Music Programming

How can a programmer determine the depth of a music library? Should it be deep or shallow? And should the primary focus be on narrowly defined genres or open them up to be wide?...

There are many things that could cause music to rotate poorly but before diagnosing the cause of a problem, it’s best to go all the way back to the basics to make sure the...

Whether flipping to an All-Christmas format or just adding songs to an existing format, radio programmers should follow a longstanding programming guideline: Play the hits. But what are the Christmas hits? There are so...

Most programmers know how important it is to get the math right in music rotations. And few would argue against playing the right songs as judged and expected by the target audience. Right? Right....

Many programmers and music directors spend hours and hours coding songs. The effort is time well spent because it takes time to really analyze the songs but let's simplify it by taking steps to...

When a station conducts an analysis of its music system, the first priority should be examining how songs are rotating. A large library can sound like just a handful of songs if they play...

Programmers want to know everything possible about music. The more detail and insight, the more we can fine-tune the playlist. It's part of the pursuit of a perfect radio station. But in the endless...

Every single thing that happens on-air is important. For music stations, that's particularly true for song segues. How songs fit together is critical to the listening experience. Pay attention to this detail to create...

Response rates from research panels continue to be a challenge. Online music surveys are a great way to gather feedback from listeners if the sample is recruited and managed properly. But it's harder than...

Over the years, online music research has prospered. It's now accepted as an effective, affordable method of gathering data. And programmers use the information to make critical decisions. But response rates have plummeted in...