Tag Archives: Encore

How Jake configures SDR# to listen to Encore classical music

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Jake Brodsky (AB3A), who shares the following guest post:


How I Listen to Encore on Radio Tumbril

Listening to Classical music on shortwave is a challenge. It has loud and soft parts to the music. There may be selective fading. It isn’t a simple thing.

Also, configuring a software defined radio such as the highly configurable SDR# is not trivial. Note to readers: SDR# has been updated a lot recently and the noise reduction features are vastly improved. Kudos to Youssef Touil for all the hard work on this software. He continues to impress me with every update.

So I have some suggestions for those who are interested in listening:

First, get a decent set of over-the-ear headphones. Don’t rely on laptop speakers. They’re usually not designed for audio fidelity.

Set the radio for DSB reception with Lock Carrier and Anti-Fading checked. I also set the bandwidth to cover about 11 kHz or thereabouts.

On the Audio tab I uncheck the Filter Audio option. I’m going to rely on IF filtering to do my work for me.

Next, find an empty channel on the band where you will be listening to the program. Enable the IF Noise Reduction feature, set it to HiFi, and then set the threshold so that the noise floor is reasonably low. If you set the threshold too high, you’ll lose the higher frequency audio and there will be artifacts from the noise floor that I find unpleasant. A little bit of noise reduction is good, but more is not better.

I also enable the IF Filter/notch processing window to handle any stray birdies from switching mode power supplies. However, if not needed, I turn that feature off.

I turn off the AGC. And then I set the volume level to something reasonable, not too loud, not too soft, but just barely able to hear the noise floor.

Then I tune in the program. I was listening to the Sunday Evening (Monday 0200 UTC) broadcast from WRMI on 5950 kHz. There was some fading going back and forth. However, I took the atmospherics in stride, as if it were part of the experience. The broadcast from this evening
ended with the Pastoral Symphony from Beethoven. There were a few fades and there were a few swells, all due to atmospherics as the signal faded to the noise floor and emerged from it. But there was very little distortion. (thanks to the excellent engineers at WRMI).

The experience was actually sublime.

This is why I listen to shortwave broadcasts.

73,

Jake Brodsky, Amateur Radio Station AB3A

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Classical Music on Radio Tumbril, April 28 – May 3

Encore – Classical Music on shortwave – broadcast Sunday afternoon in Europe & USA

Encore – Classical Music this weekend is being broadcast as usual by Channel 292 (Europe) on 6070 kHz at 15:00 UTC Sunday 28th April.
Back on the air after ten days of maintenance.
And by WBCQ on 7490 kHz at 00:00 – 01:00 UTC Monday 29th April.

There is a repeat on 6070 kHz on Friday at 19:00 UTC.

The show this week will start with a fanfare on medieval bladder pipes followed by some Holst and an organ sonata by Bach. We have two lyrical and romantic contemporary pieces from Thomas Adès, also some Telemann and Mozart. Amongst much else – Leonard Bernstein conducts Charles Ives and the programme finishes with some early Russian polyphony.

As usual – reception reports and requests for music to play in future programmes will be very welcome.

Regular Broadcast times are:
15:00 – 16:00 UTC Sunday, and repeated 19:00 – 20:00 UTC Friday on 6070 kHz (Channel 292 Germany).
00:00 – 01:00 UTC Monday on 7490 kHz (WBCQ – Maine).

Brice Avery – Encore – Radio Tumbril – www.tumbril.co.uk

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Classical Music on Radio Tumbril, April 21 – 26

(Source: Radio Tumbril)

Classical Music on shortwave – broadcast Sunday afternoon in Europe & USA

Encore – Classical Music this weekend Is being broadcast as usual on WBCQ at 00:00 – 01:00 UTC Monday 22nd April.
Channel 292 is off air at the moment for servicing so the normal 15:00 UTC Sunday 21st April transmission will not happen this week.

The show will start with a Boccherini quintet, then some ballet music from Swan Lake.
There will also be some French wind band music, an organ work from Bach and some interesting works for the human voice.

As usual reception reports and requests for pieces to pay in future programmes will be very welcome.

Broadcast times are:
15:00 – 16:00 UTC Sunday, and repeated 19:00 – 20:00 UTC Friday on 6070 kHz (Channel 292 Germany).
00:00 – 01:00 UTC Monday on 7490 kHz (WBCQ – Maine).

(Channel 292 is off air for ten days from Monday 16th April.)

Brice Avery – Encore – Radio Tumbril – www.tumbril.co.uk

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Classical Music on Radio Tumbril this week

(Source: Radio Tumbril)

Classical Music broadcast on Sunday afternoon in Europe & USA

Encore this week will start with a beautifully lyrical Piano piece by Sibelius, then we’ll have a movement from Elgar’s Cello Concerto in an historic recording by Jaqueline du Pré.
There will also be a song from Gluck, two string quartet pieces by Janacek, some of Mahler’s 5th, Copeland’s clarinet concerto, a little Bach organ music and some Albinoni.

Broadcast times are 15:00 – 16:00 UTC Sunday on 6070 kHz (Channel 292 Germany) and 00:00 – 01:00 UTC Monday on 7490 kHz (WBCQ – Maine).

(There would normally be a repeat on Friday 19th on on 6070 kHz but 292 will be off air for ten days from Monday 16th April for adjustments)

Brice Avery – Encore – Radio Tumbril

www.tumbril.co.uk

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Encore: Classical music over shortwave

Many thanks to Brice Avery who writes:

Hi Thomas,
Thanks for all the quality work at the SWLing Post.

I have recently started a weekly programme on SW playing Classical Western Music.
There is hardly any now and there used to be a lot more.

The show is called Encore and goes out on 6070 kHz from Channel 292 at 15:00 UTC on Sundays with a repeat on Friday at 19:00 UTC.

WBCQ broadcast Encore in US between 00:00 and 01:00 UTC Monday (Early Sunday evening in the US).

We are now at Programme 6 and the feedback is excellent.

[…]Please visit the website for more information (If you click on the valve LOGO you get the ‘story’ page).

www.tumbril.co.uk

Thank you for sharing this, Brice. I’ll certainly tune into your new show as I’m a massive fan of music over shortwave and, as you say, there are few outlets these days for classical music.  Good luck with the new show!

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