FAULTS IN TRANSMISSION

New Zealand Listener, Volume 12, Issue 308, 18 May 1945, Page 5

FAULTS IN TRANSMISSION

Sir-So many faults have been noticeable in transmission of programmes from 2YA of late that it is causing a good deal of unfavourable comment among the listening public. The following is my own recent experience, On Sunday night, April 12, Station 2YA advértised a programme by the NBS String Orchestra featuring the Handel Viola Concerto.in G Minor. The programme was scheduled to begin at 8.5 p.m. and at 8.10 we were told that 2Y¥C had taken over the broadcast; by the time we switched over to 2YC we had, of course, missed the beginning of the Concerto. It was not until the second movement was well in progress that an alteration in the control room made it possible to hear the solo jnstrument clearly-until then the balance was completely wrong, ’cellos and bass predominating. During the broadcast the station went off the air, I think, six times. I was listening with five others who were all particularly interested to hear this work and we were all very disappointed. It was impossible to gain any idea of what the performance was like and we could only feel that all the wérk put into the preparation of the programme was entirely wasted, It would appear that the control room staff lacks a member who has a knowledge of instrumental musi¢ and the requisite balance of stringed instruments. I hope that we will have an opportunity soon to hear this Concerto under favourable conditions.

N. G.

SEDGWICK

Wellington)

(This letter was submitted to the Acting Director of Broadcasting, who said in reply: "Your correspondent is inaccurate in his facts and in.his deductions. Presumably the broadcast by the NBS Orchestta to which he refers was on Sunday, April 15, and not as written by him, April 12. The first announce: tment tegarding the transfer of the Orchestra’s performance to 2YC was made at 8.5 p.m, from both 2YA and 2YC and not at 8.10 p.m, as stated by your correspondent. At the latter time a second announcement was made. "The balancing of the orchestra and soloist at the mictophone was carried out prior to the broadcast in conjunction with and to the satisfaction of the conductor, who has ‘a knowledge of instrumental music and the requisite balance of stringed instruments.’ The disturbing of this balance ‘during the performance was not due, as suggested by your correspondent, to the lack of musical knowledge by the control room staff, but to the development of a fault in the microphone circuit which was being used for the soloist, which could not be foreseen and which had not been apparent during the hour’s test period. This fault was corrected during the performance by the technician. Neither the transmitter nor the control room logs at 2YC make any feport of the station going off the air at all between 8.0 and 9.0 p.m. If his reception was interrupted six times, it is possibie that a fault developed in his own set. "It is realised that inconvenience muft have been caused to some listeners owing to the programme changes which were made. Announcements of such changes were necessarily made at very short notice, since the station staff had only the short. period between -the Closing of the church service at 8.5 p.m. and 8.15 p.m. to make the arrangements necessary to enable the Main National Stations to broadcast the description of the passing of the funeral cortege of the late Presidefit Roosevelt to White House.’’]