It’s difficult – if not impossible – to separate the season of spring and the concept of “change.” One of the reasons our newsletter is a little late is due to the significant number of changes and projects in which DPR has been involved as we head into summer. They include:

- DPR’s inaugural coverage of the 2016 Chesapeake Chamber Music Festival began with a three-day series of recorded live concerts broadcast on WSCL. A preview of the 2017 Festival was included, and the Festival is under way in Easton, Oxford, and St. Michael's as we go to press. More info is available HERE . DPR is recording Festival concerts for broadcast next year.

- Delmarva In Performance returns to WSCL’s airwaves starting in July (Saturday’s at 1PM on 89.5 FM). Recorded live performances from Coastal Concerts , Salisbury University, the Arts Council of the Eastern Shore, and more presenters will be featured. These are WORLD-CLASS performers and performances captured live for WSCL listeners.

- DPR is proud to announce a new program coming to WSDL 90.7 FM, our “Rhythm & News” station. Delmarva Groove with host kt Tuminello (no, that’s not a typo…he’s known as “kt”) debuts Friday night, July 7 at 8PM. kt – a long-time fixture in the music business here on the Delmarva peninsula (as a musician, booking agent, promoter, venue manager, and more) – brings music you simply won’t hear on commercial radio (or even most other public radio stations) to the airwaves. Expect the unexpected and get your Groove on by starting your weekend with kt Tuminello and Delmarva Groove…Friday’s from 8-11PM starting July 7th.

- DPR’s “News Department of One” – News Director Don Rush (along with Salisbury University intern Matt Forney and local essayist George Merrill) - were awarded SIX prestigious awards from the Chesapeake Associated Press Broadcasters Association.  As humble as we’d like to be about Don Rush, his tenure at DPR has resulted in enough AP awards to paper the walls at DPR. Don is yet another reason DPR is worth your investment and support. Congratulations to Don, Matt, and to George Merrill.

- Vintage Country with Tom Pittman – a program produced exclusively for DPR by the former founding member of the Austin Lounge Lizards – moves from Friday to Saturday night starting in early July. So, now, you can enjoy Mountain Stage from 6-8PM, and just leave the radio on WSDL 90.7 FM for classic, REAL Country music “from WWII to Watergate,” as Pittman says.

- Last, but not least, DPR bids a fond farewell to Dr. Diane Allen, Sr. Vice President and Provost of Salisbury University. Dr. Allen  - who has (as SU’s chief academic officer) oversees Delmarva Public Radio and its “integration” with the University – is retiring at the end of June and returning to Oklahoma to spend time with her family and – most importantly – her grandchildren. DPR’s staff loved working with Dr. Allen and wishes her well.

Delmarva Public Radio broadcasts from two different locations – Roxanna, DE for WSDL and Seaford, DE for WSCL.  For most locations in our coverage area, reception should be fine, but for some on the edge of our broadcast area and even for some right in the middle, there may be reception problems for various reasons. If you’re having problems, here are some things you can do:

FM radio signals are degraded by passing through solid items, particularly brick, steel and concrete.  Consider placing your FM radio receiver near a window – preferably one facing our transmitter, but any window will help.

For radio reception, an antenna is vital. Most radios have a built-in antenna.  Better quality radios often have a connection for an external antenna and an external antenna will significantly improve reception. A simple FM dipole antenna (available for about three bucks) will make a big difference in your reception. Place the antenna as high up as possible. If your radio has a ‘rod’ antenna, be sure it is fully extended and place it horizontal or near horizontal for best reception. If your radio has a stereo/mono switch, try both settings.  If the signal is weak, the mono selection will probably give better reception.

There are a lot of things that can cause ‘noise’ and interfere with clear reception. Radio waves can bounce off nearby objects and be reflected to your radio. This is known as ‘multipath interference’.  The waves will arrive slightly out of sync and can cause noise, distortion or they can even cancel each other out.  If you have this problem, try relocating your antenna or radio and, when you find a sweet spot, keep it! There are a lot of other possible sources of noise or interference.  Common household device such as microwave ovens, dimmer switches, fluorescent lights, TVs, VCRs, LCD bulbs,etc. can generate radio waves and interfere with your reception. Even new LCD traffic lights generate radio interference.  Try to keep your radio/antenna as far away from these potential sources of interference as possible.

If all else fails, remember that DPR broadcasts continuously over the internet and you can listen on your computer, tablet or smart phone. Just click on WSCL or WSDL.