Well, well. Twelve days after the fact the Chron has finally reported – after a fashion – on the Bonneville/Entercom story, the absence of which from Bay Area reportage has so perplexed us. The splendid Leah Garchik has a small item about KDFC today (01-31, p. E8 in the print edition, on line here, down toward the bottom – God forbid the Chron should have to go to the effort of tagging individual items). Curiously, it lacks any reference to the seller, or to the other two stations being traded away. Still, Ms Garchik gets the Tin Star with Choking-Doberman Cluster for being the first to break the Chron’s silence on this story.

Kinda reminds one (one of a certain age, at least) of the days when the real news would show up as an aside in Caen’s column. Ms Garchik’s column is the closest the Chron can muster to a regular Caen-style “gossip” – a highly inadequate term for what the brilliant but astonishingly nasty Caen actually practiced, by the way – feature; its preoccupation with those most boring of creatures, local politicos and the class of hangers-on who have replaced “socialites,” is no fault of Ms Garchik’s, but of the town she has to cover. And it features the brilliant “Public eavesdropping” item, which resurrects the premise of Stan Mack’s Real Life Funnies (”Guarantee: All Dialogue Is Reported Verbatim”) with the additional virtues of concision and community participation.

At any rate, I prefer to assume that she found the story herself; I’d hate to think the editors (finally tipped off by a certain letter, perhaps?) are using her as cover for their own lousy performance on this one. So congratulations, Leah Garchik – coverage at last!

Georg Philip Telemann: Overture in C major, “Hamburger Ebb’ und Fluth / Hamburg tides” (1723)

Musica Antiqua Köln / Reinhard Goebel cond (Archiv Produktion 413 788-2)

György Ligeti: Sonata for violoncello solo, I: Dialogo (1948)

Matt Haimovitz vc (SFCO 2005-2006 highlights)

George Crumb: Sonata for solo violoncello (1955)

Robert Sylvester vc (Desto DC-7169)

Franz Schubert: An die Musik / To music, D. 547 (1817, Schober)

Hans Hotter BBar / Gerald Moore pf (Columbia 33CX-1626, rec. 1957 / Testament SBT 1198)

Johannes Brahms: Heimkehr / Homecoming, op. 7, no. 6 (1851, Uhland)

Hans Hotter BBar / Gerald Moore pf (Columbia 33CX-1448, rec. 1956 / Testament SBT 1198)

Well, at first it seemed like fun just waiting around to see how long it would take for our clue-crippled local rag to lift its slumbering head and groggily mention a major radio deal affecting (a) the #2 station in its “market” and (b) the #9 station, which also happens to be the top-rated “classical” station in the country. But as the days wear on, it becomes drearily apparent that this is simply going to become a tale not told by an idiot – or any idiot in town, it would seem – and it’s less & less fun, and ever more an exercise in open-mouthed astonishment.

Yes indeed, as of this writing, fully six days after it was announced, you may search the on-line presence of not only the Chron, but the Examiner, the Oakland Trib, and the local tabloids as well, for any hint of the swap that sends the unspeakable KDFC from the Mormons into the hands of Entercom – in the very same week that the latter was all over the news as owners of a not-quite-as-inadvertently-homicidal-as-they-might-wish Sacramento station. Is there any satisfaction in what amounts to scooping the entire local “news” apparatus? Hardly, unless one counts vertigo, nausea, and brain freeze as forms of satisfaction.

So for those who haven’t been paying attention because they assume the crack reporting teams at their local papers can be trusted to do it for them, note that Bonneville is trading two San Francisco giants of aural anaesthesia, #2 KOIT and #9 KDFC, and a minor-leaguer, #20-or-thereabouts KMAX, for three big Seattle stations and four in Cincinnati.

I guess it shows that KDFC has been more effective than anyone suspected, since it seems to have succeeded in rendering the entire San Francisco media establishment comatose. Oh well – I guess death by a steady diet of numbingly third-rate sewing-machine music and smarmy condescension is less painful than death by water.

UPDATE Saturday 01-27: Nine days and counting.

Franz Schubert: Der Tod und das Mädchen / Death and the maiden, D. 531 (Claudius)

Marian Anderson / Kosti Vehanen pf (Pearl GEMM CD 9318)

Bernard Herrmann: North by northwest: Overture (1959)

M-G-M Studio Orchestra / Bernard Herrmann cond (Rhino R2 72101)

Olivier Messiaen: Visions de l’Amen / Visions of the Amen: Amen de la Consommation / Amen of the Consummation (1943)

Alexandre Rabinovitch pf 1 / Martha Argerich pf 2 (EMI CDC 7 54050 2)

Robert Schumann: In der Nacht / In the night, op. 74, no. 4 (1849)

Jan DeGaetani Mz / Leslie Guinn Bar / Gilbert Kalish pf (Elektra Nonesuch 9 71364-2)

Richard Strauss: Elektra: opening fanfare (1909)

WDRS Chorus and Orchestra / Richard Kraus cond. (Gala GL 100.512, rec. 1953) ()

Franz Schubert: Du bist die Ruh, D. 776 (1823, Rückert)
Der Wanderer an den Mond, D. 870 (1826, Seidl)
Des Fischers Liebesglück, D. 933 (1827, Leitner)
* Winterreise: Das Wirthshaus, D. 911, no. 21 (1827, Müller)
Greisengesang, D. 778 (1823, Rückert)
Gruppe aus dem Tartarus, D. 583 (1817, Schiller)
* Winterreise: Der Leiermann, D. 911, no. 24 (1827, Müller)

all: Hans Hotter BBar / Hans Altmann pf (Preiser 93145, rec. 1952), exc. * Michael Raucheisen pf (DG 437 351-2, rec. 1942)

Johannes Brahms: Intermezzo in C major, op. 119, no. 3 (1893)

Richard Goode pf (Elektra Nonesuch 9 79154-2)

As fitfully announced, we will be at the KUSF rock’n’swap Sunday, January 21, from 10 to 4, with a sampling of CDs from the estate of Fr. Robert J. Giguere (1917 - 2003). Fr. Giguere, who taught philosophy for 55 years, had a vast love of music, and his collection – some 1200 CDs and several hundred LPs – ranges from ancient chant through punk rock. The collection has only partially been catalogued, so we’ll have a representative selection available with hopes of a fuller selection next time around (March 11, to be exact).
The donation of this extraordinary collection supports the mission of classics without walls by helping to defray production expenses. and honors a great teacher by enabling the breadth of his love of music to continue to be shared even beyond the grave.
Hope to see you there!

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina: Gaude gloriosa

Chanticleer (Teldec D 106302)

Ralph Vaughan Williams: Sinfonia Antartica (Symphony no. 7, 1949-52)

Linda Hohenfeld S / Philharmonia Orchestra & Chorus / Leonard Slatkin cond (RCA 09026-61195-2)

Elizabeth-Claude Jacquet de la Guerre: Suite in D minor (1707)

Traud Kloft hpd (Bayer 100056)

Olivier Messiaen: Quatuor pour la fin du temps / Quartet for the end of time: Intermède / Intermezzo (1940-41)

Eduard Brunner cl / Trio Fontenay (Teldec 9031-73239-2)

Giacinto Scelsi: String quartet no. 4 (1964)

Streichquartett des Klangforum Wien (Kairos 0012162KAI)

Ludwig van Beethoven: Sonata in F# minor, op. 78 (1809)

Alfred Brendel pf (Murray Hill S-3456)

Giacinto Scelsi: Quattro pezzi su una nota sola / Four pieces each on a single note (1959)

Saarbrücken Rundfunk Symphonie-Orchester / Hans Zender cond (cpo 999 485-2)

Ludwig van Beethoven: Sonata in F# minor, op. 78 (1809)

Richard Goode pf (Elektra Nonesuch 9 79328-2)

Rufus Thomas: Walking the dog (1963)

Rufus Thomas et al. (Stax 140)

György Ligeti: Sonata for violoncello solo, I: Dialogo (1948)

Matt Haimovitz vc (SFCO 2005-2006 highlights)

Richard Aldag: Elegy for cello and orchestra (2005)

Matt Haimovitz vc / San Francisco Chamber Orchestra / Benjamin Simon cond (SFCO 2005-2006 highlights)

Joan Tower: Snow dreams (1983)

Alexandra Hawley fl / Jeffrey McFadden gtr (Naxos 8.559146)

Joonas Kokkonen: Viisi bagatellia / Five bagatelles (1968-69)

Craig Randal Johnson pf (Tonttu Productions Piano music of Finland)