Hi, Christine:

Melbourne's equivalent of 2MBS, 3MBS, is also more adventurous than the
national broadcaster, but also does not seem to be doing anything in
particular about Bartok.

The origins of 3MBS go back to just after the war, when Brian Cabena, who
eventually became 3MBS's 'convener' (i.e. dictator), broadcast illegally
from his back yard in a Melbourne suburb because of his hatred of the ABC's
classical music policies. My father used to listen to the station
occasionally. I can't remember whether Brian used AM or short wave, since FM
wasn't available then. Closed down, he spent more than 20 years campaigning
for the setting up of 'community' (subscriber) radio stations. If 2MBS was
on the air first, then 3MBS can't have been far behind -- between them they
helped crack the monopoly of large interests on radio in Australia, and led
to the beginnings of FM here.

Brian Cabena was famous for his crabby broadcasting policy during the early
days of 3MBS: after each piece of music, the listener heard only the item
number! You had to subscribe to the station to find out what was being
played. It took concerted efforts of various people to edge Cabena off the
board, and begin a friendlier radio service. Subscription numbers picked up
after that -- about 5000 regular subscribers is the figure I heard.

If only FM had arrived in Australia earlier than 1975! I visited America in
late 1973, and heard how FM had transformed radio there, both in classical
music and popular music. Later, of course, the big companies grabbed all the
FM stations, but for a brief period of about five years, all the music that
is now regarded as 'underground rock' (i.e. not played on Australian radio)
was available throughout America. Specialist stations also proliferated on
FM.

And a Happy Easter to you, too. For me, the main happiness is that the phone
doesn't ring during Easter.
Bruce Gillespie
gandc@...