WMHT-FM (89.1 MHz) is a listener-supported, non-commercial

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...

licensed to

Schenectady Schenectady () is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-largest city by population. The city is in eastern New Y ...

, and serving the

Capital District A capital district, capital region or capital territory is normally a specially designated administrative division where a country's seat of government is located. As such, in a federal model of government, no state or territory has any poli ...

of New York. It has a

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" al ...

radio format A radio format or programming format (not to be confused with broadcast programming) describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. The radio format emerged mainly in the United States in the 1950s, at a time when radio was compelle ...

, with most programming originating in-house, but with some shows and news from

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other n ...

, American Public Media and the Public Radio Exchange. It is the

sister station In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio or television stations operated by the same company, either by direct ownership or through a management agreement. Radio sister stations will often have different formats, and somet ...

to WMHT Channel 17, the PBS member station for the Albany/Schenectady/

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in present-day Turkey, south-west of Ç ...

media market A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television and radio station offerings, and may also incl ...

. WMHT-FM has an

effective radiated power Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would h ...

(ERP) of 6,100 watts. The

transmitter In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to the ...

is located on the

Helderberg Escarpment The Helderberg Escarpment, also known as the Helderberg Mountains, is an escarpment in eastern New York, United States, roughly west of the city of Albany. The escarpment is the northeastern extremity of the Allegheny Plateau. It rises steep ...

antenna farm on Pinnacle Road in

New Salem, New York New Salem is a hamlet in the town of New Scotland, Albany County, New York, United States. It is located in a valley at the foot of the Helderberg Escarpment along New York State Route 85. A local fair and car show is held every year in this ...

. WMHT-FM broadcasts using

HD Radio HD Radio (HDR) is a trademark for an in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio broadcast technology. It generally simulcasts an existing analog radio station in digital format with less noise and with additional text information. HD Radio is used ...

technology.http://www.wmht.org/radio/classical/hd-radio/ WMHT HD WMHT-FM programming is also heard on a part-time basis on FM 88.7 WRHV in Poughkeepsie, which is involved in one of the last radio timeshare arrangements in the United States alongside

State University of New York at New Paltz The State University of New York at New Paltz (SUNY New Paltz or New Paltz) is a public university in New Paltz, New York. It traces its origins to the New Paltz Classical School, a secondary institution founded in 1828 and reorganized as an ...

-owned WFNP-FM. From October 2005 to March 2006, WMHT-FM programming was also heard on co-owned FM 97.7

WBKK WBKK (820 AM) is a radio station licensed to Wilton, Minnesota, serving the Bemidji market area. The station airs a Catholic talk format as an owned and operated affiliate of Real Presence Radio. It's 10,000 watt transmitter and towers are ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

. That station now airs an adult album alternative format, also heard on WMHT-FM's HD2

digital subchannel In broadcasting, digital subchannels are a method of transmitting more than one independent program stream simultaneously from the same digital radio or television station on the same radio frequency channel. This is done by using data compres ...

History

From its founding in 1972, WMHT-FM has been a classical music station. The plans for the format came into being in the wake of 92.3

WFLY WFLY (92.3 MHz, "FLY 92.3") is a Top 40/CHR radio station licensed to Troy, New York, and serving the Capital District. The station is owned by Pamal Broadcasting and is considered the company's flagship station. The radio studios and office ...

leaving the classical format in

1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...

and an ensuing protest from prominent members of the community. Although a number of PBS stations were launching sister NPR news and information stations, the presence of NPR affiliate 90.3

WAMC WAMC is a public radio network headquartered in Albany, New York. The network has 12 broadcast radio stations (transmitters) and 16 broadcast relay stations (translators, repeaters). The two flagship stations in the WAMC network are WAMC-FM 90. ...

in Albany kept WMHT from such an opportunity. WMHT decided to go in a different direction by launching a classical station. WMHT paid

Siena College Siena College is an American private Franciscan college in Loudonville, New York. Siena was founded by the Order of Friars Minor in 1937. The college was named after Bernardino of Siena, a 15th-century Italian Franciscan friar and preacher. S ...

-owned

WVCR-FM WVCR-FM ''(88.3 The Saint)'' is a variety hits radio station located in Loudonville, New York, owned by Siena College, and primarily staffed by students from the college. The station broadcasts on 88.3 MHz at an effective radiated power of 2,8 ...

to vacate its 89.1 frequency, switching to 88.3 MHz. On , WMHT-FM officially

signed on Signing may refer to: * Using sign language * Signature, placing one's name on a document * Signature (disambiguation) * Manual communication, signing as a form of communication using the hands in place of the voice * Digital signature A digi ...

the air. Because the WMHT

call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally ass ...

, which stood for "Mohawk–Hudson Television", was already established for Channel 17, the FM station took the same call letters. The Mohawk-Hudson Council on Educational Television was the original name of the organization that put Channel 17 on the air. WMHT-FM's signature program is "Bach's Lunch," a program originally conceived by Pam Mittendorff and Chris Wienk of WSHU-FM in

Fairfield, Connecticut Fairfield is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It borders the city of Bridgeport and towns of Trumbull, Easton, Weston, and Westport along the Gold Coast of Connecticut. Located within the New York metropolitan ar ...

. Wienk brought the program to WMHT-FM after it stopped airing on WSHU-FM. In July 2007, WMHT launched

-licensed WEXT (97.7), branded as "Exit 97.7", after the purchase of the commercial license for WBKK, which removed the station's main competitor in the market. WEXT currently runs a non-commercial adult album alternative (AAA) format, along with a focus on local Capital Region artists.

Original programming

*''Bach's Lunch'': A program of

Baroque music Baroque music ( or ) refers to the period or dominant style of Western classical music composed from about 1600 to 1750. The Baroque style followed the Renaissance period, and was followed in turn by the Classical period after a short transit ...

airing on weekdays at noon. The host is Chris Wienk. *''WMHT Live'': A full-length concert program featuring recordings of recent classical concerts in the

. *''No Ticket Required'': A program of concert excerpts featuring recordings of recent classical concerts in the

. *''Serenade'': A program of classical music featuring nocturnes, adagios and andantes produced by Wayne Henning.

RISE

WMHT also provides an information service for those who are blind and "print-disabled" known as ''RISE'', which has been in operation since 1978. ''RISE'' programming is on the subcarriers of both WMHT-FM and WRHV-FM (even when WRHV-FM is not on the air).

References

External links

WMHT-FM's website
{{coord, 42.6253, N, 74.0101, W, type:landmark_region:US_source:FCC, display=title MHT-FM NPR member stations Classical music radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1972

History

Original programming

RISE

See also

References

External links