Media Contacts
Mike Raia (WGBH)
617-300-5333
Jake Messier (Boston Conservatory)
617-912-9108
WCRB Taps Boston Conservatory Students to Create New “Sonic Logo”
Compositions to be based on WGBH “sting”
BOSTON, Mass. (April 10, 2014) – For generations, radio and television stations – as well as consumer products – have developed and used sound logos to identify themselves to listeners and consumers. Well known examples include NBC’s three-note chime, Intel’s “Leap Ahead” theme, Law & Order’s “doink doink” and WGBH Boston’s longstanding “sting”, developed in 1972 first for television and later adapted for 89.7 WGBH Radio.
Earlier this month, 99.5 WCRB – WGBH’s listener-supported classical radio station – and The Boston Conservatory kicked off a competition to create a “sonic logo” for WCRB. Drawing inspiration from WGBH’s iconic sting, students from The Conservatory’s music composition program will submit original compositions for consideration. The winning composition will be recorded later this year in the WGBH Fraser Performance Studios with musicians from the Boston Conservatory.
“Every radio station should have a strong sonic identity. We could not think of a more fitting way to commission a sonic logo for our station than to tap into the skills and enthusiasm of Boston’s talented composition students,” said WCRB Station Manager Anthony Rudel.
Student submissions are due April 25. Andy Vores, chair of the Boston Conservatory’s Composition and Theory Department, and Rudel will judge the compositions and choose a winning entry. After a winner is selected in early May, Conservatory students will orchestrate different arrangements of the composition for use on radio during all parts of the day. In the fall, WCRB will open up WGBH’s Fraser Performance Studio to Conservatory musicians to record the variations of the sonic logo.
“This opportunity to create a sonic logo for WCRB is unprecedented for our students,” said Vores. “Great identifiers have the ability to create a legacy, something identified with the station for decades. We are looking forward to seeing what our students come up with.”
The competition highlights WCRB’s connection to Boston’s renowned music community and is part of an ongoing partnership with The Boston Conservatory. Additionally, the competition provides The Conservatory’s composition students with real world experience in professional, commissioned composition. The “sounders” will begin to air on WCRB this fall.
About WGBH
WGBH Boston is America’s preeminent public broadcaster and the largest producer of PBS content for TV and the Web, including Masterpiece, Antiques Roadshow, Frontline, Nova, American Experience, Arthur, Curious George, and more than a dozen other prime-time, lifestyle, and children’s series. WGBH’s television channels include WGBH 2, WGBX 44, and the digital channels World and Create. WGBH TV productions focusing on the region’s diverse community include Greater Boston, Basic Black, and High School Quiz Show. WGBH Radio serves listeners across New England with 89.7 WGBH Boston Public Radio; 99.5 WCRB; and WCAI, the Cape and Islands NPR® Station. WGBH also is a major source of programs for public radio (among them, PRI’s The World®), a leader in educational multimedia (including PBS LearningMedia™, providing the nation’s educators with free, curriculum-based digital content), and a pioneer in technologies and services that make media accessible to deaf, hard of hearing, blind, and visually impaired audiences. WGBH has been recognized with hundreds of honors: Emmys, Peabodys, duPont-Columbia Awards and Oscars. Find more information at wgbh.org.
About The Boston Conservatory
The Boston Conservatory trains exceptional, young performing artists for careers that enrich and transform the human experience. Known for its intimate and supportive multi-disciplinary environment, The Boston Conservatory offers fully accredited graduate and undergraduate programs in music, dance and musical theater, and presents more than 200 performances each year by students, faculty and guest artists. Since its founding in 1867, The Boston Conservatory has shared its talent and creativity with the city of Boston, the region and the nation, and continues to grow today as a vibrant community of artists and educators. For more information, visit www.bostonconservatory.edu.
