This month at a national awards ceremony in Cape Breton, Jamieson and his genre bending Bach and Beyond received a well-deserved CRABO award (Community Radio Awards in Broadcast and Online) in the Classical Century category.
With a show title like Bach and Beyond, many people wonder what exactly is beyond Bach.
“The beyond part of my title allows me to get into all sorts of genres,” says host Doug Jamieson, “but the show is primarily a classical music show.”
Every episode takes several hours of meticulous preparation, and that’s a mutual benefit to host and audience alike.
“I have a musical background, which I put to good use when hosting,” says Jamieson. “I benefit from doing the research and learning about new works. As a composer, I can get totally wrapped up in my own projects, so it is good to listen to other works.”
Ed Zych, KCR’s programming manager, says shows like Bach and Beyond are what continue to make community radio still viable.
“You can certainly find classical music on streaming services, but having someone as knowledgeable and engaging as Doug delve into what you just heard heightens the experience. Nothing against a two-minute pop song, but some things, like classical music, are worth the extra effort.”
Before moving to Nelson, Jamieson worked as the director of the Dixon Hall Music School in Toronto, where he helped thousands of inner-city children from the Regent Park community receive affordable, high-quality music lessons.
“Classical music has structure, design, attention to detail and celebrates excellence, it also enriches us spiritually,” says Jamieson. ”In my opinion, not enough people spend the time to appreciate classical music and reap its benefits. “
In addition to hosting Bach and Beyond, Jamieson has been an associate composer of the Canadian Music Centre since 1984, and wrote the words and music for four large-scale musical theatre works. He spends his time focusing on music composition, grand-parenting and volunteering.
You can listen to Back and Beyond Tuesdays at 10am. The show repeats Mondays at 6pm.