Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Tom Laskowski, who notes:
Radio Canada International recorded on September 13, 1979.
This 26 minute program starts with a ten minute-long news broadcast followed by a program highlighting Canada's rising bank rate, and a story about anorexia nervosa. The recording was made using a cheap GE portable with indoor antenna.
This was probably recorded around 0100 UT likely on the 49 meter band. (5960 kHz?)
Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Tom Laskowski, who notes:
Another episode of RCI's SWL Digest, this one from October 19, 1981.
This broadcast was recorded in South Bend, IN, USA, on October 19, 1981 starting at 2100 UTC on 15,325 kHz. The receiver used was a Radio Shack DX-302
A poster of RCI's propagation map which was found hanging in the foyer of the RCI Sackville transmitting site. This photo was taken by Thomas Witherspoon in June, 2012; only months before the site was shut down.
Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Tom Laskowski, who notes:
My first contribution of many recordings I have of Radio Canada International's Shortwave Listener's Digest hosted by Ian McFarland.
The first 12 1/2 minutes is Bonsoir Africa. The recording was made using a cheap GE portable. The audio quality isn't great but it's still very nostalgic listening to a program I recorded 34 years ago.
Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Tom Laskowski, who shares the following recordings and notes:
A few snippets from my old shortwave tapes that were too short to upload individually. These were made using a GE portable multi band that had poor selectivity, hence the annoying ute during the BBC clip.
Times of individual clips are:
00:00 - 01:59: 1979, July 19 - RCI, frequency announcements in English and french.
01:59 - 09:51: 1979, July 20 - BBC, newscast, bothered by an annoying utility station.
09:51 - 11:38: 1981, August 28 - VOA, science news item about Voyager 2
11:38 - 14:52: 1981, August 29 - VOA, science news item about Voyager 2
Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Tom Laskowski, who shares this recording of the Voice of America from July 20, 1979 at 0500 UTC on the 31 meter band. Tom notes:
The first 4:30 is from a VOA newscast that aired before the main part of the program. The main recording was presented on the 10th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. I enjoy listening to this every year on the landing anniversary.
Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Tom Laskowski, who sends us his first shortwave recording: HCJB Ecuador.
Tom recorded this broadcast, on 9 MHz starting around 0600 UTC on July 19, 1979 using a GE portable radio. Tom has informed us that he has a number of shortwave recordings on cassette that he will be sharing in the near future. Many thanks, Tom!
SRAA contributor, Brian Smith, writes:
Want to know what shortwave radio sounded like in 1974? This 55-minute recording, recovered from a cassette, was never intended to be anything but "audio notes": I was an 18-year-old shortwave listener who collected QSL cards from international stations, and I was tired of using a pen and a notepad to copy down details of the broadcasts. I wanted an easier way to record what I heard, and my cassette tape recorder seemed like the perfect means to accomplish that goal.
But it wasn't. I soon discovered that it was simpler to just edit my notes as I was jotting them down — not spend time on endless searches for specific information located all over on the tape. To make a long story shorter, I abandoned my "audio notes" plan after a single shortwave recording: This one.
Still, for those who want to experience the feel of sitting at a shortwave radio in the mid-1970s and slowly spinning the dial, this tape delivers. Nothing great in terms of sound quality; I was using a Hallicrafters S-108 that was outdated even at the time. And my recording "technique" involved placing the cassette microphone next to the radio speaker.
Thus, what you'll hear is a grab bag of randomness: Major shortwave broadcasting stations from Canada, Argentina, Spain, Germany and Albania; maritime CW and other utility stations; and even a one-sided conversation involving a mobile phone, apparently located at sea. There are lengthy (even boring) programs, theme songs and interval signals, and brief IDs, one in Morse code from an Italian Navy station and another from a Department of Energy station used to track shipments of nuclear materials. And I can't even identify the station behind every recording, including several Spanish broadcasts (I don't speak the language) and an interview in English with a UFO book author.
The following is a guide, with approximate Windows Media Player starting times, of the signals on this recording. (Incidentally, the CBC recording was from July 11, 1974 — a date I deduced by researching the Major League Baseball scores of the previous day.)
Guide To The Recording
00:00 — CBC (Radio Canada) Northern and Armed Forces Service: News and sports.
07:51 — RAE (Radio Argentina): Sign-off with closing theme
09:14 — Department of Energy station in Belton, Missouri: "This is KRF-265 clear."
09:17 — Interval signal: Radio Spain.
09:40 — New York Radio, WSY-70 (aviation weather broadcast)
10:22 — Unidentified station (Spanish?): Music.
10:51— Unidentified station (English): Historic drama with mention of Vice President John Adams, plus bell-heavy closing theme.
14:12 — Unidentified station (Spanish?): Male announcer, poor signal strength.
14:20 — Unidentified station (Spanish): Theme music and apparent ID, good signal strength.
15:16 — Unidentified station (foreign-speaking, possibly Spanish): Song, "Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep."
17:00 — Deutsche Welle (The Voice of West Germany): Announcement of frequencies, theme song.
17:39 — Unidentified station (English): Interview with the Rev. Barry Downing, author of “The Bible and Flying Saucers.”
24:36 — One side of mobile telephone conversation in SSB, possibly from maritime location.
30:37 — Radio Tirana (Albania): Lengthy economic and geopolitical talk (female announcer); bad audio. Theme and ID at 36:23, sign-off at 55:03.
55:11 — Italian Navy, Rome: “VVV IDR3 (and long tone)” in Morse code.
Two engineers from Radio Cook Islands, photographed during my visit in April, 1993. (Photo: Guy Atkins)
The following is the second recording of Radio Cook Islands by SRAA contributor, Guy Atkins. Click here to read the recording description and original post.
Notes: “Party Time” music request show; weather; local ads; more music.
A view from the driveway entrance to the Radio Cook Islands studio in 1993. Insulators on an antenna (T2FD or multiband dipole) can be seen as dark spots against the cloudy sky. A feedline is also seen rising above the left side of the building. (Photo: Guy Atkins)
SRAA contributor, Guy Atkins, writes:
In 1993 I was fortunate to have the opportunity to visit Rarotonga with my wife, courtesy of a nice award through my company which afforded me an all-expenses-paid trip anywhere we’d like to go.
I chose the South Pacific island of Rarotonga, partly because I wanted to visit Radio Cook Islands after listening to their “island music” on 11760 and 15170 kHz through my teenage years.
During our visit to the island I recorded 90+ minutes of RCI on 630 kHz with a local quality signal using a Grundig Satellit 500 and a Marantz PMD-221 recorder.
Sadly, RCI will likely never be on shortwave again; a fire in the local tele-comm building a few months before my 1993 visit destroyed RCI’s transmitter. I had an amusing exchange with the secretary when I visited; she insisted that their station was still on shortwave. Of COURSE we’re on the air she said, because “the frequencies are published right here in the newspaper!” The engineer and announcer confirmed, though, that the silence on their former frequencies was for real. They indicated they were covering the outer islands just fine with FM translators and had no intention of restarting shortwave.
The programming of Radio Cook Islands is bilingual, and announcers are fluent in both English and Cook Islands Maori. Music selections on RCI encompass all styles, to appeal to many age groups. These recordings was scheduled to include as much local music as possible.
RCI programming includes all the hallmarks of a small, non-professional station: stuck records & tape carts, dead air, poor modulation, and other miscues.
However, that’s part of the flavor of local radio, and these errors are heard throughout this recording. Particularly noticeable is the bassy, over-modulation of the studio announcer during sign-on announcements.
Notes: National anthem & hymn; sign-on announcements & music.
Music; weather; sign-off announcements & national anthem.
Local & regional news; weather; ads; music.
Recording 2 follows in the next post....
SRAA contributor, Richard Langley, writes:
Live one-hour recording of the PCJ Radio International special broadcast celebrating the 70th anniversary of Radio Canada International in English via WRMI on 16 March 2015 beginning at 01:00 UTC on a frequency of 7570 kHz.
The broadcast was received on a Tecsun PL-880 receiver with its built-in telescopic whip antenna in Hanwell (just outside Fredericton), New Brunswick, Canada. Signal quality was generally good.
Shortwave Radio Audio Archive contributor, Richard Langley, has digitized a set of historic off-air recordings documenting the independence of Lithuania through Radio Vilinus.
We will feature Richard's full description and comments in this first post and recording. Subsequent posts will describe each individual recording of the set.
Many thanks to Richard for this archived archived audio:
On 11 March 1990, Lithuania was the first Soviet republic to declare its independence. The Soviet Union issued an ultimatum to the Lithuanian authorities to renounce independence or suffer the consequences.
On 17 March 1990, Lithuania rejected the demand and the Soviet Union responded by applying economic sanctions and occupied parts of Vilnius, the capital city. In January 1991, the Soviets launched a larger scale operation against Lithuania. On 11 January, Soviet military units seized several building in Vilnius and elsewhere. On 12 January, civilians congregated outside some strategically important buildings such as those of the Supreme Council (the Seimas Palace), the Radio and Television Committee, the Vilnius TV Tower, and the main telephone exchange in an attempt to prevent them from falling into the hands of the Soviet military. In the early hours of 13 January, tanks and soldiers attacked the TV tower. Fourteen Lithuanians and one Russian soldier died.
Subsequently, Soviet forces surrounded and entered the Radio and Television Committee building and forced the TV station off the air. Shortly thereafter, a small TV studio in Kaunas was used to resume TV transmissions and put out a call for help. Radio transmissions were also affected. Although Soviet forces were in the vicinity of the Supreme Council building, they retreated instead of attacking. The occupation and military raids continued for several months following the attacks.
Subsequent Lithuanian-Russian negotiations resulted in the signing of a treaty on 31 January. A referendum on independence held on 9 February overwhelmingly supported the full and total independence of Lithuania. Other republics of the Soviet Union declared their independence and following the resignation speech by Mikhail Gorbachev on 25 December, the Soviet Union was dissolved the next day. The last Russian troops left Lithuania on 31 August 1993.
Radio Vilnius, the external service of Lithuanian Radio, transmitted news about events in Lithuania and the other Baltic republics even at the height of the Soviet attacks. The broadcasts were made, in part, using transmitters elsewhere in the Soviet Union. However, there was a temporary interruption in these broadcasts after the occupation of the Radio and TV Centre by Soviet troops early in the morning of 13 January. They resumed on 25 January.
Radio Nederland’s “Media Network” programs of 20 January 1991 and 14 January 1992 featured reports on Radio Vilnius and the Soviet occupation. The sound files of these programs are available on the Web (“Media Network Vintage Vault“).
I have six recordings of Radio Vilnius English Service shortwave broadcasts between March 1990 and January 1991. These were received in Hanwell, New Brunswick, Canada, using a Sony ICF-7600D receiver and supplied wire antenna draped around the listening room.
28 March 1990, 22:00 UTC, 11770 kHz (00m:00s – 00m:55s)
Strong signal. Interval signal (IS) and station identification (ID) but the transmission was cut off in mid-sentence: “This is Radio Vilnius. Hello and welcome to our daily broad” All that could be heard faintly on this frequency then was Radio Liberty in Russian (“Govorit Radio Svoboda”). Initially could hear nothing on Radio Vilnius parallel frequencies until about four minutes into the broadcast when a very faint signal on 12060 kHz could be heard (not recorded).
29 March 1990, 22:00 UTC, 12060 kHz (00m:55s – 02m:04s)
Weak signal. IS, station identification, and first part of “News About Lithuania.” Radio teletype interference. Checked other frequencies.
3 April 1990, 22:00 UTC, 17665 kHz (02m:06s – 30m:02s)
Improved signal. Receiver briefly switched to other frequencies to check quality during the recording. IS, ID, “News About Lithuania,” report on the occupation of the Lithuanian Prosecutor’s Office on Friday night (30 March), music, sports news, “Lithuanian by Radio.”
I snapped this photo of the RCI Sackville transmitter site in June 2012--several months prior to the site's closure. All of the towers seen in the background have since been demolished.
I recently discovered this off air recording of the CBC North Quebec service. This recording was made in North Carolina on October 6, 2012 on 9,625 kHz, starting around 1059 UTC.
This recording includes the North Quebec Service sign on, the TOTH CBC News and about 20 minutes of CBC Montreal's "All In A Weekend."
Sadly, the RCI Sackvillle site has now been completely closed down and all of her towers have been demolished.
For your listening pleasure: beHAVior Night, a shortwave radio show which showcases music from the first four decades of the 20th Century.
This show was recorded on Friday, January 16, 2015, beginning at 2000 UTC on 7495 kHz:
Last week, I received a message from Peter De Groot, who announced a special broadcast of Radio Netherlands Worldwide (RNW).
RNW has been off the air for more than 2.5 years, so we can assume this was not sponsored by RNW.
Though scheduling (and the fact I forgot to start a spectrum recording–!) interfered with my ability to listen to the first broadcast on January 17, I was able to catch the January 18 broadcast at 01:00 UTC on 7,570 kHz. The show was relayed by WRMI.
The broadcast came in so strong, when I heard the interval signal, it instantly transported me back to the days when Hilversum targeted eastern North America. Gave me chill bumps.
I was able to record the entire program but did not include the WRMI station ID before and after the special.
For your listening pleasure, one full hour of Radio Netherlands Worldwide via WRMI in Florida USA–click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below. Enjoy:
Many thanks to Shortwave Radio Audio Archive contributor, Richard Langley, who writes:
[The following is a] recording of the penultimate English broadcast from Radio Berlin International (RBI) and the last broadcast in the particular time slot. It was also the last broadcast of the popular DX program DX-tra.
RBI ceased broadcasting at the end of the day on 2 October 1990, the day before German reunification took place.
In addition to the final episode of DX-tra, the recording features the news (in progress as the recording starts a minute or two after 00:45), Commentary, RBI Press Review, and Spotlight on Sport. There are several “goodbye” songs including “The Final Countdown” by the Swedish hard rock band Europe, and “Goodbye Blue Sky” by Pink Floyd and some announcer goodbye comments like “the voice of the disappearing German Democratic Republic,” “that was it,” and “the last day of the good old GDR.”
The 45-minute recording ends with the familiar RBI interval signal and, at 01:30 UTC, the first part of the German-language transmission, also the last in its time slot.
This recording was made in Hanwell, NB, Canada, with a Sony ICF-7600D receiver and supplied wire antenna draped around Richard’s home office. This recording begins around 0045 UTC, October 2, 1990 on a frequency of 9,730 kHz.
Click here to download this recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
The company rehearses Treasure Island, the second program in The Mercury Theatre on the Air series, presented July 18, 1938 (Source: Wikipedia)
Tuesday morning, I tuned my WWI era BC-348-Q to Global 24 on 9395 kHz. The signal, via WRMI’s transmitter, was quite strong.
At 2:00 UTC, I heard an announcement that The Mercury Theatre on the Air radio play of A Tale of Two Cities was about to begin.
Not wanting to miss an opportunity to record this timeless Dicken’s classic, I quickly switched over to the Elad FDM-S2 SDR to record the broadcast live. Fortunately, I captured the full broadcast and the fidelity is almost as good as a local station.
For your listening pleasure this New Year’s Day, please enjoy A Tale of Two Cities by The Mercury Theatre on the Air courtesy of Global 24:
Many thanks to Shortwave Radio Audio Archive contributor, Dan Robinson, who submits this short recording of Yemen Radio, Aden.
Dan comments:
Yemen was once two countries -- North and South -- with separate shortwave stations in Sanaa, and in Aden. The country united in 1990, but before that for many years the separate capitals were represented on shortwave, with Aden using the 60 meter frequency of 5.060 MHz. It was tough to hear. This recording was made in the 1970's -- you will hear the station ID by a male announcer.
Click here to download this recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
For your listening pleasure: one hour of Pirate Joe.
My good friend–and SWLing Post reader–Mike Hansgen recently apprised me that WHVW’s Pirate Joe show is being relayed on WBCQ here in North America in the afternoons. Last week, July 17, 2014, I recorded Pirate Joe starting at 3:00 PM (EDT)/19:00 UTC. Propagation was not in our favor, so the signal strength is low, but the program is still enjoyable.
Click here to download as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
Azadi square and tower, constructed 1971 (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
Many thanks to Shortwave Radio Audio Archive contributor, Dan Robinson, who submits two recordings of Radio Iran, Tehran.
Dan comments:
Back in the 70's, Radio Iran had an external service, as it still does today, and used the odd frequency of 12.176 mhz which was well heard in North America. Consulting Internet archives, I see an English language program time of 2000 UTC, which sounds about right. The interval signal and sign on are classic examples of old shortwave programming, and this one truly brought Iran right into the living room. The ID: "From the heart of the Middle East, in Iran's capital city, Tehran, the foreign language program department of Radio Iran invites you to listen for the next half hour as we bring you music, news and special features designed to acquaint you with the modern Iran today and to share with you something of the heritage of its fascinating cultural past.
Click on each title to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded players below.
Many thanks to Shortwave Radio Audio Archive contributor, Dan Robinson, who submits recordings of the Falkland Islands Broadcasting Service.
Dan comments:
One of the great rarities for shortwave listeners the world over was, of course, the Falkland Islands Broadcasting Station (FIBS). There was great excitment, I still remember to this day, when FIBS was heard by a well-known DX'er in the western U.S. -- I recall the frequency at the time as being 3.958, which was listed in the the World Radio TV Handbook. Many DX'ers spent many hours seeking out FIBS, and it was only some years later, after the station shifted to a frequency of 2,380 khz that it began to be heard quite widely, though still a challenge. These recordings were made in Washington, DC using a Hammarlund HQ-180A receiver.
If you would like to read a brief history of the FIBS, please click here.
Click on each title to download recordings as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded players below.
The Shortwave Radio Audio Archive (SRAA) is a collection of shortwave radio recordings that you can download or listen to as a podcast. The collection grows every day and includes both historic recordings and current recordings from the shortwave radio spectrum.
The goal of this site is for shortwave radio enthusiast to have a place to store, archive and share their radio recordings with the world.
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