Forget television! Growing up in my house the radio was always playing. I couldn't study, shower, walk, sleep, or eat without it. My taste in music changed over the years throughout my distinct rebellious phases. However, my parents tastes were un-waivering. It was always National Public Radio with programs like Fresh Air, Prairie Home Companion, The Car Guys, and Mystery Theater. I loved it when my parents turned on NPR. Especially during those long car trips.
My brother was the biggest radio fanatic of all of us. He ran the high school radio station and after college rode the airwaves from disc jockey to program director to national radio consultant. He now co-owns eleven popular radio stations in California. My niece, twelve years old, has her own station called School of Pop that she streams live. And before you skip over the link thinking it's child play, think again, it's a great station. Don't ever play Name That Tune with her, because she knows every song in the book regardless of genre and can tell you when it first played, where it was recorded, who recorded it, and more. I guess you could say we're a pro-radio family.
So when Katie Macpherson, asked to do a radio interview for World Radio Paris, an NPR affiliate, I jumped at the chance. I met her at the metro station close to my apartment and we walked down to my local farmer's market to shop for seasonal produce and then headed back to my apartment to cook it up while she interviewed me about life in Paris and cooking in a French restaurant. For three hours we cooked, ate, taped, and talked. How she edited all that jammer down to five minutes is beyond me!
If the player is not working try this link: WRP Interview by Katie Macpherson
Something happens to my brain when I have a microphone in my face. The gerbals stop running up there. My own story – my own history – disappears. Luckily Katie is a great journalist and she kept those questions coming for three hours en plus despite fish scales flying around like confetti and various dishes cooking on the stovetop. It's a little nerve wracking to cook with a microphone a few inches from your face, like rubbing your belly and patting your head simultaneously. Challenging but fun.
I like Katie, she's quirky. She's this beautiful young American woman who is petit, cheerful, and smart. And yet despite her diminutive frame and sweet disposition, I can somehow picture her elbowing her way through a pack of crowded reporters and getting the headline story. She's not afraid to ask questions and she's not afraid of people. That may sound simplistic, but the reality takes faith and determination. I don't think I could do it.
I was intrigued with her desire to pursue radio journalism, when clearly she would be equally successful on TV. I know that she has dabbled in television but her heart remains with radio perhaps due to the simplicity of medium – no heavy cameras to lug around, no makeup to put on, no camera shy interviewees or camera-loving candidates. If the story and the relationship with the interviewee are the objectives, then radio, seems to me, to be the purest way of capturing it.
Being interviewed was an enlightening experience. I sometimes interview myself in the shower and I definitely have been grilled during job interviews, but this was different. This was personal. And yet, it was so easy to open up to her. She asked me questions I had never thought about which ultimately helped me to gain some personal clarity. Everybody should be interviewed, it's cheaper than therapy and gets a lot off your mind!
I couldn't help but to ponder afterwards, if our world is becoming too visually focused – if we are loosing our oral traditions. When I taught English in India, I used radio plays as a teaching tool. The students loved reading the lines and performing the sound effects. My students always laughed nervously when they heard their first lines played back through the tape recorder but after a few minutes they became entranced with the story itself. They understood the idea of story telling and listening because it is such a rich part of Indian culture. Later, in the Bay Area, I used radio plays again in my theatre classes but my students struggled with the concept. They were unaccustomed to communicating a story through their voices or listening to the story played back without squirming around. They wanted to see everything acted out.
Hope you enjoy listening to this short interview. We had a great time making it even if my brain wasn't functioning properly. I think the background sounds are especially fun. Wish there was more of Katie's voice in it. I interviewed her a little during our session, but she obviously cut that out. We joked about starting a radio cooking show. Heck, if The Car Guys can fix engines through the airwaves then perhaps it's possible to teach French technique. They're both time consuming and ridiculously complicated. Anyway, hope you find the interview entertaining and please check out World Radio Paris if you're living in France.
There's some interesting stories to be heard out there...
Technorati Tags: Ms. Glaze, NPR affiliate, radio, radio interview, world radio paris
That was so cool! I loved the interview! Its like your famous or something...
Miss you, hope your summer is going well! Hope to see you soon-like really soon...your coming out here arent you?
Happy late anniversary to you two!!
Love, Sara
Posted by: Sara Goldrath | July 10, 2007 at 06:51 PM
glad you got the audio onto the site! love the part when you clip off the fins. xx L
Posted by: maitresse | July 10, 2007 at 11:38 PM
Oh, not fair, you can only listen to WPR in France! What's that? Talk about lack of globalisation...
Your interview was very good.
Posted by: lilalia | July 11, 2007 at 02:32 AM
Excellent interview Ms G and congrats on becoming a Radio Star. Who said Video killed him?
I'm an avid BBC Radio 4 fan and, given a choice of radio or TV know which I'd take to a desert island.
Some Radio 4 'magazine' programmes have a cooking spot - so your idea of recipes or cooking techniques is one with mileage.
They also do The Food Programme which is more often to do with social/economic/political/environmental issues around food but is a great listen anyway.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/factual/foodprogramme.shtml
Posted by: Alan | July 12, 2007 at 07:54 AM
Bonjour... Couldn't ever get your clip to load using the links in your blog, so I finally followed the URL back to the roosieandroo site and loaded the .mp3 file (instead of the .html).
http://www.roosieandroo.com/media/msglaze/MsGlaze06072908.mp3
Whooo-hooo...success! Just in case anyone else has the same problem.
Cheers...
Posted by: SAS | July 13, 2007 at 03:58 PM
it's random how the journalist's voice sounds very NPR-ish. i wonder if your voice changes when you start doing radio...
and an internet radio of a cooking show would be great. there is one in new york and he brings on guests and takes user questions.
Posted by: the pauper | July 17, 2007 at 07:21 AM
If a man comes to your front door and says he is conducting a survey And asks you to show him your bum, do not show him your bum. This is a scam. He only wants to see your bum. I wish I had got this yesterday. I feel so stupid and cheap. -The Bum http://www.widgetmate.com
Posted by: Mantra Mali | July 18, 2007 at 12:22 AM
Thank you Ms Glaze! (I don't know if your first name is on the site, so I won't say it). Just incase you didn't know, this is your lovely neice. Thanks for advertising School of Pop!!
Love you
"DJ Stringbean"
Posted by: DJ Stringbean | April 10, 2008 at 11:25 AM