[members-announce] 30th Anniversary of In A Mellow Tone

[Ron Sweetman]

            IN A MELLOW TONEs 30th ANNIVERSARY




               15,000 HOURS of VOLUNTEERING






CKCU-FM 93.1 listeners in Ottawa first heard the mid-Atlantic accent of 
jazz activist Ron Sweetman on May 5, 1976, when he took over the show 
"Blue  'n' Boogie" from regular host Paul Hoffman for the summer. When Paul 
returned, Ron was offered his own show, which he named "In A Mellow Tone" 
in deference to the Duke Ellington composition sometimes spelled "In A 
Mellotone".



Each week, Ron spends an average of seven hours among his vast collection 
of books and records researching and preparing each program. Each program 
features a musician, a style, a country, a festival, an instrument or a 
record label. Some musicians, such as Lovie Austin, Clifford Brown, Gil 
Evans and Charles Mingus, even get a series of programs devoted to them. 
Once a month Ron reviews recent jazz and blues releases. One of the 
characteristics of the programming is Ron's broad musical taste and 
geographic range; you'll hear recordings made around the world between 1917 
to 2006. As a record collector, he says his areas of special interest are 
New Orleans in the 'twenties, South African jazz and the contemporary Dutch 
scene.



The show runs every Wednesday from 9:00 to 11:00pm, and Ron allows three 
hours to get to/from the radio station and present the program. Add seven 
hours for preparation and three hours for presentation, and you have ten 
hours a week, five hundred hours a year, or fifteen thousand hours of 
volunteered time after thirty years!



CKCU-FM 93.1 and Ron are celebrating this anniversary on two dates in May. 
On Wednesday May 3, Ron will devote his 30th Anniversary program to 
contemporary Canadian jazz and blues musicians. On Friday May 5, CKCU will 
host the In A Mellow Tone 30th Birthday Party at the Bayou.

Some of the best local jazz musicians have volunteered to animate this evening.



In A Mellow Tone is now heard around the world on the Internet at: 
www.ckcufm.com.



For more information contact:



Matthew Crosier, Station Manager CKCU-FM 93.1.
613-520-2600 x 1625. mcrosier at ccs.carleton.ca.

or

Ron Sweetman. 613-730-2083.

ronsweetman at canada.com.