WNUR
Encyclopedia
WNUR-FM is a 7200 watt radio station
based in Evanston, Illinois
that broadcasts to Chicago
and its northern suburbs. Northwestern University
owns the station's FCC
license.
Between 1982 and 1995, WNUR's slogan had been "The New Music FM."
WNUR celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2000 with a reunion and special programming.
In March 2007, WNUR began broadcasting from new studios in John J. Louis Hall on Northwestern's Evanston Campus.
.
Other current programming includes news, Continental Drift, Streetbeat, folk, WNUR Jazz Show, Hip-Hop, WNUR Rock Show, Classical & Beyond, and This is Hell
.
The WNUR Rock Show is broadcast on 89.3 FM in Chicago, its northern suburbs, and via the internet. The DJs are Northwestern University
students who complete two quarters of apprenticeship and attend one academic year of weekly meetings to learn about the development of underground and experimental rock
in Chicago and around the world. The Rock Show's mission is to provide a medium for otherwise unheard music through the airwaves of Chicago and on the Internet. The Rock Show specializes in independent, experimental and underground music. Its content features music from Chicago, across the country, and around the world. Rock DJs play No Wave
, Punk
, Musique concrète
, Post-Punk
, Noise
, Noise rock
, and anything else that attempts to expand the boundaries of music. Notable Alumni include Steve Albini
and the Arcade Fire's William Butler
.
The WNUR Jazz Show is broadcast on 89.3 FM in Chicago, in the northern suburbs of Evanston on the Northwestern campus, and streaming via the internet. The DJs are community DJs and Northwestern University students and alumni who complete one quarter of apprenticeship. The Jazz Show's mission is to provide a medium for otherwise unheard music through the airwaves of Chicago and on the Internet, while focusing on various forms of improvised music. The Jazz Show specializes in independent, experimental and underground music, and emphasizes new and local releases. Its content features music from Chicago, across the country, and around the world. Jazz DJs play Free Jazz
, free improvisation
, noise
, and anything else that attempts to expand the boundaries of music. The WNUR Jazz Show is one of the few radio and streaming internet sources for some of the aforementioned styles of music.
, baseball
, and men's basketball
. Since the mid-1990s, WNUR has been the exclusive carrier of Northwestern Wildcats
women's basketball
. In addition, WNUR often covers Wildcats women's lacrosse
and softball
.
WNUR Sports is a distinct entity that operates on its own budget, separate from the WNUR operating budget. This allows the sports department further independence, and the opportunity to cover more events than would be otherwise available. For example, WNUR Sports has served as the exclusive carrier of Northwestern men's basketball for several tournaments that flagship WGN
was unable to cover, including the 2006 San Juan Shootout hosted by the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez
and the 2005 BCA Invitational at the University of Wyoming
. WNUR Sports is also the only Northwestern radio outlet with sideline reports at NU football games.
WNUR Sports hosts a weekly call-in show every Sunday at 8:00PM known as The SportsVoice. The SportsVoice is the only call-in show dedicated to Northwestern athletics. As with all WNUR Sports programming, it is hosted and produced entirely by students.
WNUR Sports has carried every Northwestern football
game since at least 1995, and the last seven NCAA women's lacrosse
championship games.
, and DJ Snuggles. Other alumni include the suits behind Drag City
and Carpark Records
, and members of many bands including OK Go
, The Effigies
, Arcade Fire, Town and Country
, Chavez
, Volcano!
and the No Doctors
. Famous house DJs Derrick Carter
and Mark Farina
also held shows on WNUR in the early nineties. Other well-known alums include Neil Tesser and Steve Albini
, while "This American Life
" host Ira Glass
got his start at the station. Arbitron exec Pierre Bouvard also hails from WNUR. Kevin Beacham, host of Redefinition Radio on Minnesota Public Radio
's independent music station, KCMP
("The Current"), hosted the hip-hop program Time Travel on WNUR during the mid-1990s. Also, in the late 1970s, novelist Eckhard Gerdes
was a DJ, Free Form Producer, and Rock Producer at the station.
Alumni of WNUR Sports include Guy Benson of WIND
, Dave Eanet of WGN
, Glenn Geffner
of the Florida Marlins
, Dave Revsine
of the Big Ten Network, Kevin Blackistone
of Fanhouse.com and ESPN
, and Darren Rovell
of CNBC
.
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
based in Evanston, Illinois
Evanston, Illinois
Evanston is a suburban municipality in Cook County, Illinois 12 miles north of downtown Chicago, bordering Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, and Wilmette to the north, with an estimated population of 74,360 as of 2003. It is one of the North Shore communities that adjoin Lake Michigan...
that broadcasts to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
and its northern suburbs. Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
owns the station's FCC
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
license.
History
Since 1995—the same year the station moved into new facilities in Northwestern's Annie May Swift Hall—WNUR's slogan has been 'Chicago's Sound Experiment.' (The station had previously broadcast from well worn facilities in the basement of the same building).Between 1982 and 1995, WNUR's slogan had been "The New Music FM."
WNUR celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2000 with a reunion and special programming.
In March 2007, WNUR began broadcasting from new studios in John J. Louis Hall on Northwestern's Evanston Campus.
Programming
WNUR has also hosted many innovative radio programs over the years, including Airplay (a weekly program dedicated to local Chicago music), free-form experimental audio collage programming, weekly live radio comedies, and world-premiere live radio dramas written and directed by David MametDavid Mamet
David Alan Mamet is an American playwright, essayist, screenwriter and film director.Best known as a playwright, Mamet won a Pulitzer Prize and received a Tony nomination for Glengarry Glen Ross . He also received a Tony nomination for Speed-the-Plow . As a screenwriter, he received Oscar...
.
Other current programming includes news, Continental Drift, Streetbeat, folk, WNUR Jazz Show, Hip-Hop, WNUR Rock Show, Classical & Beyond, and This is Hell
This is Hell (radio)
This is Hell is a weekly Saturday morning four hour radio show hosted by Chuck Mertz on WNUR-FM in Evanston, Chicago. It has been broadcasting regularly since 1998...
.
The WNUR Rock Show is broadcast on 89.3 FM in Chicago, its northern suburbs, and via the internet. The DJs are Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
students who complete two quarters of apprenticeship and attend one academic year of weekly meetings to learn about the development of underground and experimental rock
Experimental rock
Experimental rock or avant-garde rock is a type of music based on rock which experiments with the basic elements of the genre, or which pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique....
in Chicago and around the world. The Rock Show's mission is to provide a medium for otherwise unheard music through the airwaves of Chicago and on the Internet. The Rock Show specializes in independent, experimental and underground music. Its content features music from Chicago, across the country, and around the world. Rock DJs play No Wave
No Wave
No Wave was a short-lived but influential underground music, film, performance art, video, and contemporary art scene that had its beginnings during the mid-1970s in New York City. The term No Wave is in part satirical word play rejecting the commercial elements of the then-popular New Wave genre...
, Punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
, Musique concrète
Musique concrète
Musique concrète is a form of electroacoustic music that utilises acousmatic sound as a compositional resource. The compositional material is not restricted to the inclusion of sounds derived from musical instruments or voices, nor to elements traditionally thought of as "musical"...
, Post-Punk
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
, Noise
Noise
In common use, the word noise means any unwanted sound. In both analog and digital electronics, noise is random unwanted perturbation to a wanted signal; it is called noise as a generalisation of the acoustic noise heard when listening to a weak radio transmission with significant electrical noise...
, Noise rock
Noise rock
Noise rock describes a style of post-punk rock music that became prominent in the 1980s. Noise rock makes use of the traditional instrumentation and iconography of rock, but incorporates atonality and especially dissonance, and also frequently discards usual songwriting conventions.-Style:Noise...
, and anything else that attempts to expand the boundaries of music. Notable Alumni include Steve Albini
Steve Albini
Steven Frank Albini is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, audio engineer and music journalist. He was a member of Big Black, Rapeman, and Flour, and is currently a member of Shellac...
and the Arcade Fire's William Butler
William Butler
William Butler may refer to:* William Butler , American Revolutionary War soldier from Pennsylvania, one of five Butler brothers in the war...
.
The WNUR Jazz Show is broadcast on 89.3 FM in Chicago, in the northern suburbs of Evanston on the Northwestern campus, and streaming via the internet. The DJs are community DJs and Northwestern University students and alumni who complete one quarter of apprenticeship. The Jazz Show's mission is to provide a medium for otherwise unheard music through the airwaves of Chicago and on the Internet, while focusing on various forms of improvised music. The Jazz Show specializes in independent, experimental and underground music, and emphasizes new and local releases. Its content features music from Chicago, across the country, and around the world. Jazz DJs play Free Jazz
Free jazz
Free jazz is an approach to jazz music that was first developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Though the music produced by free jazz pioneers varied widely, the common feature was a dissatisfaction with the limitations of bebop, hard bop, and modal jazz, which had developed in the 1940s and 1950s...
, free improvisation
Free improvisation
Free improvisation or free music is improvised music without any rules beyond the logic or inclination of the musician involved. The term can refer to both a technique and as a recognizable genre in its own right....
, noise
Noise
In common use, the word noise means any unwanted sound. In both analog and digital electronics, noise is random unwanted perturbation to a wanted signal; it is called noise as a generalisation of the acoustic noise heard when listening to a weak radio transmission with significant electrical noise...
, and anything else that attempts to expand the boundaries of music. The WNUR Jazz Show is one of the few radio and streaming internet sources for some of the aforementioned styles of music.
Sports
Sports programming is another unique element of WNUR. For decades, WNUR Sports has carried Northwestern footballNorthwestern Wildcats football
The Northwestern Wildcats football team, representing Northwestern University, is a NCAA Division I team and member of the Big Ten Conference, with evidence of organization in 1876...
, baseball
College baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. Compared to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a less significant contribution to cultivating professional players, as the minor leagues primarily...
, and men's basketball
College basketball
College basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....
. Since the mid-1990s, WNUR has been the exclusive carrier of Northwestern Wildcats
Northwestern Wildcats
The Northwestern Wildcats are the athletic teams that represent Northwestern University, a founding member of the Big Ten Conference and the only private university in the conference. Northwestern has eight men's and eleven women's Division I sports teams. The mascot is Willie the Wildcat...
women's basketball
Women's basketball
Women's basketball is one of the few women's sports that developed in tandem with its men's counterpart. It became popular, spreading from the east coast of the United States to the west coast , in large part via women's colleges...
. In addition, WNUR often covers Wildcats women's lacrosse
Northwestern Wildcats women's lacrosse
The Northwestern Wildcats Women's Lacrosse Team is a NCAA Division I college lacrosse team representing Northwestern University as part of the American Lacrosse Conference. The team began competition at the varsity level in 1982, operated as a club sport from 1993 to 2001, and resumed play at the...
and softball
College softball
College softball is softball as played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education, predominantly in the United States. College softball is normally played by women at the intercollegiate level, whereas college baseball is normally played by men.As with other intercollegiate...
.
WNUR Sports is a distinct entity that operates on its own budget, separate from the WNUR operating budget. This allows the sports department further independence, and the opportunity to cover more events than would be otherwise available. For example, WNUR Sports has served as the exclusive carrier of Northwestern men's basketball for several tournaments that flagship WGN
WGN (AM)
WGN is a radio station in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It is the only radio station owned by the Tribune Company, which also owns the flagship television station WGN-TV, the Chicago Tribune newspaper and Chicago magazine locally. WGN's transmitter is located in Elk Grove Village, Illinois...
was unable to cover, including the 2006 San Juan Shootout hosted by the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez
University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez
The University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez or Recinto Universitario de Mayagüez in Spanish , is a land-grant, sea-grant, space-grant state university located in the city of Mayagüez, Puerto Rico...
and the 2005 BCA Invitational at the University of Wyoming
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming is a land-grant university located in Laramie, Wyoming, situated on Wyoming's high Laramie Plains, at an elevation of 7,200 feet , between the Laramie and Snowy Range mountains. It is known as UW to people close to the university...
. WNUR Sports is also the only Northwestern radio outlet with sideline reports at NU football games.
WNUR Sports hosts a weekly call-in show every Sunday at 8:00PM known as The SportsVoice. The SportsVoice is the only call-in show dedicated to Northwestern athletics. As with all WNUR Sports programming, it is hosted and produced entirely by students.
WNUR Sports has carried every Northwestern football
Northwestern Wildcats football
The Northwestern Wildcats football team, representing Northwestern University, is a NCAA Division I team and member of the Big Ten Conference, with evidence of organization in 1876...
game since at least 1995, and the last seven NCAA women's lacrosse
NCAA Women's Lacrosse Championship
The annual NCAA Women's Lacrosse Championship tournament determines the top women's lacrosse team in the NCAA Division I, Division II, and Division III....
championship games.
Alumni
DJ's from WNUR have occasionally gone on to produce their own music. Alumni include music critic and sometimes musician John CorbettJohn Corbett (writer)
John Corbett is a writer, musician, radio host, teacher, record producer, concert promoter, and gallery owner based in Chicago. He is best known among musicians and music fans as a champion of free jazz and free improvisation. In recent years he has become known in the visual art world as well...
, and DJ Snuggles. Other alumni include the suits behind Drag City
Drag City (record label)
Drag City is a Chicago-based independent record label. It was established with a Royal Trux release in 1990 in Chicago, Illinois by Dan Koretzky and Dan Osborn.Drag City specializes in experimental indie rock acts...
and Carpark Records
Carpark Records
Carpark Records is an American independent record label based in Washington, D.C. .-Signed artists:* 242.pilots* Beach House* Cloud Nothings* Lesser Gonzalez Alvarez* Belong* Casino Versus Japan* Class Actress...
, and members of many bands including OK Go
OK Go
OK Go is a rock band originally from Chicago, Illinois, USA, now residing in Los Angeles, California, USA. The band is composed of Damian Kulash , Tim Nordwind , Dan Konopka and Andy Ross , who joined them in 2005, replacing Andy Duncan...
, The Effigies
The Effigies
The Effigies is an early post-hardcore group from Chicago. The band, first formed in 1980, was active for approximately a decade, undergoing multiple personnel changes, with frontman John Kezdy the only constant, before disbanding in 1990 . The band released 5 LPs and several EPs, most on...
, Arcade Fire, Town and Country
Town & Country (band)
Town & Country was an American minimalist quartet based in Chicago.Members were:*Ben Vida: Guitar/Trumpet...
, Chavez
Chávez
Chávez or Chavez may refer to:*Hugo Chávez, current president of Venezuela*Chávez *Colegio César Chávez, a college named in honor of labor leader César Chávez*Chavez , an indie rock band in New York in the 1990s...
, Volcano!
Volcano!
For the Choose Your Own Adventure book, see Volcano! .volcano! is a three-piece rock band from Chicago, Illinois that draw on influences ranging from Classic rock, Post-punk, Free Jazz and Noise Rock.-History:...
and the No Doctors
No Doctors
No Doctors was an American rock and roll band based out of California's San Francisco Bay Area. Their music drew from a wide range of styles and traditions, most prominently noise, punk, blues, metal and jazz. Members included guitarist Elvis S. deMorrow, Chauncey Chaumpers on guitar, Mr. Brians on...
. Famous house DJs Derrick Carter
Derrick Carter
Derrick Carter is an American house producer and DJ from Chicago, Illinois. He is regarded as one of the best underground house key players currently active and is particularly popular in Europe.-Biography:...
and Mark Farina
Mark Farina
Mark Farina is a disc jockey and musician, known for his Chicago house, acid jazz and downtempo works. Notable releases include Mood and the Mushroom Jazz series , and recently known also from house compilations El Divinio...
also held shows on WNUR in the early nineties. Other well-known alums include Neil Tesser and Steve Albini
Steve Albini
Steven Frank Albini is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, audio engineer and music journalist. He was a member of Big Black, Rapeman, and Flour, and is currently a member of Shellac...
, while "This American Life
This American Life
This American Life is a weekly hour-long radio program produced by WBEZ and hosted by Ira Glass. It is distributed by Public Radio International on PRI affiliate stations and is also available as a free weekly podcast. Primarily a journalistic non-fiction program, it has also featured essays,...
" host Ira Glass
Ira Glass
Ira Glass is an American public radio personality, and host and producer of the radio and television show This American Life.- Early life :...
got his start at the station. Arbitron exec Pierre Bouvard also hails from WNUR. Kevin Beacham, host of Redefinition Radio on Minnesota Public Radio
Minnesota Public Radio
Minnesota Public Radio , is the flagship National Public Radio member network for the state of Minnesota. With its three services, News & Information, Classical Music and The Current, MPR operates a 42-station regional radio network in the upper Midwest serving over 8 million people...
's independent music station, KCMP
KCMP
-WCAL:The station began with physics experiments in 1918 when five students and a professor built a small radio transmitter at St. Olaf College. Using a wire antenna strung between the campus chapel and the college's "Old Main" , signals from these experiments were picked up as far away as New...
("The Current"), hosted the hip-hop program Time Travel on WNUR during the mid-1990s. Also, in the late 1970s, novelist Eckhard Gerdes
Eckhard Gerdes
Eckhard Gerdes is an American novelist and editor. He earned his MFA in creative writing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.He is the author of twelve novels:* Projections [1986, Depth Charge Press]...
was a DJ, Free Form Producer, and Rock Producer at the station.
Alumni of WNUR Sports include Guy Benson of WIND
WIND (AM)
WIND "AM 560" is a radio station based in Chicago, Illinois, broadcasting its talk radio format on 560 kHz.Its current owner is Salem Media, a company specializing primarily in Christian radio...
, Dave Eanet of WGN
WGN (AM)
WGN is a radio station in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It is the only radio station owned by the Tribune Company, which also owns the flagship television station WGN-TV, the Chicago Tribune newspaper and Chicago magazine locally. WGN's transmitter is located in Elk Grove Village, Illinois...
, Glenn Geffner
Glenn Geffner
Glenn Geffner, a Miami native, is a radio play-by-play announcer for the Miami Marlins. Geffner joined the Marlins radio broadcast team in 2008, his 12th season in the Major Leagues and his 17th year in professional baseball as a broadcaster and front office executive. Geffner partners with Dave...
of the Florida Marlins
Florida Marlins
The Miami Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1993 as an expansion franchise called the Florida Marlins, the Marlins are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Marlins played their home games at...
, Dave Revsine
Dave Revsine
Dave Revsine , is an American sportscaster, and sports columnist and journalist who currently serves as the lead studio host for the Big Ten Network...
of the Big Ten Network, Kevin Blackistone
Kevin Blackistone
Kevin B. Blackistone is a columnist for Fanhouse.com, also a frequent panelist for ESPN's Around the Horn and on Sundays for Comcast's Redskins Postgame Live. On radio, he appears as a frequent guest cohost on the Sports Reporters on DC's ESPN980.-Career:He was born in Washington, D.C...
of Fanhouse.com and ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
, and Darren Rovell
Darren Rovell
Darren Rovell is a sports business reporter who joined the financial news channel CNBC in 2006.- Education :Rovell graduated from Roslyn High School in Roslyn Heights, NY in 1996....
of CNBC
CNBC
CNBC is a satellite and cable television business news channel in the U.S., owned and operated by NBCUniversal. The network and its international spinoffs cover business headlines and provide live coverage of financial markets. The combined reach of CNBC and its siblings is 390 million viewers...
.