Hour of Jazz Radio show

Every Saturday on CHMA 106.9 FM I have a radioshow from 8pm-9pm. During this hour a selection of classical and contemporary jazz songs are played. I don't know what it's like to be listening to the show but from the side of speaking into the microphone, it's both hectic and peaceful. While the booth is quiet and I have my headphones on, I'm also handling all the volume control thingies.

Before applying and training for having a radioshow on CHMA I was not so sure I wanted to do a Jazz show. At the time I also enjoyed and listened more frequently to pop, R&B, folk, and indie music. However over the past two shows I've come across many new Jazz songs. It sounds so good.

Once you start listening to Jazz, it's hard to stop.

Jazz is real because it's not about the future, it's about the present. It's not about filling your ego or trying to sell you something. It naturally calls for your attention and gives you the opportunity to drop everything. Jazz doesn't care if it's remembered, it doesn't care if it's recognized, it just exists, open to anyone who comes along.

While doing this show I often come back and stumble upon the question "what is Jazz?" This is a seemingly simple question that has a very ambiguous, subjective answer among Jazz listeners. When I was just getting familiar with jazz a few months ago, I thought Jazz was music that was swing, irregular, and had a complex mix of sounds. But recently, I think it's more than this.

Jazz is "unlabeled music". Jazz is aged sounds. Jazz is the invisible music of society, a product of industrialization, colonialism, repression, technological advancement, and capitalism.