WQXR-FM - Programming

Programming

As with most remaining classical music stations in the U.S., the station's playlist has changed over the years to focus on shorter and more easily assimilated pieces and away from long pieces and most vocal music including opera. However, when compared to music programming from WQXR's early days (1940s and 1950s) the change in music is not as pronounced as might be expected. The station does, however, play a fair amount of 20th-century classical works. It also continues to play long pieces during special broadcasts, and during evening hours (7 p.m. to 6 a.m.) and also broadcasts a complete opera at least once a week. Most notably, it is the headquarters for broadcasting the Metropolitan Opera radio broadcasts each Saturday afternoon during its season, from December to April.

In addition to music, WQXR had newscast and financial updates of various lengths, from thirty seconds to three minutes, prepared initially by Bloomberg Radio (WBBR-AM 1130 kHz New York City). Over the years, the prominence that WQXR afforded to news first rose, then steadily diminished. During the 1950s and 1960s, WQXR provided five minutes of news each hour, uninterrupted by commercials. "Every hour on the hour, the New York Times brings you the latest news bulletins." These bulletins focused heavily on New York City, New York State, national, and international developments. It also featured a weather forecast for the New York Metropolitan area. Sports was almost never included. This presentation expanded during the 1960s to a fifteen-minute "early evening news roundup" at 6:00 p.m. WQXR dissolved its two-person news department in late 2008. It had broadcast from the actual newsroom of the New York Times at 229 West 43rd Street, 1.4 miles from the WQXR's studios at Fifth Avenue and 18th Street.

WQXR relied on New York Times contributors for a number of short-form features, such as "The Front Page of Tomorrow's New York Times" broadcast six evenings at 9:00 PM and prepared by Times reporter James Barron, also a weekly fifteen-minute book feature prepared in conjunction with the New York Times Book Review editors, a weekly review of dance, and weekday reports on theatre, dining and wine. The New York Times White House correspondent also had frequent reports which were aired during the Morning Show. Since the transfer of ownership to WNYC, the station has aired brief news updates during drive time from the WNYC newsroom.

WQXR also broadcasted some religious services, including a live half-hour Shabbat service from Congregation Emanu-El of the City of New York every Friday at 5:30 p.m. (which was to continue through the end of 2009), a weekly Lutheran service from the previous week on Sunday morning, as well as Sunday morning services, alternately, from two Unitarian churches, the Community Church and All Souls Church (New York).

The station also featured a weekly program about piano entitled Reflections from the Keyboard which is hosted by David Dubal. Dubal had previously been Music Director at WNCN (a defunct classical-music radio station in New York City), WQXR's competitor in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. This program was not continued with the transfer of ownership to New York Public Radio. Many of the current WQXR announcers, as well as its Program Director, were previously employed at WNCN. New American Public Media shows were added to WQXR's playlist such as Performance Today, aired on Sundays at 7 p.m., St Paul Sunday airing Sundays at 9 p.m., Pipedreams airing on Sundays at 6 a.m., and The Writer's Almanac, airing weeknights at 7:30 p.m.