Plaza Mayor De Madrid, Spain (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
Many thanks to SWAA contributor, Frank, for this recording of Radio Exterior de Espana.
Recorded in Europe on November 08, 2013, on 9,665 kHz, starting at 19:00 UTC.
Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
Sydney Opera House (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
Many thanks to SWAA contributor, Frank, for this recording of Radio Australia's English language service.
Recorded in Europe on November 10, 2013, on 12,085 kHz, starting at 13:00 UTC.
Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
Marion Webster
If you’ve never heard Marion’s Attic on WBCQ, you don’t know what you’ve been missing–especially if you love early music recordings. Marion’s Attic describes the show as:
“[A] unique radio program, broadcasted on WBCQ, The Planet, [7.49] MHz (Shortwave Radio) every Sunday at 5 PM Eastern time. Hosted by Marion Webster & Kristina, and with occasional special guests.”
“Marion’s Attic is an eclectic radio program which plays original cylinder and disc records from the late 1890’s to the mid 1930’s. Having a library containing thousands of standard size cylinder records, dozens of 5 inch Concert Cylinders and an unknown amount of 78’s allows us to share unusual and forgotten music that you cannot hear anywhere else. What makes this special radio program unique is I play original records on the original phonographs when possible; many of which are over 100 years old. The theme varies from week to week; a show may feature popular songs from the early 1900’s one week, wild dance music from the roaring 20’s the next week.”
Marion’s Attic has been on WBCQ since September 21st, 1999 and is certainly one of their most popular shows. It’s quirky and authentic. I love it.
Mary tells us that each episode is recorded in her attic using simple recording equipment and original phonographs including:
Yesterday afternoon, at 16:59 EST (21:59 UTC), I tuned toMarion’s Attic on 7,490 kHz and started recording. You’ll hear about one minute of WBCQ’s interval signal and station ID, then straight into Marion’s Attic. Click here to download the show as an MP3 or simply listen via the embedded player below:
If you missed Marion’s Attic yesterday, you can catch it again tonight on WBCQ–check out the full broadcast schedule below:
WBCQ is easily heard in North, Central and South America–also in Europe.
Marion and Kristine often give shout outs to their listeners. You can contact them at marionweb@aol.com or:
Marion’s Attic
P.O. Box 583
Coventry, CT 06238
Havana, Cuba (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
For your listening pleasure: a recording of the Cuban station, Radio Progreso.
Recorded October 31, 2013, on 4,765 kHz, starting around 02:20 UTC.
Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
Many thanks to SWAA contributor, Voice of IndonesiaFrank, for this recording of The Voice of Indonesia English and French language services.
Recorded October 27, 2013, on 9,526 kHz, starting at 19:00 UTC.
Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
For your listening pleasure: Almost two hours of the Sultanate of Oman Radio, recorded on October 24, 2013, starting around 20:10 UTC on 15,140 kHz.
(Source: Wikimedia Commons)
For your listening pleasure: More than two hours of the Voice of Greece, recorded on October 10, 2013, starting around 03:15 UTC on 9,420 kHz.
You will note noise in the first hour of this broadcast coming from an unknown source about 20 kHz above VOG. Much of this noise was mitigated using an AM sync lock on the lower side band. Without sync, the audio was almost inaudible; fortunately, most of the noise was in the upper side band.
Click here to download an MP3 of the recording, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
Wolverine Radio's SSTV eQSL transmitted at the end of this broadcast.
For your listening pleasure: 1 hour and 44 minutes of pirate radio station, Wolverine Radio–recorded Saturday, October 12, 2013 starting around 1:15 UTC.
Wolverine was broadcasting on 6.945 MHz in the upper side band. Typical of Wolverine, lots of music variety which spans the decades–staring in the 30s and 40s, ending with present day tunes–and no commentary other than station ID throughout.
Wolverine Radio typically has a blowtorch signal which makes for great audio fidelity, especially for an upper side band broadcast. This broadcast was no exception.
Click here to download the recording as an MP3 or simply listen via the embedded player below:
For your listening pleasure: fifty minutes of the pirate radio station, Radio Paisano.
I recorded this broadcast on Oct 11, 2013, starting around 23:30 UTC, on 6,925 kHz AM. This was the first time I had heard Radio Paisanoon the air, though they do seem to broadcast around the same weekend every year.
Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
Alcaravan Radio's transmitter site in rural Columbia
Many thanks to SWAA contributor, Hans de Zeeuw, for this recording of Alcaravan Radio radio in Columbia.
Recorded in Scotland on the 14th of September, 2013, on 5,910 kHz, starting at 4:50 UTC. Hans uses a Microtelecom Perseus receiver (with Studio One software) and a Wellbrook ALA 1530 antenna. He records using VideoPro.
Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
(Image: Wikimedia Commons)
While recording Radio Casablanca Thursday night, I was also fortunate to capture Radio Gallifrey Intergalactic.
Gallifrey started the broadcast with their customary audio sweeps and Dr. Who theme, then straight into the Beatles, “Strawberry Fields Forever.” Brilliant!
[I know my buddy, BJ, will enjoy this combo.]
Radio Gallifrey Intergalactic was on the air for almost 27 minutes with a mix including the Beatles, Bowie, Hendrix, Jefferson Airplane and more.
Click here to download an MP3 recording of the full show, or simply listen via the embedded player below. Enjoy:
Thursday night, I received word from Richard Blaine at Radio Casablanca:
“We plan to be on the air tonight on 6940 kHz AM, starting sometime around 2300 UTC, and running until the plane to Lisbon has departed.”
So at 23:00 Zulu, I started recording…
Though the noise level was particularly high on the lower HF bands, and Casablanca’s signal wasn’t quite as strong as previous nights, I could still enjoy Blaine’s nostalgic mix of WWII era music through the static. What a treat.
You can listen to the full recording via the embedded player above, or simply click here to download the MP3.
On occasion, I hear the Cuban numbers stationHM01 on 5,855 kHz on weekday mornings.
It seems that many of the mornings as I listen, I hear HM01 making mistakes or at least experiencing “technical difficulties” (click here for a recent case in point).
Though I don’t often record HM01, I did record it on the morning of September 20, 2013––and, yet again, I heard what seemed to be HM01 tripping over its own tongue.
Instead of the broadcast starting with numbers to identify the transmission, then implementing intermittent RDFT data bursts as per usual, this broadcast begins in the middle of a data burst, then shuffles awkwardly into a “normal” broadcast. I imagine an operative in the field scratching his or herhead…
But hear this for yourself. Either click here to download an MP3 of the recording, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
Sunday at 00:00-02:00 UTC, I tuned to 7,375 kHz to listen to The Mighty KBC. This was the first time I tuned to their winter frequency this season and wasn’t sure how strong their signal would be on a relatively noisy night on the bands.
KBC’s signal was blowtorch strength into North America. It could have been easily received on even the most simple of portable radios.
As we’ve come to expect, the Mighty KBC’s Giant Jukebox of music has a lot of rock-n-roll and Euro-pop variety, spanning the decades; DJ, “Uncle Eric” knows how to entertain and spin the tunes! Uncle Eric includes Kim Elliott’s digital text modes in this broadcast–if you missed the live broadcast, you can even decode the messages from the recording below.
Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below. Enjoy:
The following is a recording of the Voice of Greece (9,420 kHz) made on July 30, 2013, beginning around 20:11 UTC. Enjoy:
Earlier this week, I noted that Cuban medium wave station, Radio Progreso, was to begin broadcasting on 4,765 kHz shortwave, beginning October 1st at 00:30 UTC.
I listened between 00:30 and 2:30 UTC on Oct 1st, but heard nothing other than the weak carrier from (possibly) Radio Emissora De Educao Rural. However, the following evening at 01:00 UTC (October 2nd) I did hear a strong signal from Radio Progreso.
For your listening pleasure: the recording I made of Radio Progreso on October 2, 2013, starting around 01:00 UTC. Click here to download the recording as an MP3 or simply listen via the embedded player below:
Many thanks to SWAA contributor, Hans de Zeeuw, for this short recording of The Voice of Indonesia radio in English.
Recorded in Scotland on the 21st of January, 2013, on 9,526 kHz, starting at 17:31 UTC. Hans uses a Microtelecom Perseus receiver and a Wellbrook ALA 1530 antenna.
Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
Sunday afternoon--one week ago--I was at home to catch a bit of the GAA finals via RTÉ on 17,725 kHz, starting around 15:00 UTC.
I enjoy hearing sporting events broadcast over shortwave–perhaps it’s my imagination filling in the gaps from the live coverage or the washy sound of the crowds roaring. Regardless, RTÉ has a long-standing track record of broadcasting the GAA finals on every medium possible.
As I listened to the live broadcast, Sunday, I read Norman Freeman’s account of listening to the GAA finals from a ship in the Indian Ocean, back in 1956. He writes:
“Almost 50 years ago, listening to the All-Ireland by radio was uncertain and frustrating.
In 1956, RTÉ knew how much the All-Ireland meant to the Irish diaspora. Arrangements were made with the authorities in the then French Congo to have the match rebroadcast the following evening, on the powerful short-wave transmitter in Brazzaville.
The time and frequencies were published in the Irish newspapers. This information was sent by letter to the Irish on oil rigs off the coast of Borneo, to round-the-year painters on Brooklyn Bridge, and to missionaries within sight of Mount Kilimanjaro.
I had noted the time and frequencies before I was sent out to Mumbai to join my first ship, the Amra, as second radio officer. The hurling final was between two giants, Cork and Wexford.”
[Continue reading...]
While Freeman doesn’t miss the uncertainty and fickle nature of shortwave radio as the messenger of his favorite sporting event, his look back is certainly nostalgic. After all, Radio Brazzaville transported Freeman and his boss back to Ireland for the length of the game. And to RTÉ’s credit, they continue to broadcast to the Irish diaspora on shortwave radio, if only for this event.
If you would like to hear my recording of the GAA Finals, click here to download the MP3 recording, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
I tuned in Europirate Radio Borderhunter on 15,500 kHz AM, starting around 21:50 UTC on September, 21 2013. For an AM signal out of Europe to make it to the east coast of the US, I was most impressed with Radio Borderhunter's strong signal.
I recorded about forty minutes of the pirate's broadcast before propagation shifted. He then moved down to 6,210 kHz in the 48 meter band, a prime Europirate hangout, to continue his show.
Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
Many thanks to SWAA contributor, Frank, for this recording of IRRS radio in English. Recorded in Europe on the 14th of September, 2013, on 9,510 kHz, starting at 08:00 UTC. This broadcast emanated from the IRRS transmitter in Bucharest, Romania, Europe, at a power of 150 kW. The recording includes, inter alia, UN Radio programme.
Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
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