Jim Svejda
Encyclopedia
Jim Svejda is American music commentator and critic on the FM
radio station KUSC
. He is the host of the weekly syndicated classical music
program The Record Shelf, which is broadcast on many NPR
stations, and a local nightly classical program, Classical Music with Jim Svejda, as well as the host of the now-cancelled The Opera Box.
The Record Shelf has been running since 1983, and regularly features items such as interview
s with classical music notables, surveys of different recordings of a classical music piece, monthly critical surveys of recently released recordings, and noted, often rare historical recordings of great performers of the past. Svejda has been praised for his articulate commentaries on these programs. He opens his nightly classical program with the third movement from Piano Quartet No. 1 by Bohuslav Martinu
.
However, Svejda is considered by many to be quite frank and subjective in his opinions. In his published "Record Shelf Guide," Svejda himself describes the book as "an irreverent, selective and highly opinionated recordings guide of the best classical CDs and audiocassettes." He often has viewpoints that might be considered divergent from those of many other music critics.
While admitting that they sometimes have turned out excellent recordings, Svejda has been critical of such illustrious musicians as Vladimir Horowitz
and Arturo Toscanini
, as well as Herbert von Karajan
(whom he has excoriated for his alleged Nazi past) and especially, Nikolaus Harnoncourt
, whom Svejda has called an "incompetent bozo." He tends to favor conductors and musicians that do not follow a printed musical score literally, and in his guide book, The Record Shelf Guide to the Classical Repertoire, often will recommend a controversial recording of a piece (such as Sir Thomas Beecham's 1959 recording of Handel
's Messiah), alongside a more traditional one.
Svejda is also an occasional film critic, with his reviews syndicated on the CBS Radio Network
.
FM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
radio station KUSC
KUSC
KUSC is a listener-supported classical music radio station broadcasting from downtown Los Angeles, California, USA. KUSC is owned and operated by the University of Southern California, which also operates student-run KXSC and San Francisco's classical station KDFC...
. He is the host of the weekly syndicated classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
program The Record Shelf, which is broadcast on many NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
stations, and a local nightly classical program, Classical Music with Jim Svejda, as well as the host of the now-cancelled The Opera Box.
The Record Shelf has been running since 1983, and regularly features items such as interview
Interview
An interview is a conversation between two people where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee.- Interview as a Method for Qualitative Research:"Definition" -...
s with classical music notables, surveys of different recordings of a classical music piece, monthly critical surveys of recently released recordings, and noted, often rare historical recordings of great performers of the past. Svejda has been praised for his articulate commentaries on these programs. He opens his nightly classical program with the third movement from Piano Quartet No. 1 by Bohuslav Martinu
Bohuslav Martinu
Bohuslav Martinů was a prolific Czech composer of modern classical music. He was of Czech and Rumanian ancestry. Martinů wrote six symphonies, 15 operas, 14 ballet scores and a large body of orchestral, chamber, vocal and instrumental works. Martinů became a violinist in the Czech Philharmonic...
.
However, Svejda is considered by many to be quite frank and subjective in his opinions. In his published "Record Shelf Guide," Svejda himself describes the book as "an irreverent, selective and highly opinionated recordings guide of the best classical CDs and audiocassettes." He often has viewpoints that might be considered divergent from those of many other music critics.
While admitting that they sometimes have turned out excellent recordings, Svejda has been critical of such illustrious musicians as Vladimir Horowitz
Vladimir Horowitz
Vladimir Samoylovich Horowitz was a Russian-American classical virtuoso pianist and minor composer. His technique and use of tone color and the excitement of his playing were legendary. He is widely considered one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century.-Life and early...
and Arturo Toscanini
Arturo Toscanini
Arturo Toscanini was an Italian conductor. One of the most acclaimed musicians of the late 19th and 20th century, he was renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orchestral detail and sonority, and his photographic memory...
, as well as Herbert von Karajan
Herbert von Karajan
Herbert von Karajan was an Austrian orchestra and opera conductor. To the wider world he was perhaps most famously associated with the Berlin Philharmonic, of which he was principal conductor for 35 years...
(whom he has excoriated for his alleged Nazi past) and especially, Nikolaus Harnoncourt
Nikolaus Harnoncourt
Nikolaus Harnoncourt is an Austrian conductor, particularly known for his historically informed performances of music from the Classical era and earlier. Starting out as a classical cellist, he founded his own period instrument ensemble in the 1950s, and became a pioneer of the Early Music movement...
, whom Svejda has called an "incompetent bozo." He tends to favor conductors and musicians that do not follow a printed musical score literally, and in his guide book, The Record Shelf Guide to the Classical Repertoire, often will recommend a controversial recording of a piece (such as Sir Thomas Beecham's 1959 recording of Handel
HANDEL
HANDEL was the code-name for the UK's National Attack Warning System in the Cold War. It consisted of a small console consisting of two microphones, lights and gauges. The reason behind this was to provide a back-up if anything failed....
's Messiah), alongside a more traditional one.
Svejda is also an occasional film critic, with his reviews syndicated on the CBS Radio Network
CBS Radio Network
The CBS Radio Network provides news, sports and other programming to more than 1,000 radio stations throughout the United States. The network is owned by CBS Corporation, and operated by CBS Radio ....
.
External links and references
- Jim Svejda. The Record Shelf Guide to the Classical Repertoire, 2nd Edition (Paperback) (1990) ISBN 1 559 58051 8
- Biography on kusc.org
- The Record Shelf