Programming Like a Pendulum
In each newsletter, we present a guest article from one of our MusicMaster ProTeam consultants. This month, Tracy Johnson of the Tracy Johnson Media Group describes how to sequence music like the flow of a pendulum.
When a programmer finds a way to improve music flow, it's like discovering the Holy Grail of music programming. It's probably how Alexander Graham Bell felt the first time he heard the telephone ring.
Music flow should be a primary goal for every programmer. It's at the core of a station's success. The song-to-song sequencing is more important than just about anything else.
Every time a listener tunes in, they should get a snapshot of the images a brand wishes to project. That means a balance in tempo, texture, genre, familiarity and exposure of new songs.
Yet song-to-song music sequencing is a big problem for most station playlists.
A swinging pendulum could be the key to improve music flow. Here's how:
Schedule Music Like a Pendulum
A pendulum swings back and forth from one extreme to the other. It always passes through the center. So should music on the radio. This prevents extreme segues and makes the station easier to listen to. That, in turn, enhances TSL.
To set up a pendulum system that delivers the desired sound:
1. For each song attribute used in the music system database, identify the center (core sound) of your station.
2. Code all songs in the library against the center. Always code just one attribute at a time. For example, go through the whole library coding for tempo, then repeat for each of the other codes used.
3. When scheduling, ensure the musical pendulum passes through the center before visiting either extreme.
For example, a CHR station's musical center may pure pop music (Justin Bieber, Beyonce, Justin Timberlake). The extremes on one side may be:
On the other side you may find:
The goal for song sequencing could be:
Pop-Dance-Pop-Pop Rock-Pop-Hip Hop-Pop-Soft/AC-Pop-Pop
If the station leans a bit more to the rhythmic side of the spectrum, fine-tune the flow to allow something like this:
Pop-Dance-Hip-Hop-Pop-Pop Rock-Pop-Dance-Hip Hop-Pop
In this case, take care to clearly identify differences in coding between Hip Hop and Dance.
Improve Music Flow Execution
To emphasize the science of scheduling music, set up categories based on music type, and manage the pendulum through
clocks. Or manage it with a series of
rules that require a defined song type in specific clock slots. I prefer doing it through clocks, but that's up to you.
If you don't want to delegate that much of the decision to the software, work with the programming team to fully understand how to "hear" the station each day in the manual scheduler.
The objective is simple:
- When playing an extreme type of song that appeals to a subset of the station's target audience, always return to the center.
- Never play two of extreme songs back to back.
- Avoid swings from one extreme to the other.
This will give your station a consistent, natural flow. Listeners won't notice it and comment on it, but they'll feel it every time they tune in. This is a detail that adds layers of unique listening benefits to a station brand.
Conclusion
Getting settings (coding) set properly will take time and experimentation, but once it's set, the difference will be amazing.
Take your time in coding, and make sure the categories, clocks and song titles are working together to achieve the desired sound.
Want more advice like this? Read more about Tracy and his services on our
ProTeam page or on Tracy's website:
TJohnsonMediaGroup.com. Or contact Tracy directly at (858) 472-3546 or Tracy@TJohnsonMediaGroup.com.