SUNDAY EVENING PROGRAMMES

New Zealand Listener, Volume 7, Issue 158, 3 July 1942, Page 3

SUNDAY EVENING PROGRAMMES

Sir,-Last Sunday evening, at 8.15, I] "tuned in" to 4YA in order that I might hear a performance of Don Pasquale. The performance proceeded until 8.35 when it was abruptly interrupted by the introduction of an address bearing upon military matters. The address, which was interesting and informative, but extremely out of accord with the emotional and intellectual content of the music, proceeded until 8.57. From that time until 9.0 the station broadcast a "fill up" in the way of a part of a ilitary march played by a brass band. At 9.0 the tolling of a clock, From 9.1 til 9.18, a " newsreel" that amounted to little more than a paraphrase of a BBC bulletin that was broadcast from this station 234 hours earlier. From 9.18 until 9.29 a "war commentary " t amounted to little more than another paraphrase of the same BBC bulletin. From 9.30 to 9.34, station notices, At 9.55 the broadcasting of the performance of Don Pasquale was 1esumed; on the presumption, it would seem, that the mood of the listener would, at the instant, be returned to that in which he was wrapped an hour earlier, I knew that the Service must try to please all listeners and that some listeners do not wish to hear great music. Phis circumstance provides no justification, however, for the interruption in question. It affords no justification fcr this interruption because obviously, ell the items that together constituted the interruption might have been broadcast, to listeners in Dunedin, from 4YO and, to listeners in the other main towns, from the subsidiary stations in those towns. LICENCE HOLDER (Christchurch). {We are informed that the problem is one of coverage, If the auxiliary stations were used for the news. onlv those livine in oar near the |

cities would hear it.

Ed.