Musical Kids

This morning at quarter 'til 11, Verne had the nagging feeling that he'd forgotten something. As he pondered over what it could be, a line of excited 8-to-15-year-olds filtered into the lobby. It suddenly hit Verne that today was the live broadcast for the Holy Names Music Center piano camp and he shot into action.

"Us trapeze artists were about to splatter on the pavement," he said of the accidental lapse of memory and the unprepared live-recording studio. Together he, Jerry, Brian, and Patrick cleared out the room and set up sound equipment with record speed just in time for the 11 am broadcast.

It was at this point that I entered the office, only to be asked by a station volunteer, "Are you one of the pianists? They already went to the back room."

"Pianists?" I replied confusedly and sure enough, the strains of a lovely classical piece reached my ears. Shelley handed me a camera and I tracked down the tinkling notes to discover this scene:




35 kids of varying ages and attention-levels coated the carpet of the little room. A small strawberry-blond head bent over the piano.



Verne perched upon a stool, narrating between each of the 14 child-performers' turns on the piano and the camp instructor shuffled her students into place. Parents and friends spilled out into the hallway, listening to each piece and snapping rapid-fire photos of their children. Some kids waited patiently for their turn.



Others waited less patiently.

But when they sat down at the piano, the music was beautiful.



And everybody remembered to applaud.




The applause actually proved to be a bit of a problem. In an adjacent room, John was trying to record a news story in between the clapping and sounds of the piano. Because the building is not sound-tight, a few bars of a piano solo leaked onto the end of his recording.

"I had to redo it a couple times to make sure there wasn't any extra sound on it," he reported.








Overall, though, the broadcast of the young pianists' performances was a complete success.

"It was a wonderful rush of energy," Verne said with a grin.

Paper Parade

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Today SPR is preparing for one of its biggest mailings just as The Guide is nearing completion for the printers. So, everywhere I turn there is paper. Third, fourth, and fifth versions of pages from The Guide hit my desk to be proofread and then passed on to Neesha or Stephanie's desk to be proofed again. Every little detail must be caught and made perfect before the finished product can go to the printers for distribution. Shelley types away correcting everything that the office full of proofreaders manage to spot, and dozens of papers in various stages flit from chair to chair.

At the same time, Mary, our Membership Coordinator, is organizing for a massive mailing on Friday. Just moments ago, Brian's voice came over the intercom with a polite, "If you'd like some exercise we could use help setting up for the mailing." Then came Amy's voice, a little more insistent, "Whether you want exercise or not, now is the time for action!" At that, people from across the office rose from their chairs and were put to work carrying stacks of envelopes, address sheets, and chairs down to the mailing room. By the time the paper parade came to a close, the room was ready for mailing and The Guide was ready to go to the printers.

A Red, White, and Blue Brainstorm

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While for most people the 4th of July means food, flags, and fireworks, at SPR the patriotic holiday means brainstorming. This afternoon Verne padded into the office with no shoes and a harried but eager look on his face, clutching a fistful of scribbled notes on 4th of July special programming. During any holiday listeners expect something different and exciting from the station to match the mood of the day. This all boils down to the need for a surge of creativity from the broadcasters. Verne ran his fingers through his hair so that it stood wildly on end as he went over the first draft of the holiday weekend schedule. In addition to special programs like satirical singing group Capitol Steps performing their 4th of July version of “Politics Takes a Holiday" and the critique of government action during the Vietnam War "Top Secret: The Battle for the Pentagon Papers” performed by L.A. Theatre Works, Verne said that the station will also run a mix of holiday-appropriate music throughout the weekend.

“We’ll have patriotic songs and music to burn burgers by,” he said, thumbing through notes. Verne mentioned the tentative schedule (that Capitol Steps will air on KSFC on July 2 and 5 at 5 pm and on KPBX on July 4 and 5 at 4 pm and noon respectively) but be warned that times may be altered.

“That’s the fun of radio,” he said, heading back to work, “changing our minds at the last minute!” And with that he ducked out the door, leaving half-formed notes as the remains of a patriotic brainstorm behind him. For an up-to-date schedule of 4th of July weekend programming go to kpbx.org or follow Spokane Public Radio on Facebook.

Taking cover from the Prairie

This week at SPR my job has become to help wherever I can... mainly by staying out of the way. The station is a flurry of activity as the countdown to "A Prairie Home Companion" rapidly draws to a close.

Shelley has been painstakingly designing and proofing program fliers for the event. Amy and Nancy are busy fielding phone calls about tickets. Soon, a small group will be headed down to the Spokane Arena to set up and make final preparations for the show. People fly in and out of the door bearing stacks of fliers, programs, and paperwork. Everywhere you can hear the low murmur of "Garrison! Garrison!" The entire station is driving to make this show the best it can possibly be.

As for me, I find I can be most helpful by keeping out of everyone's hair for a while and working on other tasks. I'll come out from under my desk when all this is over and we can enjoy the success of "A Prairie Home Companion."