2008 ACE Awards - Jazz Programming              

Winner:  

KXJZ, Sacramento - Carl Watanabe, Station Manager  - Listen

Honorable Mention:  

WNYC, New York - Chris Bannon, Program Director - Listen

 
Judges' Comments - KXJZ:

 What was your overall impression of the entry?

Excellent – highly produced fast rolling magazine style good for Morning Edition or early evening programming. Expertly built, with good interviewing, recording, writing, reading and mix. Highly resource intensive and not necessarily the pace or style for mid-day or evening. 

 

These were very well-produced features and it’s easy to understand why they were presented in their entirety.  They’re very easy to listen to, they illuminate the art of two different musicians very well, and they certainly speak well to the core values of jazz. 

 

Very well done features engaging music, stories, personalities and people.  In terms of hitting the “Core Values” of Jazz, this entry is rock solid – AND very listenable and engaging to non-jazz listeners as well.

 

What are its greatest strengths?

a.  Paul Conley and Gary Vercelli  (3 decades of  sustained excellence!)

b.  Production and technical resources sufficient to make these shine.

 

Clearly the sound of the pieces is of network quality.  The editing sounds pretty effortless, the narration is smooth and covers transitions quite well, and what we get are two very enjoyable and enlightening stories. 

 

Getting very good “pull quotes” from the subjects and weaving them into the narrative.

 

What changes would you recommend for improvement?

No changes to these pieces, but perhaps reformat for other dayparts. The material is very strong.

 

There are some spots where the music may go on longer than it needs to;  it bridges sections of text/voices nicely but perhaps it could be a bit more brief.  And while the structure of the pieces is very smooth, there is a predictable rhythm to them – segments of text and sound of about 40-60 seconds bridged with 10-20 seconds of relevant music.   That’s a pattern NPR has fallen into over time (Ira Glass has spoken of this for years), but you should fight that pattern whenever you can – it risks making good stories into comfortable background sound, the last thing you want.

 

Narrator copy needs to be edited a bit more to let it breath.   Time may be a concern, but the pace can seem a little cluttered and rushed.

 

What can others learn from this entry?

a.   Discipline of working in this form appeals to the largest audiences we typically aggregate

b.   Discipline doesn’t preclude depth, and forces focus on the ‘tape’ and technique

c.   We could learn to more easily make these pieces more than ‘local’ because

                             i.      They represent so much work and resource and excellence

                             ii.      They are of ongoing /sustaining interest -- demonstrated by KXJZ web experience

                             iii.      But so many music stations don’t have the time or resources to digest and integrate these

d.   One form doesn’t fit all. This up tempo presentation is valuable for lots of listeners but not IMHO for all dayparts.

 

The sound is put together very well and the writing is clear.  It’s a workable way to present information about this art to a news audience, and with KXJZ’s formatting this is an approach to building interest in jazz that makes good sense.  Other stations would do well to listen carefully to how KXJZ does it.

 

Take the time to find really good quotes, be VERY prepared for the interview and use music to augment the words, not just fill out the time.

 

Judges' Comments: WNYC

What was your overall impression of the entry?

First rate – Ms. Fishko’s signature – In every aspect, each choice and voice, including her own.  Superb writing, effortless delivery and excellent mixing

 

This told a delightful story of a significant American musical figure.  It used sound very well to move the story forward, and it was a pleasure to listen to!  I rarely wish stories could go on a bit, but this is an exception.

 

A good glimpse into Cab Calloway, his influence and his influences.

 

What are its greatest strengths?

Construction, Writing, Delivery, Technical execution. Sara Fishko’s own interest and communication skill.   Rare instance of the completely successful producer/ host with

great technical support.

 

There’s a sense of storytelling here which is quite charming.  The opening grabs your attention and promises some great stories to follow, and Sara delivers.   It helps to emphasize Cab Calloway’s larger place in American culture, and as such it connects very well with the values of history and originality.  Sound is put together very well and the pacing is brisk, tight, and well managed.  Sara also takes a more active role in narration that most producers do, but that seems a plus to me – she’s not an aural bystander in telling the story, but an active participant.  Considering that part of what she’s doing is telling us why we should care about Cab’s 100th birthday and his music, that seems fitting. 

 

Much interview material to reinforce the main “thesis”.

 

What changes would you recommend for improvement?

Give every station the resource to find, hire and support someone of this caliber.

 

Nothing jumped out at me as needing significant improvement.  Everything I thought of had more to do with editorial decisions than anything else – time limitations undoubtedly meant leaving much of Calloway’s legacy out of the story.  Sara’s delivery is on the cool side.  I’m not sure it’s as engaging as might be ideal – it doesn’t seem to me to match the material -- but I understand that it’s a stylistic choice.

 

The scope of Cab Calloway’s influence seemed limited.  From Sesame Street to the Blues Brothers, Cab was a transcendent figure in pop culture on and off for many decades, and the amazing showmanship and “show business” nature of his reputation underplayed his influence.  The feature tried to do this, but it didn’t quite come across. The reporters voice is clear and the copy is well written, but the energy of the whole piece seemed mostly subdued except for the older recordings.

 

What can others learn from this entry?

a.       You get out of it what you put in. 

b.      These kinds of pieces are expensive.  They require rare talent & excellence.

c.       We need to work to make sure they are available to all our listeners who would be interested, whatever platform they come to us on.  

 

The voices we heard – Will Friedwald, Calloway’s grandson – give us a well-rounded sense of who Cab Calloway was, and they also give great insights into some of the subtleties of Calloway’s sound.  This is a fine example of story whose pace moved right along, with every moment used very well in advancing the story, and it’s an excellent example of using sound from historians/experts to advance the story without going on too long.

 

When the discovery and learning about a fascinating figure like Cab Calloway reveals itself to you, don’t be afraid to show that wonder a bit more.