Hey children, what’s that sound? WSOE jazzes it up
Virginia Galvez / Reporter
With talk shows on Tuesdays and specialty shows on the
weekends, Elon’s own 89.3 WSOE, dubbed “the only
alternative,” covers chart toppers from five different
genres such as alternative, jazz, techno, hip hop and loud
rock/metal. Once thought of as a mainly alternative station,
WSOE has taken music education into its own hands with the
addition of the jazz morning show.
Upon the station’s founding, it was the Elon Board of
Trustees who designated the type of music played and when
exactly the station could broadcast, Travis Lusk, WSOE
General Manager said. However, due to student interaction
with the organization, the station has taken steps toward
more liberal regulation of both scheduling and content.
While changes have been made in regard to the
station’s content, the jazz show holds as an
alternative to a well-known musical form. Three years ago,
chemistry professor Paul Weller took on the task of getting
involved in the jazz program on WSOE.
“He took on jazz in a real serious way,” said
Lusk. Now the jazz director, Weller shows the most consistent
interest, Lusk said.
In addition to providing professors and students with a
relaxing way to start their morning commute, the jazz morning
show also aims toward musical education. Over Winter Term,
more than 130 songs were added digitally to the
station’s jazz library. Because of this increase, WSOE
hopes to expand what many college students define as
“jazz.”
One of the main hopes of the jazz morning show is to bring
the newest forms of jazz to the college campus, Lusk said.
“It’s alternative jazz, a different
connotation,” he said. In terms of the older, more
traditional jazz styles, there are hopes of musical
recognition and enlightenment among college students and
according to Lusk, “we’re trying to bring it
back.” Starting at 8 a.m. Monday through Friday, the
morning jazz show broadcasts conventional and more obscure
tracks for jazz experts and first-time listeners.
|  Virginia Galvez / Photographer
Pictured above are “Two Guys, a Gimp and a Radio
Show,” otherwise known as jazz deejays Chris Hendricks
(left), Derek Powers and Trent Watts.
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