Jim Svejda

Jim Svejda (born 1947) is a former American music commentator and critic, born and raised in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, on the

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

FM radio station

KUSC KUSC (91.5 FM broadcasting, FM; "Classical California™ KUSC") is a listener-supported european classical music, classical music radio station broadcasting from downtown Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States. KUSC is owned and ope ...

. He hosted the station's local week-nightly classical series ''The Evening Program'', until retiring on February 18, 2022. From 1983 he hosted the Sunday night syndicated

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

program ''The Record Shelf''. He also hosted the now-cancelled series ''The Opera Box''. He opened with his program with the phrase: "Good evening. This is Jim Svejda." At the end of ''The Evening Program'', he concludes with the same piece he opened the program with the third movement from Piano Quartet No. 1 by

Bohuslav Martinů Bohuslav Jan Martinů (; December 8, 1890 – August 28, 1959) was a Czech composer of modern classical music. He wrote 6 symphony, symphonies, 15 operas, 14 ballet scores and a large body of orchestral, chamber music, chamber, vocal and ins ...

with: "On behalf of engineers Steve Sivie, Steve Cogill and Mark Hofman, I hoped you enjoyed the last five hours. Tomorrow night, we will conclude the program with a performance of (insert name of work/composer/orchestra/conductor). This is Jim Svejda. Good evening." If the Evening Program is on a Friday, Svejda also announces: On behalf of engineers Steve Sivie, Steve Cogill and Mark Hofman, I hoped you enjoyed the last five hours. This Monday evening, we will conclude the program with a performance of (insert name of work/composer/orchestra/conductor). This is Jim Svejda. Good evening." ''The Record Shelf'' featured items such as interviews with classical music notables, surveys of different recordings of a classical music piece, monthly critical surveys of recently released recordings, and noted, often rare historical recordings of great performers of the past. Svejda was praised for his articulate commentaries on these programs. He was nicknamed "A Music Connoisseur" according to listeners. Svejda is a national treasure whose voice is a non-trivial attraction to his audio. In his published ''Record Shelf Guide'', Svejda himself describes the book as "an irreverent, selective and highly opinionated recordings guide of the best classical CDs and audiocassettes." He often has viewpoints that might be considered divergent from those of many other music critics.Jim Svejda. ''The Record Shelf Guide to the Classical Repertoire'', 2nd Edition (Paperback) (1990) While admitting that they sometimes have turned out excellent recordings, Svejda has been critical of such illustrious musicians as

Vladimir Horowitz Vladimir Samoylovich Horowitz (November 5, 1989) was a Russian and American pianist. Considered one of the greatest pianists of all time, he was known for his virtuoso technique, timbre, and the public excitement engendered by his playing. Life ...

and

Arturo Toscanini Arturo Toscanini (; ; March 25, 1867January 16, 1957) was an Italian conductor. He was one of the most acclaimed and influential musicians of the late 19th and early 20th century, renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orche ...

, as well as

Herbert von Karajan Herbert von Karajan (; born ''Heribert Adolf Ernst Karajan''; 5 April 1908 – 16 July 1989) was an Austrian conductor. He was principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic for 34 years. During the Nazi era, he debuted at the Salzburg Festival, ...

(whom he has excoriated for his

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

past) and especially

Nikolaus Harnoncourt Johann Nikolaus Harnoncourt (6 December 1929 – 5 March 2016) was an Austrian conductor, known for his historically informed performances. He specialized in music of the Baroque period, but later extended his repertoire to include Classical ...

, whom Svejda has called an "incompetent bozo." Svejda is also an occasional film critic, with his reviews syndicated on the

CBS Radio Network CBS News Radio, formerly known as CBS Radio News and historically known as the CBS Radio Network, is a radio network that provides news to more than 1,000 radio stations throughout the United States. The network is owned by Paramount Global. It ...

. After 43 years at KUSC, Svejda announced his retirement. His last show was Friday, February 18, 2022. Svejda's replacement, KUSC Resident Artist Lara Downes was announced as his successor on March 18, 2022. {{DEFAULTSORT:Svejda, Jim American music critics Classical music radio presenters American radio personalities 1947 births Living people