I wrote and mailed thank you letters to two donors today. I really believe in getting these out within a day or two we receive a check and in handling this personally. This was my first priority for today. As an aside, our donor support has been so encouraging over the past 4 months and is at the highest its been in our 30-year history.
I then turned to a conference call with Allegheny Land Trust in which we discussed some ways we'll be working to educate listeners about greenspace in Allegheny County.
Then, it was on to finalizing a mid-term progress report on our after school work with Pittsburgh Public Schools. I don 't think anyone really likes writing progress reports but they bring to mind one of my favorite sayings -- "I hate to write, but love to have written." While writing the report took a long time (we also prepared an accompanying set of CDs), it was satisfying to see how much we accomplished in 4 months. Another saying I like came to mind as well: "I'm sorry this letter is son long: I didn't have time to write a short one!" (Mark Twain). We managed to capture our work in three succinct pages but, as you may know if you write for a living, succinct writing is time consuming.
Along the way I took a few breaks to finalize a workshop with Northview Heights Elementary for tomorrow, arrange audio services for a meeting next week, interview a potential addition to our staff, be interviewed by an Allegheny College student for a radio drama project she's involved with, complete paperwork for our Washington & Jefferson intern, discuss a few operational issues with museum staffers, update Rounder Records on our growth and put the finishing touches on this week's edition of "Jazzin' Around", a separate public radio program we produce for Pittsburgh jazz radio legend David Jaye.
Believe it or not, I did leave a few things out but -- if I had to account for my time -- I think I hit the high points...although I did order toner for one of the printers, update our playlist...well, *most* of the high points ;).
BTW, the answer to the Haiku I posted yesterday is "hogan".
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Cook Forest Trip
Rikki and I left for Cook Forest after I completed a Girl Scout workshop on Sunday. The workshop included 7 girls from Plum (6th graders) and we had a nice session covering the control board, various audio sources (demonstrating the phone patch by calling one of the moms' cell phones), digital recording and special effects. One nice surprise was seeing Barb Hall -- one of my closest friends in college -- in her role as a troop leader. Except for the yearly Christmas cards, Barb and I have not caught up in at least 10 years and it was great to see her.
We arrived at Cook Forest Sunday evening and were without television, cell phone, email or computer until Tuesday afternoon when we returned. Wintertime hiking can be fun and we managed to see some of great "high country" (with its dry, powdery snow and only a few footprints) as well as a few trails closer to river level. Rikki's pedometer showed that we hiked about 7.5 miles.
On returning to SLB today, there were quite a few phone calls and emails. We had a technical session today and established audio delivery to 91.7 WCUC Clarion as planned. Our debut there should occur this Saturday or next. Our colleagues at Clarion University of Pennsylvania have been great to work with and we are looking forward to extending our reach. I listened to WCUC quite a bit while in Cooksburg and enjoyed what I heard.
As positive as that development was, we finally updated our Antivirus software today -- only to discover that it causes a negative impact on our music playback system that manages nearly all of our 50,000-plus songs. Tomorrow likely will be an un-install, although I've learned to sleep on it. Perhaps it's simply a setting we missed.
While hiking, I thought of a new SLB puzzle in which we could describe an item by haiku. For example, can you name this word? Hint: We saw a model of one in the woods.
Quonset like structure
Giving shelter to natives
Starts with letter H
I'll give you the answer tomorrow.
We arrived at Cook Forest Sunday evening and were without television, cell phone, email or computer until Tuesday afternoon when we returned. Wintertime hiking can be fun and we managed to see some of great "high country" (with its dry, powdery snow and only a few footprints) as well as a few trails closer to river level. Rikki's pedometer showed that we hiked about 7.5 miles.
On returning to SLB today, there were quite a few phone calls and emails. We had a technical session today and established audio delivery to 91.7 WCUC Clarion as planned. Our debut there should occur this Saturday or next. Our colleagues at Clarion University of Pennsylvania have been great to work with and we are looking forward to extending our reach. I listened to WCUC quite a bit while in Cooksburg and enjoyed what I heard.
As positive as that development was, we finally updated our Antivirus software today -- only to discover that it causes a negative impact on our music playback system that manages nearly all of our 50,000-plus songs. Tomorrow likely will be an un-install, although I've learned to sleep on it. Perhaps it's simply a setting we missed.
While hiking, I thought of a new SLB puzzle in which we could describe an item by haiku. For example, can you name this word? Hint: We saw a model of one in the woods.
Quonset like structure
Giving shelter to natives
Starts with letter H
I'll give you the answer tomorrow.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Today's Show
Aside from a few technical issues, we were very pleased with today's program. Some of the highlights that stand out for me:
1. One of the callers during our 8 a.m. Saturday Stumper was a father and two sons en route to a wrestling camp. We're always happy when families are participating together.
2. A delightful call from 11-year old McKenna solving a puzzle.
3. Short interviews with the Penn Avenue Arts Initiative, Modern Formations gallery and Carnegie Museum of Art.
4. The enthusiastic live interview with Lisa Miles (author of "Resurrecting Allegheny City"), which drew calls from many listeners and called attention to North Side history. Lisa also played violin. One adult male caller noted being moved to tears by a John McCutcheon song ("My Old Man") in which the lyric pays tribute to "(m)y old man (who) grew up on the North Side". I'm glad he was moved by the song; and that I spent 30 minutes or so earlier in the week making sure we had the song; and that I remembered to play it. I had wanted to open the 9 a.m. hour with it, but there was a technical issue; instead I aired it at 9:40 a.m.. Perhaps the caller would not have heard it if I and played it at 9 a.m.
5. A visit at 10 a.m. from Cashew, a beagle at Animal Friends awaiting adoption...and a subsequent 11:50 a.m. call from Animal Friends telling us that listeners subsequently adopted him!
8. The appearance of Billy (11) and Big Brother Jeff during our Big Brothers Big Sisters segment. Both were articulate and loving people. Jeff, a Ph.D. candidate in chemical engineering at Carnegie Mellon explained how Billy helps him keep his life in balance. Billy, an incredible person with 7 siblings, explained why his relationship with Jeff is important to him.
9. The incredible harmonies and songs of Brewer's Row, our 11 a.m. live performers.
10. Hearing from online listeners in Maryland, Virginia and Florida.
Here's a secret...after all this is "The Insider" :)...
...it's our job to make SLB seem "easy". However, planning and executing the program is hard work. Achieving balance is critical, working 100% live can be a challenge, and mixing music with interviews and live performances requires alot of multitasking, thought and, frankly, risk.
Days like today make the effort worth it...nearly 30 years after beginning SLB, we wouldn't have it any other way.
1. One of the callers during our 8 a.m. Saturday Stumper was a father and two sons en route to a wrestling camp. We're always happy when families are participating together.
2. A delightful call from 11-year old McKenna solving a puzzle.
3. Short interviews with the Penn Avenue Arts Initiative, Modern Formations gallery and Carnegie Museum of Art.
4. The enthusiastic live interview with Lisa Miles (author of "Resurrecting Allegheny City"), which drew calls from many listeners and called attention to North Side history. Lisa also played violin. One adult male caller noted being moved to tears by a John McCutcheon song ("My Old Man") in which the lyric pays tribute to "(m)y old man (who) grew up on the North Side". I'm glad he was moved by the song; and that I spent 30 minutes or so earlier in the week making sure we had the song; and that I remembered to play it. I had wanted to open the 9 a.m. hour with it, but there was a technical issue; instead I aired it at 9:40 a.m.. Perhaps the caller would not have heard it if I and played it at 9 a.m.
5. A visit at 10 a.m. from Cashew, a beagle at Animal Friends awaiting adoption...and a subsequent 11:50 a.m. call from Animal Friends telling us that listeners subsequently adopted him!
8. The appearance of Billy (11) and Big Brother Jeff during our Big Brothers Big Sisters segment. Both were articulate and loving people. Jeff, a Ph.D. candidate in chemical engineering at Carnegie Mellon explained how Billy helps him keep his life in balance. Billy, an incredible person with 7 siblings, explained why his relationship with Jeff is important to him.
9. The incredible harmonies and songs of Brewer's Row, our 11 a.m. live performers.
10. Hearing from online listeners in Maryland, Virginia and Florida.
Here's a secret...after all this is "The Insider" :)...
...it's our job to make SLB seem "easy". However, planning and executing the program is hard work. Achieving balance is critical, working 100% live can be a challenge, and mixing music with interviews and live performances requires alot of multitasking, thought and, frankly, risk.
Days like today make the effort worth it...nearly 30 years after beginning SLB, we wouldn't have it any other way.
Happy Saturday!
Our 1/26/08 program begins in in about 90 minutes. I'll comment on the program later today. Feel free to add your feedback whenever you'd like.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Museum's 25th Birthday, SLB's 30th...
Rikki and I just got home from the first of many 2008 birthday parties in honor of the Children's Museum's 25th. SLB's 30th birthday is this year, too, so its likely to be a year full of birthday cake and fun.
I was lucky enough to be able to focus on final show prep for a few hours today. Even after this many years, it is critical to carefully plan each program. While we have some specific principles we follow, the structure and preparation allows us to be creative -- and to enjoy the program more, too.
Other activities today included mastering some internal recordings for the museum and meeting with the likely lead sponsor for our annual Audio CD Mother's Day and Father's Day Card projects.
Bill Lucker, Rikki and I always have had a running joke we'd make on a rare Friday night out on the order of "If I go to sleep right *now*, I can get X hours of sleep...", the joke being that going to sleep "now" was certainly not possible and, worse yet, the number of hours was already too small! As I write this, X = 5 hours so its time to stop for now.
I was lucky enough to be able to focus on final show prep for a few hours today. Even after this many years, it is critical to carefully plan each program. While we have some specific principles we follow, the structure and preparation allows us to be creative -- and to enjoy the program more, too.
Other activities today included mastering some internal recordings for the museum and meeting with the likely lead sponsor for our annual Audio CD Mother's Day and Father's Day Card projects.
Bill Lucker, Rikki and I always have had a running joke we'd make on a rare Friday night out on the order of "If I go to sleep right *now*, I can get X hours of sleep...", the joke being that going to sleep "now" was certainly not possible and, worse yet, the number of hours was already too small! As I write this, X = 5 hours so its time to stop for now.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
GirlTalk, Miller Academy, Stumbling on Happiness
I started today with a great luxury -- I sat and quietly pondered and documented our lesson plans for GirlTalk 2008, a collaborative project SLB does with the Girls, Math & Science Partnership to expose 11-to-15 year-old girls about radio production, teamwork and role models. I've been thinking about the lesson plans for a few months and was especially glad to have a few hours to actually think through the details, organize them in an Excel table, and then revise them based on a careful review as well as reflection from how the project went last year. It's not often that I get a chance to focus on just one thing, let alone to engage in detailed planning and strategy for a project that will not start for another two months (March 29th)! Working through the plans was a pleasure, as was a subsequent meeting we had with the team that will carry this out. In addition to GMSP and SLB, our team this year will include YouthALIVE! (the after-school program involving Allegheny Traditional Academy) and an intern from Washington & Jefferson College (who should herself be a good role model for participants).
After our meeting, Jeff and I headed to Miller African-Centered Academy in the Hill District where we worked with five teenagers to record original rhythms and rap. Our time at Miller is always a pleasure and today was terrific. On entering the school, we were told how much the kids were looking forward to our weekly visit. Our session was outstanding -- we laughed together as the kids learned more about audio editing and production while creating original compositions that ranged from serious reflective pieces to hysterical rhyming descriptions of everyday life. The late Jake Milliones's sister-in-law was one of our adult helpers today and it was a pleasure to meet a relative of this well-regarded former Pittsburgh city councilman and school board president.
I returned to the office to review some guest bookings and bank statements, after which I edited this week's Jazzin' Around program. We've been helping longtime Pittsburgh radio host David Jaye with production and distribution of this jazz magazine program.
I finally arrived home around 8 p.m. to the delight of a package containing "Stumbling on Happiness", a book recommended by longtime listener Craig of Macon, Georgia. This looks like a great analysis of the human condition and I'm looking forward to jumping into it.
After our meeting, Jeff and I headed to Miller African-Centered Academy in the Hill District where we worked with five teenagers to record original rhythms and rap. Our time at Miller is always a pleasure and today was terrific. On entering the school, we were told how much the kids were looking forward to our weekly visit. Our session was outstanding -- we laughed together as the kids learned more about audio editing and production while creating original compositions that ranged from serious reflective pieces to hysterical rhyming descriptions of everyday life. The late Jake Milliones's sister-in-law was one of our adult helpers today and it was a pleasure to meet a relative of this well-regarded former Pittsburgh city councilman and school board president.
I returned to the office to review some guest bookings and bank statements, after which I edited this week's Jazzin' Around program. We've been helping longtime Pittsburgh radio host David Jaye with production and distribution of this jazz magazine program.
I finally arrived home around 8 p.m. to the delight of a package containing "Stumbling on Happiness", a book recommended by longtime listener Craig of Macon, Georgia. This looks like a great analysis of the human condition and I'm looking forward to jumping into it.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Another year with The Carnegies...
We spent part of our day today planning interviews and features spotlighting activities at Carnegie Museum of Art and Carnegie Museum of Natural History. We've worked with these organizations for over 10 years and deepened our relationship considerably when we relocated our studios in 2004.
Planned collaborations for the year ahead include on-air interviews and discussions on "The Scoop on Poop" exhibit (opening this Saturday), green design, the new dinosaur exhibit, the Carnegie Biennial, Mongolian calligraphy, Lowry Burgess and Powdermill Nature Reserve.
Afterwards, Jeff headed out to Greenfield Elementary School for an afterschool workshop. We tried something new today -- a radio drama -- and the kids had a great time. Jeff just headed home, as Rikki and I finish up providing music to a special event here at the Children's Museum (something we do to help our neighbors). Other accomplishments today included my answering about 25 emails (we really appreciate your patience if it takes us awhile to get back to you) and making arrangements for two cub scout troops to visit our studios next month.
The picture above is from a visit Jeff (right) and I made to the WNJR studios last week at Washington & Jefferson College. We'll try to add more pictures as we become better bloggers.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
A day in the life...
This is a new blog and in it we'll be talking alot about what happens behind the scenes. I hope that all of us at SLB will contribute -- Jeff, Rikki and me.
Our days at SLB are filled with variety. Because we're a small organization, we all pitch in as needed. Sometimes I feel a need to do something specific and tangible. The engineer in me often manifests itself when I feel this way, so I spent alot of time in the studio today.
First I re-configured our AKG WMS 4000 wireless systems. These systems allow us to place wireless microphones or mixers virtually anywhere in the 40,000 square-foot Children's Museum. The changes I made today simplify the use of this equipment so we can deploy it more quickly when the mood strikes.
Along the way, I sorted through some of our other technical equipment and made some strides in organizing our microphones, cables, adapters and the like. We keep an incredible variety of equipment onsite because we do so many different things. Panel discussions require certain types of mics and stands, live musicians require specific mics and cables in order to sound their best, and the workshops we do require a variety of digital recorders, mixers and other teaching aids. As a result, we have a remarkable inventory of gear. The cable alone is challenging -- we deal with balanced audio, unbalanced audio, mono audio, stereo audio, digital audio, composite video, computer, Ethernet and telephone cables daily, all of which have a myriad of potential plugs and jacks they may be connected to. I tried some new organization strategies -- we'll see how long they last this time around :).
Finally, I tested some theories about how our existing Klotz Digital studio control board could be used to make automatic "scoped airchecks" (recordings that focus on things that happen only when mics are live). While we'll continue to do full program recordings, these "scoped airchecks" will lead to new SLB services -- (1) providing short clips of memorable calls an interviews that are easier to navigate than our full shows and (2) allowing listener downloads of puzzles, games, calls and portions of the recorded music we play in a way that respects copyrights. I had some initial success and we hope to have this implemented soon.
While in the studio enjoying getting my hands dirty, I saw a curious face outside of the glass. Ty (about 4 years of age) and his brother Ian (2) were looking inside of the studio with their mom. I gladly took a break and opened the door. While Ian looked on with curiosity, Ty experimented with our alphabet-controlled sound-effects demonstrator and had a great time. I was delighted to learn that his family already listens to SLB regularly as well as Zombo's Record Party, a wonderful eclectic program heard Fridays on WRCT. Ty's mom expressed a great passion for radio that is creative, original and "human". While we have every confidence in our SLB mission (which indeed embodies these principles), it is always wonderful to have a member of our community validate and appreciate our work. Visiting with Ty's family reminded me of how important it is to me to make sure our studio is open for demonstrations whenever possible.
Jeff (who had been working on guest bookings and CD production) and I then headed out to do a workshop at Lincoln Elementary School, Pittsburgh Public Schools, during which we listened to a montage SLB produced based on recordings made last week in which these 4th Graders expressed "What Martin Luther King Means To Me". After discussing the montage, we made new recordings on the theme of "Someone I Love" and also recorded a rap about fast food and a few gospel songs.
I arrived back at our offices around 6:30 p.m., picked up Rikki (who had been doing some administrative work) and headed home. I promised myself I'd get our new blog started today and now will turn to finish reading "Resurrecting Allegheny City" by Lisa Miles, who joins us this Saturday at 9 a.m.
Our days at SLB are filled with variety. Because we're a small organization, we all pitch in as needed. Sometimes I feel a need to do something specific and tangible. The engineer in me often manifests itself when I feel this way, so I spent alot of time in the studio today.
First I re-configured our AKG WMS 4000 wireless systems. These systems allow us to place wireless microphones or mixers virtually anywhere in the 40,000 square-foot Children's Museum. The changes I made today simplify the use of this equipment so we can deploy it more quickly when the mood strikes.
Along the way, I sorted through some of our other technical equipment and made some strides in organizing our microphones, cables, adapters and the like. We keep an incredible variety of equipment onsite because we do so many different things. Panel discussions require certain types of mics and stands, live musicians require specific mics and cables in order to sound their best, and the workshops we do require a variety of digital recorders, mixers and other teaching aids. As a result, we have a remarkable inventory of gear. The cable alone is challenging -- we deal with balanced audio, unbalanced audio, mono audio, stereo audio, digital audio, composite video, computer, Ethernet and telephone cables daily, all of which have a myriad of potential plugs and jacks they may be connected to. I tried some new organization strategies -- we'll see how long they last this time around :).
Finally, I tested some theories about how our existing Klotz Digital studio control board could be used to make automatic "scoped airchecks" (recordings that focus on things that happen only when mics are live). While we'll continue to do full program recordings, these "scoped airchecks" will lead to new SLB services -- (1) providing short clips of memorable calls an interviews that are easier to navigate than our full shows and (2) allowing listener downloads of puzzles, games, calls and portions of the recorded music we play in a way that respects copyrights. I had some initial success and we hope to have this implemented soon.
While in the studio enjoying getting my hands dirty, I saw a curious face outside of the glass. Ty (about 4 years of age) and his brother Ian (2) were looking inside of the studio with their mom. I gladly took a break and opened the door. While Ian looked on with curiosity, Ty experimented with our alphabet-controlled sound-effects demonstrator and had a great time. I was delighted to learn that his family already listens to SLB regularly as well as Zombo's Record Party, a wonderful eclectic program heard Fridays on WRCT. Ty's mom expressed a great passion for radio that is creative, original and "human". While we have every confidence in our SLB mission (which indeed embodies these principles), it is always wonderful to have a member of our community validate and appreciate our work. Visiting with Ty's family reminded me of how important it is to me to make sure our studio is open for demonstrations whenever possible.
Jeff (who had been working on guest bookings and CD production) and I then headed out to do a workshop at Lincoln Elementary School, Pittsburgh Public Schools, during which we listened to a montage SLB produced based on recordings made last week in which these 4th Graders expressed "What Martin Luther King Means To Me". After discussing the montage, we made new recordings on the theme of "Someone I Love" and also recorded a rap about fast food and a few gospel songs.
I arrived back at our offices around 6:30 p.m., picked up Rikki (who had been doing some administrative work) and headed home. I promised myself I'd get our new blog started today and now will turn to finish reading "Resurrecting Allegheny City" by Lisa Miles, who joins us this Saturday at 9 a.m.
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