Classical Music on Cleveland Radio

[Santa fe]

It is significant to still have WCLV as there are fewer and fewer stations, even non profits, playing classical music today.
But it wasn't always so. I visited WKYC 1100 to see Jerry G do his afternoon show in the mid 60s and the PD proudly showed me WKYC 105.7 FM and its wall filled with tape decks playing an NBC provided automated classical format 24 7. WJW 104 FM also aired automated classical music at one point as did WERE 98.5. John Carroll's WUJC aired classical and opera at the start in 1969, hosted by a professor who brought in his own records. And the NBC radio network aired classical and opera on weekends, I think on WGAR 1220 or WDOK 1260.
As for classical stations airing other kinds of music, the first station I recall hearing the new so called progressive rock on was WCLV's Perlich's Project weekend show with Martin Perlich, before WMMS or WNCR made it their format.

 

[johnbasalla]

WBWC 88.3 FM at Baldwin-Wallace played classical music on and off for decades. Until rock music took over in 1967-1968, there was a good amount of it. In fact, I did a classical show for short while. From the early 1980s until about 1994, Johann Sebastian Bach music was aired all day during the annual B-W Bach Festival, as a tie-in to that event. At its peak, we had out of town performers, who came to perform in the Bach Festival, interviewed on the air.

 

[skiwest]

There used to be something for everyone on the radio back then - classical, easy listening, middle-of-the-road, rock, jazz, ethnic. Sadly, that is no longer the case.