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Stories   >   Music will soon soar from 'All Classical Radio's' new skyscraper home / RADIOWORLD

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Music will soon soar from 'All Classical Radio's' new skyscraper home / RADIOWORLD

Posted: February 12, 2024 12:00 AM | By: Admin
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With the help of a generous benefactor, classical music — and classical music lovers — will soon have a new home in Portland, Ore.

RADIOWORLD's ELLE KEHRES writes…..All Classical Radio, KQAC(FM), has received the largest grant in the station’s 40-year history. The M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust of Vancouver, Wash., has gifted $750,000 in support of the network’s relocation campaign. Now, All Classical Radio is in the process of building a new headquarters at the historic KOIN Tower in downtown Portland, which will include five new production studios, modernized audio/video technology and a performance hall to foster community. KOIN Tower is a 509-foot, 35-story skyscraper next to the Willamette River in Portland, Ore. The building, the third-tallest in the city, opened in 1984. 

With the announcement of the Murdock Trust award, in addition to outside donations, the station has raised 62% of its $10 million capital campaign goal in just eight months. Demolition for the new headquarters began in August 2023 with the anticipated completion and move-in date set for July 2024.

All Classical Radio is a noncommercial educational FM radio station and multimedia network, boasting 98% locally-produced programming, including daily playlists, interviews, live performances, syndicated radio shows, podcasts and arts and culture specials. With an effective radiated power of 5.9 kW and height above average terrain of about 1,400 feet, All Classical serves more than 250,000 listeners in Oregon and southwest Washington.

The network broadcasts on FM and HD-1 on five full-service stations including KQAC Portland (its main signal), in addition to two translators. All seven signals simulcast KQAC’s programming.

All Classical also reaches international audiences via its online stream and is host to The International Children’s Arts Network (ICAN), which broadcasts 24/7 on HD-2 in addition to all seven signals.

To learn more about the station’s new media arts center, and its whimsical quirks, Radio World heard from Suzanne Nance, president and CEO of All Classical Radio, and Mike Alston, the station’s director of engineering and technology.

Suzanne Nance: Our new media center is on the third floor of KOIN Tower (formerly KOIN Center Cinema). It will feature five studios: one main broadcast studio “the Observatory” for daily live radio broadcasts, two medium-sized multimedia studios for A/V production and one dedicated studio “Studio Bee” to produce children’s content for the International Children’s Arts Network, which will also serve as a home for our youth mentorship programs. In addition, there will be a studio designated for nationally syndicated programs such as “The Score” and “Played in Oregon,” and soon to be syndicated, “Notebook” and “Sunday Brunch.”

The station will include a 100-person performance hall and a state-of-the-art recording studio, where composers and performers can create, rehearse, record and share their work. The performance space will also have a 16×9-foot LED wall screen, allowing for multimedia presentations and performances, screenings, interviews and video linkups with special guests and other broadcasters around the world.

Recognizing a regional demand, we also plan to offer studio time to outside organizations, artists, journalists, podcasters and community partners.

The build-out of our new media arts center will allow All Classical Radio to support and launch artists’ careers, helping them build creative portfolios and reach new audiences. All Classical will also be better positioned to expand its award-winning Recording Inclusivity Initiative, by producing new recordings in-house to be released and distributed globally by our partner record label Navona at PARMA.
 

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