''Adventures in Good Music'', hosted by

Karl Haas Karl Haas (December 6, 1913February 6, 2005) was a German-American classical music radio host, known for his sonorous speaking voice, humanistic approach to music appreciation, and popularization of classical music. He was the host of the classi ...

, was

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...

's most widely listened-to classical music program, and aired nationally in the U.S. from 1970 to 2007. The program was also syndicated to commercial and public radio stations around the world. German-American musicologist

started ''Adventures in Good Music'' in 1959 on radio station WJR in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

. It was awarded the Peabody Award for excellence in broadcasting in 1962. Syndicated broadcasts began in 1970 on

WCLV WCLV (90.3 FM) is a non-commercial educational radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, carrying a combined fine art/ classical music and jazz format. Owned by Ideastream Public Media, the station serves both Greater Cleveland and No ...

in Cleveland, Ohio, where the production of the program remained for the rest of its duration. Each daily episode of the show had a different topic chosen by Haas, and he aired his personal choice of classical music selections relating to it, along with his pleasant blend of explanation, analysis, and background. The

theme music Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at so ...

for the show was the 2nd movement from

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

's "Pathétique" Sonata (Sonata No 8 in C minor), performed by Haas himself, live for each program; and Haas started every show with his trademark greeting "Hello everyone." Haas retired from broadcasting at age 89 and did not produce any new episodes of ''Adventures in Good Music'' after 2002. WCLV continued to syndicate recordings of his shows until June 2007, when the station announced "with great regret" that it would broadcast and syndicate its last program on June 29, 2007. The announcement explained that the number of stations carrying the show had dropped from more than 400 to fewer than 20, which made it unfeasible to continue national distribution. Most episodes are not available publicly because of copyright restrictions (Haas's estate holds the copyrights closely) although three CDs have been issued featuring Haas and his commentary: ''The Romantic Piano'', ''The Story of the Bells'', and ''Song and Dance''. In 2002, a new program was developed to replace ''Adventures in Good Music'', expanded and updated for a 21st-century audience.Fine Arts Radio International Awards: 2004 Lifetime Achievement Award
The program, '' Exploring Music'', debuted in October 2003, written and hosted by

Bill McGlaughlin William McGlaughlin (born October 3, 1943) is an American composer, conductor, music educator, and Peabody Award-winning classical music radio host. He is the host and music director of the public radio programs ''Exploring Music'' and '' Saint ...

References

External links

WCLV description of the showDaily program titles and themes, 2004–2007Memorial piece about Karl Haas and his radio style
{{American classical music radio programs Peabody Award-winning radio programs American classical music radio programs International classical music radio programs 1959 radio programme debuts 2007 radio programme endings