
How can one possibly celebrate all that is good about 50 years of community service in one reflection? Throughout this year I have tried to highlight many of the individuals, fun events, memories and projects your friends at WXXI have experienced through the years, all in service to you, our faithful listeners. But through it all, the constant has been the MUSIC – 24/7 “classical” music! Yes, the definition of “classical” has changed through the years, just as our ears have changed the way we hear classical music – through the eyes of our personal experience and the times in which we live.

WXXI kicked off the 50th anniversary celebration in March 2024 with Kearstin Piper Brown and Friends from the Black Student Union, a special concert event at Asbury First UMC that drew over 700 guests. Audiences were treated to music of Mozart, Hailstork, Bach, Saint-Saëns, and Boykin, just weeks before Kearstin made her Metropolitan Opera debut.
On April 8, 2024 WXXI Classical provided a 2½ hour curated playlist of uninterrupted music about light, darkness and the heavens for listeners to enjoy while watching the total Solar Eclipse. Although many of us in the Rochester area were disappointed by the weather, many listeners responded with how much they enjoyed the music that provided the soundtrack for this historic event.

In September 2024 WXXI welcomed Suzanne Bona, host and executive producer of Sunday Baroque, to our year-long 50th anniversary celebration. Suzanne performed a free concert for nearly 400 guests, featuring works by J.S. Bach, Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, John Rutter and the ever-popular Claude Bolling Suite for Flute and Jazz Piano Trio, with musicians from the Eastman School of Music. Special thanks to donor Terry Chrzan whose financial support made this concert possible.
Throughout the year “WXXI Classical Presents” hosted five film screenings and discussions at The Little Theatre.
In March: the exciting new documentary MAESTRA, about five incredible women from around the world, boldly breaking glass ceilings in the male-dominated world of orchestral conducting.
In April: an encore presentation of Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus, celebrating the swan song of one of the world’s greatest musicians, shortly after his passing.
In August we partnered with the Greater Rochester Choral Consortium (GRCC) to present Choral Singing in America, a documentary film about the power of singing in community,
In December the new film MARIA staring Angelina Jolie as Maria Callas which told the tumultuous, beautiful and tragic story of the life of the world’s greatest female opera singer, relived and reimagined during her final days in 1970s Paris.
And most recently Amadeus, in the new 4k restoration of the original theatrical cut, which captivated the sold-out crowd of more than 270 viewers at The Little.
Earlier I stated that the constant through the years has been the MUSIC. But there are three major life events in our history that prompted WXXI Classical to ponder and consider how we present classical music and our mission to serve our listeners.
I will never forget Jan 28, 1986 when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after launching from Cape Canaveral, and Sep 11, 2001 when terrorists hijacked four commercial planes, crashing them into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania. In both cases, WXXI staff surrounded TVs, glued to the tragic events that had just happened. WXXI/NPR News on AM1370 immediately interrupted regular programming to cover the events of the day, and Classical had to decide whether to go to news coverage or maintain the music. In both cases, after a brief switch to events coverage to keep our listeners informed, Classical quickly returned to the comforting and reflective music that listeners needed. The third event was COVID-19, a time when the world shut down and everyone was isolated – really isolated! WXXI Classical knew immediately that our mission couldn’t be clearer – keep presenting the music that was so desperately needed to maintain some semblance of normalcy and comfort during such tragic and “unprecedented” times. Despite not knowing how this could work, WXXI Classical hosts continued to come into a virtually empty building, masked and distanced, bringing listeners the classical music they craved, along with that familiar connection and updates from the community.
“Classical music” has changed! It is alive and well with lovers of all ages. The way we hear classical music has changed, and life has changed all of us. WXXI Classical’s response to this change has been to grow and evolve to reflect the world in which we live and respond to listeners who are demanding more from their classical public media service. From the heritages and identities of the musicians, to the technology and the platforms upon which we listen, it’s all about the music! Good, classical music! The music that you and I love, and the station that we are willing to support to keep it available to everyone.