A LISTENER WITH A GROUCH

New Zealand Listener, Volume 17, Issue 419, 4 July 1947, Page 5

A LISTENER WITH A GROUCH

Sir,-I’ve got a grouch! On a recent Saturday night when 2YA took over at the interval from the Town Hall, Wellington, why did they put on four out of five recordings exactly the same as we had been listening to for over an hour and which we still further listened to for another hour and twenty minutes? From the station we had or¢hestral instruments, quite good, of course, but anyone with a knowledge of programme organising would, surely, have given us some variety! Then again at, 3YA to-night there is a band programme with Woolston Brass Band playing at eight o’clock and from seven-thirty there’s a further programme of band music. Why? The ‘average listener hardly knows the difference between a military and a brass band, and to the latter, I contend, it is most unfair to put half-an-hour’s programme ahead of them, with vocaP interlude it is true, seemingly to offer a comparison. From a listener’s point of view one can have too much of anything... even the best the world can offer. Variety is the spice of life, we are told, and a radio programme should surely contain just that. Station 3YA has done that for years and it has always been a puzzler to me why. Also, I’ve got a grouch at the technicians. I always understood that the monitor’s job was to ascertain, and maintain, the levels of recordings, announcer, etc., of each particular station, So that, in a home, when the station is tuned in with, say, a couple of ©

recordings, and the announcer’s Yoice, one can sit back and leave thé "reg to the monitor. Now is that contentia correct? If it is, then my grouch is we founded. If it isn’t, then I would li to know is it necessary for me to by my radio and spend the night twi ing the knobs. = On Saturday night last I tuned in 2YD. The announcer boomed in; I ¢ down, and the recording carge fro thousands of miles away. Then half w through it came up, although in. meantime I had "opened her out.’? Th whén the monitor got to work plus wh I had done, I got whatoh! Station 2 is not faultless in this regard. I without any hesitation that in 60 pé cent. of announcements the level ig not

the same with announcer and artist or: recording. In the Australian stations where there is a great deal of competition one would not get this sort of thing. ig ‘ Now I am not writing this just for the sake of doing so. In the ordinary course of events I should have" Written to the NZBS and stated my case, but I’ve met so many people lately who have voiced the same opinions as myself, that I think it is in the interests of the Service that such should’ be. ventilated. It will also give the Service an opportunity to state whether such cons tentions are correct. or otherwise.

H. GLADSTONE

HILL

(Plimmerton),