Detroit News Orchestra

The Detroit News Orchestra was the world's first radio orchestra, first broadcasting in 1922. It was composed of already-distinguished members of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, broadcasting from radio station WWJ in Detroit, Michigan. The orchestra's broadcasts could be received half way across North America and even as far away as Hawaii.

Detroit News Orchestra in WWJ radio studio

Otto Krueger, the conductor, playing a flute

Background

The 16 members of the Detroit News Orchestra were drawn from the city's Detroit Symphony Orchestra, having previously achieved distinction as accomplished soloists. The orchestra broadcast on radio station WWJ, debuting on May 28, 1922.[1] The broadcasts were sponsored by The Detroit Bank and could be received across half of North America.[2] The Detroit News Orchestra was the first symphonic ensemble in the world organized specifically to play on radio.[3][4]

The Orchestra, sometimes referred to as the "little symphony" by WWJ Detroit News radio station,[5] played at their studio Monday through Friday at 7:00 P.M., as well as at 2:00 P.M. on Sundays.[6] On occasion they also performed recitals for churches, schools, and other non-profit organizations as a public relations outreach to their listeners.[7]

Listeners in Hawaii

On November 23, 1922, at thirty minutes past midnight, the Detroit News Orchestra played the waltz "Three O'Clock in the Morning" in studio in the Detroit News building. The transmission was received clearly at 6:30 P.M. local time in the Hawaiian Islands by A. F. Costa, the postmaster there. Several people listened to the program in its entirety at the Wailuku post office, that was more than 4,400 miles (7,100 km) from Detroit. The notes of the music transmitted from the Detroit News radio station in Michigan took about one fiftieth of a second to arrive in Hawaii.[8]

Ensemble

Detroit News Orchestra players

WWJ broadcast range

List of personnel of the musical ensemble.[5]

• Otto E Krueger – conductor
• Maurice Warner – violinist
• Herman Goldstein – violinist
• LeRoy Hancock – violinist
• Armand Hebert – violinist
• Valbert P. Coffey – pianist
• Frederick Broeder – cellist
• Eugene W Braunsdorf – bass soloist
• Thomas J Byrne – oboe soloist
• R. M. Arey – clarinetist
• Vincenzo Pezzi – bassoonist
• Albert Stagliamo – horn player
• Edward Clarke – trumpeter
• Floyd O Hara – trumpeter
• Max Smith – trombonist
• Arthur Cooper – xylophone player

See also

• 1922 in radio
• Birth of public radio broadcasting

References

Citations

1. Gavrilovich & McGraw 2006, p. 62.
2. Detroit News 1922, p. 12.
3. Sies 2008, p. 785.
4. Kane, Anzovin & Podell 1997, p. 30.
5. Detroit News 1922, p. 21.
6. "First Radio Orchestra". Wisconsin State Journal. Madison, Wisconsin. 23 July 1922. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com .
7. Fourth Estate 1922, p. 26.
8. "Distance Records Broken When Hawaii Picks Up Detroit News". The Paducah Sun-Democrat. Paducah, Kentucky. 25 January 1923. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com .

Sources

• Detroit News (1922). WWJ—The Detroit News, The History of Radiophone Broadcasting. Detroit News. Detroit, Michigan: The Evening News Association.
• Fourth Estate (1922). Fourth Estate. Fourth Estate Publishing Company.
• Gavrilovich, Peter, Editor; McGraw, Bill, Editor (2006). The Detroit Almanac: 300 Years of Life in the Motor City. Detroit Free Press (2, reprint ed.). Detroit, Michigan. ISBN 0937247480. ISBN 9780937247488.
• Kane, Joseph Nathan; Anzovin, Steven; Podell, Janet (1997). Famous First Facts: A Record of First Happenings, Discoveries, and Inventions in American History. Famous First Facts (5th, revised ed.). New York: The H. W. Wilson Company. ISBN 0824209303. ISBN 9780824209308.
• Sies, Luther F. (2008). Encyclopedia of American Radio, 1920–1960. 2. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. ISBN 9780786429424. ISBN 0786429429.