CBL-FM (94.1
MHz) is the
flagship station of the
CBC Music network. It is a
non-commercial station,
licensed to
Toronto
Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
,
Ontario
Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
, and is owned by the
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is the Canadian Public broadcasting, public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a Crown corporation that serves as the national public broadcaster, with its E ...
.
CBL-FM's studios and offices are located at the
Canadian Broadcasting Centre, on
Front Street West, while its
transmitter
In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter (often abbreviated as XMTR or TX in technical documents) is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna (radio), antenna with the purpose of sig ...
is located atop the
CN Tower.
History
CBL-FM was launched on October 7, 1946, with the callsign VE9EV, as an FM
simulcast for 740
CBL. It was the corporation's second FM station behind VE9CB in
Montreal
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
(now
CBFX-FM). In 1947, its callsign was changed to CBC-FM. The station originally broadcast at 99.1 MHz, but moved to 94.1 in 1966. (The 99.1 frequency was vacant until 1977, when it was assigned to the
CKO all-news radio network. CKO ceased operations in 1989, and the frequency was again vacant until it was assigned to
CBLA-FM, co-owned with CBL-FM.)
As part of an 18-month trial for a nationwide FM network, CBC-FM began airing separate programming in 1960, playing mostly
classical music
Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...
along with the corporation's other English-language FM stations (
CBM-FM Montreal and
CBO-FM Ottawa). CBC-FM returned to simulcasting CBL in 1962, but resumed separate programming again in 1964. The station was renamed CBL-FM in 1968. The FM network was rebranded ''CBC Stereo'' on November 3, 1975, ''CBC Radio Two'' in 1997 and ''CBC Music'' in 2018, as it shifted away from mostly classical music, to a mix of
adult album alternative, classical,
jazz and other genres.
Rebroadcasters
On February 15, 1979, the CRTC approved the CBC's application to operate a new FM transmitter in
Belleville on 94.3 MHz (CBBB-FM) and on May 7, 1979, the CRTC also approved the CBC's application to operate a new FM transmitter in
Brockville on 104.9 MHz (CBBA-FM), to rebroadcast the programming originating from CBL-FM Toronto. Neither of these transmitters in Belleville and Brockville were implemented and the frequencies were awarded to other broadcasters.
In 1979, CBBK-FM began broadcasting at 92.9 MHz in Kingston.
In 1983, a rebroadcaster was added at Peterborough operating at 103.9 MHz as CBBP-FM.
[CBL-FM www.broadcasting-history.ca]
On June 28, 2005, the CRTC approved the CBC's application to change the frequency of its transmitter CBL-FM-1 104.7 to 106.9 MHz. This change of frequency was to eliminate significant interference with a local radio station
CFBK-FM operating at 105.5 MHz in Huntsville.
References
External links
CBC TorontoCBL-FMat The History of Canadian Broadcasting by the
Canadian Communications Foundation
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Radio stations established in 1946
1946 establishments in Ontario