Extra Eclectic to air final episode, but modern classical continues on YourClassical

After a decade-plus, longtime host Steve Seel’s Extra Eclectic show on YourClassical is coming to an end. Listen on Monday, Sept. 28, at 10 p.m. Central to hear the final episode. This change comes as Steve makes the transition to YourClassical’s new morning host — 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. on weekdays — starting on Monday, Oct. 5.

But before then, here’s a little, ahem, extra background on Extra Eclectic and the overall approach for modern classical on YourClassical.

How did Extra Eclectic come to be?

When I returned to YourClassical MPR in 2015 after 10 years as a host on The Current, Program Director Julie Amacher and I talked about how we might capitalize on my lifelong interest in contemporary classical music, and our first idea was for a new show. I was thrilled that Julie was not just receptive to the idea, but enthusiastic! (I had created and hosted a show called Present Tense at WNED-FM in Buffalo, NY during the 1990s, and perhaps that fortified her confidence; I'm not sure). I put together a mockup of what I envisioned, and she allowed me to run with it almost immediately. That practically never happens.

Where did the name come from?

At first, the show didn't even have a name! It was just two hours on a Wednesday night when we played modern classical. Not long after we started it, I just started saying, "thanks for joining me for an extra-eclectic two hours of classical music" every time I did the show. One day she asked me, "so, is that the name, then? It's kind of a mouthful." But it stuck.

The "eclectic" nature of the show was really just that it would be a place where you might hear ways in which classical music was changing in the 21st century, and how the whole idea of what "classical music" was supposed to be was getting less rigid and orthodox. For example, composers feel much freer to use electronics today, or electric guitar, or feature a singing voice that was less traditionally "classical."

Did the show have an "angle"?

It's true that Extra Eclectic was never about all modern classical music. Our goal from the beginning was to create a showcase for how classical has changed, especially in the 21st century, into something that is more exciting and listener-friendly than it was during much of the 20th century (when it earned a reputation for being listener un-friendly).

Jennifer Allen, our longtime Associate Music Director at YourClassical, created practically every playlist for the entire 10-year run of the show. She is, quite simply, the encyclopedic brain behind the breadth and depth of the selections, and also, the originator of almost every weekly topic the program ever had.

Where will listeners be able to continue hearing this kind of classical music even if the show is coming to an end?

Since we began the show, YourClassical has just started sharing the music of contemporary composers during our regular broadcast hours; it's just much more of what we do on a daily basis, because the classical music genre itself is more open-minded and adventurous, and less hung-up on rules. That's better for everybody.

So there's no "show" that's weighted toward contemporary classical anymore?

Actually, there still is. On Sunday evenings, we really enjoy setting a "mood" with works that are contemplative and atmospheric — and as it happens, a lot of contemporary classical fits that bill. So when you tune in, you'll hear quite a lot of modern stuff that also happens to be extremely gorgeous. But if you still want to listen to Extra Eclectic specifically, the show's entire 10-year archive lives online at our website.

How do listeners respond to modern classical music in general?

In short, they love it tons more than they used to! That's why we worry a lot less today than we did 30 years ago — or even 10 years ago — about whether or not we're alienating folks who've "just tuned in to hear Mozart and nothing else." Yes, that was a thing people in classical radio used to say. We know that's no longer true. I seriously used to get phone calls from people who would yell, "What IS this?" Now, when people ask that, it's because they're captivated by it, not angered by it.