Far exceeds my expectations for a jazz radio station, listen every morning on my one-hour commute into Newark...KSW
WBGO is tops when it comes to allowing their listeners to truly immerse themselves in their love of jazz music. I have worked with their events team at the Newport Jazz Festival, and the passion they have for their listeners is second to none. I doubt one would find a team more dedicated to their craft than the professionals at WBGO.
WBGO Jazz 88.3 FM | Newark Public Radio has the best Jazz programming on the air today. Their on-air personnel are knowledgeable; they play: the classics; "your" favorites; new artists; new music by legends and today's greats; and the music by very talented emerging artists!
WBGO's programming continues to also:
- educate through their community programs
- remain current and important to their audience by listening to them (i.e. an active community advisory board).
WBGO's special programs and on-air interviews never disappoint!
WBGO is a travel partner of ours and has been bringing avid jazz fans to the Newport Jazz Festival by bus for the last two summers. Our friends there work tirelessly to get the word out to listeners and to make travel to the festival easy and fun from New York, New Jersey, Brooklyn and Boston. We love working with them and are grateful for all they do for the jazz community!
The best Jazz station in the nation - bar none! I have been a member of WBGO and will continue to be so, as supporting the arts and jazz music is essential to our cultural evolution.
Nobody does it better when it comes to presenting jazz in all its wonderful varieties. Great DJs provide original programming that is soulful, musically enlightening and always enjoyable. Happy to listen any time of the day.
My experience with Newark Public Radio, Inc. began in November 1984 when I began doing fundraisers on a regular basis; the first person I met was Rhonda Hamilton. As always, WBGO had been going through constant reorganization and my participation with them was an outgrowth of a hobby of mine--collecting jazz memorabilia; I grew up in a musical family in Brooklyn. Besides jazz, I really love the news and public affairs programming and it has been an augment to my formal education. The many people and positive experiences that I have still remain with me to this day. Anthony Brown
WBGO is a national treasure -- one of the few public radio stations left that plays real jazz and blues. And their news department is first-rate, too. I don't know how I would get through my day without it. I've been listening for about 20 years and for over a dozen years was lucky enough to volunteer at the station during the fund drives. There I met the wonderful people that are the heart of WBGO. As a member, I know I'm really part of something wonderful. Thanks, BGO, for making every day better.
2/21/10 AS FAR AS MY JAZZ LISTENING EXPERIENCE IS CONCERNED WBGO IS MY LOVE, MY LIFE, MY ALL. I'VE BEEN LISTENING TO WBGO FOR THE LAST TWENTY OR SO YEARS. I CONTRIBUTE REGULARLY TO HELP MAINTAIN THE ONLY RADIO STATION DEDICATED TO JAZZ IN THE NEW YORK METROPOLITAN AREA. I COMMEND MR. CEPHAS BOWLES AND HIS STAFF FOR THEIR UNTIRING DEVOTION AND DEDICATION TO KEEPING AMERICAS ONLY INDIGINOUS MUSIC ALIVE.
WBGO actively presents many aspects of jazz, from the 1920s to live club recordings in 2010. Not just somebody's Top 20 list. The hosts will take a work and display how various musicians have expressed it over the decades. The station actively supports music in the schools, and sponsors youth jazz programs at Newark Performing Arts Center. The programming regularly features Afro-jazz, Caribbean jazz, as well as the young artists of today. The hosts often provide context for the music (who made it, who was in the group, etc) and how it influenced others. In a time when spending for the arts is some times under pressure, the station's supporters reach out to help it expose more people to good jazz.
Were it not for Newark Public Radio, Inc., I would not have an opportunity to hear jazz 24 hours a day in the New York/New Jersey market. The radio station offers a wide range of jazz, not just concentrating on the old masters, but continues to introduce audiences to the younger musicians making names for themselves. I work as an artist manager, managing jazz artists. I have the opportunity to have my clients introduced to a very large jazz market. Many of my clients have been helped personally with their increased notice in magazines and other journals as a result of being played on WBGO. We need jazz radio to help keep this music alive. I don't know what we would do in this business without Newark Public Radio, Inc. Can you imagine a market as large as New York/New Jersey without a 24 hour station devoted to America's classical music? I sure can't. Thank God for Newark Public Radio, Inc.
Long before I worked in Jazz, I was a fan of Jazz. I lived in New Jersey, just outside of Manhattan, and WBGO was my window into a world of music beyond the 3-minute pop song. DJs like Michael Bourne and Gary Walker introduced me to music that was daring, beautiful, different and fun. They're still there, along with a stable of thoughtful DJs that's as good as you'll find on radio. For the past 20 years, I've have the honor of working in the Jazz arena. We've worked with WBGO on a variety of joint projects, and you know what? The professionals managing the station are just as good as the folks behind the microphones. In our partnerships with WBGO, I've found that they set the bar high, then proceed to deliver well above it. For example, we recently worked with the station on its annual Champions Of Jazz Gala. We thought it would be a terrific evening for our staff and clients, considering it was WBGO's 30th anniversary and DownBeat's 75th. Terrific was an understatement. The program, from start to finish, was a complete success. Every detail was handled beautifully. And as a result, WBGO, DownBeat and, especially, jazz all received an unforgettable evening. Several years earlier, we worked together on a feature on the great pianist Dave Brubeck. Michael Bourne did the interview. It ran as a cover story in DownBeat and as a radio interview on WBGO. Each of our interviews promoted the other, which created a terrific platform to propel the work and legacy of one of our greatest jazz artists. Each example required a great deal of communication and teamwork from our organizations, or we stood to fail miserably. It was never a concern with a partner like WBGO. The station does amazing work in the jazz community. We're proud whenever we have an opportunity to work with the staff of WBGO to promote this great music called Jazz.
I was introduced to WBGO almost 30 years ago, at the suggestion of a friend, when the music I'd grown up with no longer moved me. It has taught me all about jazz and now jazz is the music that moves me the most. Besides the music, the station produces excellent local news programming, such as the weekly call-in show with Newark's mayor Corey Booker. And the station is ever-innovative: it now broadcasts live from the Village Vanguard on Wednesday nights. There is no station like it in the world!
I had been a sometime listener to WBGO for many years and participated in occasional benefits that were sponsored by the station; but once CD 101.9 was eliminated I became an AVID listener. I am pleasantly amazed and proud to state that this station has provided culture, sophistication and CLASS to a sometimes to often; Bleak Outlook on Newark.
Newark Publick Radio (WBGO) has devoted itself to keeping the link between jazz and the community strong. Their dynamic programming is always entertaining and their on air hosts are tremendously knowledgeable. I am both entertained and educated by what they have to offer. It's a great, great station that I intend to support as a volunteer and a member.