Voice of Greece - Final Transmission: June 15, 2022

Live off-air recording of the final two hours of the shortwave transmissions of the Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation's (ERT's) Voice of Greece (I Foni tis Elladas) on 15 June 2022 on a frequency of 9420 kHz. Also known as ERA 5, the Voice of Greece broadcast its programs from Avlis about 50 km north-east of Athens using a transmitter with a registered power of 150 kW with an antenna beam of 323° towards western Europe. Avlis had a large transmitting complex with multiple transmitters and antennas but at the end of its service was reduced to just one operational transmitter.

The Voice of Greece continues to be available via Internet streaming and satellite.

The recording, all in Greek, starts with a time check, the beginning of the Voice of Greece interval (tuning) signal with station identification. Then follows two programs. The first program is Fones kai Mousikes tis Ellinikis Kardias (Voices and Sounds of the Greek Heart). It features an interview with singer Natalia Soledad Petsalis from Buenos Aires. At just after 16:00 UTC, there is news from ERA 1, the Proto Programma network, before returning to Voice of Greece programming. The second program is Kales Thallasses (Good Seas) and includes an interview with retired ship captain Georgios Mavrakis. Captain Mavrakis recounts how during his 30 years of service as a sailor, the broadcasts of the Voice of Greece kept him company at sea. At the end of the recording, there is the short interval signal and identification of the Voice of Greece just before the transmitter leaves the air.

The broadcast was received by the Web-interface wideband software-defined radio at the University of Twente in Enschede, The Netherlands, with a "Mini-Whip" antenna in synchronous AM mode with 5.08 kHz total bandwidth RF filtering. Reception of the broadcast was good with some fading at times and with some slight co-channel interference from a Chinese transmitter especially after 16:00 UTC.

Voice of Greece: March 21, 2020

The following recording of the Voice of Greece was made on March 21, 2020 starting around 22:45 UTC on 9.420 MHz. This recording was made with a WinRadio Excalibur and skyloop antenna. Reception location: Asheville, North Carolina, USA.

Voice of Greece: March 26, 2019

For your listening pleasure: The Voice of Greece recorded on March 26, 2019 starting at 22:50 UTC on 9.42 MHz. The receiver was a WinRadio Excalibur SDR and the antenna a large horizontal delta loop. This was received and recorded in North Carolina, USA.

Voice of Greece: February 16, 2018

This recording of the Voice of Greece was made on February 16, 2018 starting at 01:32 UTC on 9420 kHz. This recording was made with an AirSpy HF+ running the SDR Console application and hooked up to a horizontal delta loop antenna. The receiver location is North Carolina, USA.

Voice of Greece: November 15, 2013

I never know what to expect when I tune around on one of my shortwave radios.  Perhaps that's one of the things I find captivating about the medium; there's no playlist, no app, no content controls, other than the tuning knob.

Sometimes, I tune to a station, and it's as though I've just opened a door and walked in on a party--one in full swing, with dancing and incredible live music.

That's exactly what I felt when I tuned to the Voice of Greece on the night of November 15, 2013. I walked in on a party.  And I needed no invitation; I was welcomed there.

Hear it, just as I did, starting right in the middle of this party:

Voice of Greece: June 29, 2015

For your listening pleasure: the Voice of Greece.

Recorded on 29 June 2015 starting around 01:50 UTC on  9,420 kHz using a WinRadio Excalibur and a horizontal delta loop external wire antenna. Location of reception is North Carolina, USA. 

Notes: In the last 15 minutes of this recording there are a number of multi-language station IDs for the Voice of Greece and ERT.

Helliniki Radiophonia: January 25, 2015

For your listening pleasure: almost 2 hours of Helliniki Radiophonia (ERT Open). This broadcast was recorded on January 25, 2015 on 9420 kHz starting around 2200 UTC.

ERT Open (Voice of Greece): October 24, 2014

View from the town of Litochoro, in the foothills of Mount Olympus, Greece. (Source: Public Domain via Wikimedia)

Many listeners have noticed that the former Voice of Greece (ERT Open) has moved from 9,420 kHz to 9,415 kHz. This must be due to interference from the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) who has been transmitting on 9420 kHz as well.

Here in North America, even when IRIB was broadcasting simultaneously on 9420 kHz, VOG always overpowered their signal. In other parts of the world, though, it was not the same case.

I’m happy VOG/ERT is still on shortwave and broadcasting to the world–though no one really knows for how much longer.

I recorded about one hour of VOG on 9,415 kHz, starting around 0045 UTC today. 

Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below. Please subscribe to our podcast to receive future recordings automatically.

Voice of Greece (ERT Open): August 7, 2014

Many thanks to SWAA contributor, Frank, for this recording of ERT Open (former Voice of Greece). 

Recorded in Europe on August 7, 2014 starting at 08:00 UTC on 9,420 kHz.

Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:

Voice of Greece: March 6, 2014

(Photo Source)

For your listening pleasure: two hours, fifteen minutes of the Radio Station of Macedonia (Voice of Greece) recorded on March 6, 2014 starting around 01:50 UTC on 9,420 kHz.

Click here to download as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:

Voice of Greece: July 30, 2013

The following is a recording of the Voice of Greece (9,420 kHz) made on July 30, 2013, beginning around 20:11 UTC. Enjoy: 

Voice of Greece

Many thanks to SWAA contributor, Frank, for this three hour recording of the Voice of Greece. 

Recorded in Europe on September, 12 2013 starting at 05:00 UTC on 11,645 kHz.

Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:

Voice of Greece: September 1, 2013

Lately, the Voice of Greece has been playing very long sets of music; and not all of it Greek. I assume the break in format has to do with the reorganization of Greek national broadcasting.

I believe VoG could be cut on a moment's notice. With heavy cuts being dealt to national broadcasting, I doubt they'll keep investing in shortwave radio since they no longer even have an English language service. This is one of the reasons I've devoted a lot of recording time to VoG as of late.

I certainly hope I'm wrong about my prediction.

On September 1st, I recorded over five hours of VoG, starting around 22:00 UTC. After about an hour of Greek commentary, you'll hear music ranging from contemporary to classical.

Click here to download the full recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below.

Voice of Greece

For your listening pleasure: over three hours of mostly music and commentary from the Voice of Greece. Recorded Sunday, June 23, 2013 on 9.42 MHz starting around 23:00 UTC.

Click here to download the full recording, or simply listen via the embedded player below:

The Voice of Greece returns

On Tuesday, June 11, 2013, Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras called for the complete closure of the Greek National TV and Radio broadcaster, ERT.

The Voice of Greece went off the air, just like its national radio and TV counterparts, well before the announced midnight deadline. But around 22:44 UTC, the VoG came back on the air–at first with a few audio/technical glitches–and broadcast ERT protest coverage throughout the night.

The following recording was made on June 11, 2013 on 9.42 MHz, around 22:44 UTC, the moment when the Voice of Greece began transmitting audio again. Here’s a four hour recording beginning only a few seconds beforehand: