A live radio broadcast series by Trent Radio in Peterborough that hearkens back to the golden age of the medium is now at its halfway point, connecting local audio artists with a wide audience, both in person and on the airwaves.
Backed by a grant from the Community Radio Fund of Canada (CRFC), “Radio From The Stage” debuted last October 29 at The Theatre On King in downtown Peterborough with an episode called “Three Pillars,” featuring multidisciplinary artist Kate Story, Peterborough poet laureate Ziysah von Bieberstein, and singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Benj Rowland.
That episode was staged before a live audience and broadcast live on Trent Radio 92.7 FM, as has been the case with the four episodes presented since, with each episode taking place on the last Sunday of the month, including the most recent episode entitled “Aleatory/Alchemy” at Sadleir House on February 25, which featured the talents of musicians Victoria Yeh, Caylie Staples, Neal Retke, and Bennett Bedoukian.
Curating and hosting the series is Charlie Glasspool, a longtime Peterborough musician and co-founder of well-known local band The Silver Hearts. He credits both Jill Staveley and Rob Hailman of Trent Radio for applying to the CRFC for the funding, which was subsequently awarded.
“We got to work — we had a month to get the first show up and running,” recalls Glasspool. “It’s a year-long series of live-to-air and live-to-audience performances. We are broadcasting performances of audio artists, whether music, poetry, theatre, or spoken word. We’ve had all kinds of different audio arts.”
For his part, Glasspool says he’s grateful for the opportunity to curate and host each episode in the series.
“As a musician, but also more and more as a presenter and promoter, it just seemed like the perfect job for me,” he says. “I was lucky to land it.”
Glasspool is now preparing to bring episode six of the series to the stage at Dreams of Beans (138 Hunter St. W.) from 1:30 to 3 p.m. on March 31. Appropriately entitled “Dreams,” that episode will feature local musicians Taylor Abrahamse, Joslynn Burford, and David Newland.
As with all Radio From The Stage episodes, the show is free to attend and can also be heard live on Trent Radio 92.7 FM or online at trentradio.ca.
Subsequent episodes will be presented as follows:
- Episode 7 – “Story/Soundtrack” at 8 p.m. on April 28 at Take Cover Books (59 Hunter St. E.) featuring Christopher Wilton, Michael Duguay, Justin Million, and Bryar Gray
- Episode 8 – “L’heure verte” at 5 p.m. on May 26 at Bijoux (399 Water St.) featuring Jon Hedderwick, Kim Blackwell, and David Batemen with musical guest Shahrazi
- Episode 9 – “The Message” at 8 p.m. on June 30 at Jethro’s Bar + Stage (137 Hunter St. W.) featuring Social Activist Beats, garbageface, and another act yet to be announced.
The series will conclude with the tenth episode on July 28, with details still in the works.
Along with the October 29 debut episode and the most recent episode on February 25, previous episodes included “A Song for Nogojiwanong” on November 26 at Sadleir House featuring
Lucy Ferrill, Dan Hick, Wesha, Mike MacCurdy, Jay Coombes, and Astarte, “New Year’s Early” on December 31 at Jethro’s Bar + Stage featuring the bands Intimidators and Pays d’en Haut, and “Hunter Street Hysteria” on January 28 at Take Cover Books featuring poets Charlotte Kennedy, Esther Vincent, Kristal Jones, Saima Sarfraz, and Thamer Linklater with musical guest Sarah-Jayne Riley.
While each episode is diverse from the one before and the one after, Glasspool says there is a common thread running through all of them.
“Something that’s sort of tying all of these very disparate acts together, whether they’re music or poetry or what have you, is a very broad theme of ‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times’,” he says — a reference to the famous opening line of Charles Dickens’ 1859 novel A Tale of Two Cities about London and Paris before and during the French Revolution.
“We’re asking local artists, through their art or through their music or through their words, to reflect or comment on the state of Peterborough right now,” Glasspool explains. “I lived in Peterborough in the early 2000s. I moved away and, at the tail end of COVID, moved back. I definitely noticed how Peterborough isn’t the same Peterborough I remember from 2001. We all know that. It’s visible.”
“I’m hoping that through this series maybe we can do a little bit of healing. We can kind of investigate all the good things, but all the bad things too. Discuss it, work on it, and maybe get some answers. It’s a big ask but I’m optimistic. Art and music can maybe help us heal.”
Meanwhile, maintaining the artistic quality of each episode is far from being a problem, says Glasspool.
“Yes, we led off with some real heavy hitters, but one of the delights for me is having more than 50 applications come in to be a part of it,” he says, referring to the application process that took place last fall. “It’s really wonderful to hear young folks coming up and playing. One of the many beautiful things about this project has been discovering some new talents.”
Of note, because of the grant received, each artist is being paid a “generous artist fee” — something that Glasspool says isn’t always the case.
In a provided comment regarding the series, CFRC executive director Alex Freedman says Radio from the Stage is a project that “could only be done by campus radio.”
Glasspool says there’s a lot of truth to that.
“It would be impossible for commercial radio — I don’t think they would even be interested,” he says, adding “There’s a lot of freedom there that other stations just don’t have.”
While each episode stands on its own as a memorable performance for both the in-person audience and Trent Radio listeners hearing it live, each is being archived, meaning they can be rebroadcast for years to come.
“One of the big thrusts of this project is to create what I’ve been calling a sonic time capsule,” says Glasspool. “We’re going to put them all together somehow. We’re still thinking about how to do that, for someone to discover 50 years from now.”
“We also have a physical time capsule. We’re asking artists who are participating to put a little treasure or note or trinket or something in to be a part of this recorded time capsule as well.”
Meanwhile, the series has injected new life into Trent Radio, says Glasspool.
“This project is really getting Trent Radio’s name and brand back out there after COVID,” he says. “Trent Radio has been around for a long, long time. That’s a testament to the people who have run the place — people like Jill Staveley and (the late) John Muir before her. It’s really important to have that little radio station at Parkhill and George.”
On a personal level, Glasspool says there are “a thousand joys” in being connected with the series.
“The magic of radio has always enchanted me,” he notes. “Since I was a kid to now, I sometimes can’t wrap my head around someone singing on a stage and someone far away listening in real time. That really is the magic. It’s so great to be a part of that.”
This story was created in partnership with Trent Radio. If your organization or business is interested in a branded editorial, contact us.
