NASHVILLE — With
a seamless segue from a classical rendition of Aaron Copland’s “Hoedown” to its
Americana interpretation, a new player emerged Friday, Sept. 2, in the
Nashville radio market.
WMOT-FM, MTSU’s 100,000-watt professional radio station at
89.5 on the dial, officially changed formats at 11 a.m. Friday from a mix of
classical, jazz and news-talk to Americana music in a ceremony at the Country
Music Hall of Fame’s Ford Theater in downtown Nashville.
The transition makes WMOT-FM the region’s only station
devoted to the unique amalgam of bluegrass, folk, gospel, soul, country and
blues music defined in the music industry as Americana.
A combination of two banjos, two fiddles, a bass, a guitar,
a dulcimer and a dobro ushered in the new format at the launch event by picking
up “Hoedown,” the final classical piece played on the station, in mid-swing and
playing it Americana style during the simulcast on WMOT and http://www.musiccityroots.com.
WMOT-FM, which first went on the air in April 1969, is now
known as “WMOT-FM/Roots Radio 89.5” through a partnership with Music City
Roots, a Nashville-based firm that provides programming for both radio and
television.
“It helps to extend, promote and advance the Americana genre
and will give valuable air time to those various, vibrant artists, many of whom
live and work in Nashville,” said MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee.
Ken Paulson, dean of the College of Media and Entertainment,
added that the partnership will be equally beneficial to the university
community.
“Our goals were to serve a wide audience, give our students
more professional opportunities, reflect what we teach within the four walls of
our College of Media and Entertainment and to tap the talents of our
music-savvy faculty,” said Paulson.
WMOT’s listening area extends as far north as Bowling Green,
Kentucky, and south to the Alabama border. The station will remain the flagship
for Blue Raider Athletics and will continue to air “MTSU On the Record,” a
30-minute public affairs interview program highlighting the university
community, as well as regular local and national news updates.
In a nod to its tradition of jazz programming, the MTSU Jazz
Network also was launched on WMOT’s secondary FM signals, 104.9 in Brentwood
and 92.3 in Murfreesboro, as well as the station’s HD channel.
“Through our unique partnership with Music City Roots, we
are able to bring the sound of Nashville’s heritage to our listeners, continue
great jazz programming on our secondary channels and, most importantly,
continue to mentor and train students at MTSU for careers in journalism, the
recording industry, radio, television and beyond,” said Val Hoeppner, executive
director of MTSU’s Center for Innovation in Media.
With Americana artists such as Jim Lauderdale, Will Hoge,
Suzy Bogguss and Mike Farris jamming onstage, the moment was an emotional one
for aficionados who have promoted the music they love for years.
Jed Hilly, executive director of the Americana Music
Association, praised Music City Roots founders John Walker and Todd Mayo for
maintaining the integrity of the music and giving its artists a home.
“I was ready for the corporate monstrosities to buy you out
and eliminate Music City Roots,” said Hilly. “I thought that would happen. You
did not let that happen.”
For programming information, go to http://www.wmot.org or http://www.musiccityroots.com.
To learn more, contact Hoeppner at 615-898-2337 or val.hoeppner@mtsu.edu or Music City Roots at 615-669-1627 or info@musiccityroots.com.
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