swing
dance lesson at 8 p.m., Ashkenaz, 1317 San Pablo,
Berkeley, $13.
- Saturday and Sunday — 15th Annual Berkeley Artisans
Holiday Open Studios, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
(also Dec. 3, 4, 10, 11, 17 and 18), the work of more than 100 professional
artists and craftspersons at various locations, map
available online at http://www.berkeleyartisans.com.
- Saturday — Ibdaa Dance Troupe
with Loco Bloco and Melanie DeMore,
a dance troupe of 10- to 13-year-old Palestinians from the Dheisheh
refugee camp performing traditional folkloric dance and theatrical
choreography, 7 p.m., King Middle School Auditorium, 1781 Rose St., Berkeley,
$25 (proceeds benefit the Ibdaa Cultural Center).
- Saturday — Hal Stein Quartet, 8 p.m., Anna's Jazz
Island, 2120
Allston Way, Berkeley, $7
cover.
- Monday — Benefit for drummer Billy Lee Lewis, Bay Area
Musicians come together to take care of one of their own. Lewis was diagnosed
with cancer. San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom will declare Dec. 5 "Billy
Lee Lewis Day." 8 p.m. concert, Slim's, 333 11th St., San Francisco,
minimum donation $25.
-
Thursday — Call for Entry Pro Arts Juried Annual
Deadline, for claim the world of art as our domain, 6 p.m. deadline, digital submission process online (no
slides needed). go to proartsgallery.org, click on
juried annual 2006 for submission guidelines. exhibition
dates jan. 7 through feb. 26.
11/25/05
Source: The Oakland
Tribune
11/25/05
Source: The Oakland
Tribune
Return to: Black Music Archives