When Jeffrey Showell visited campus to interview as dean for the College of Musical Arts, he was
impressed by the quality of the college’s programs and surprised that its reputation wasn’t better
known.
Showell, who was appointed dean last year, said that part of his mission was to get the name of Bowling
Green State University out to the rest of the world.
Friday night he announced that the College of Musical Arts will produce a radio program that will be
distributed by National Public Radio.
The College is working with Brad Cresswell, the classical programming director with WGTE-FM in Toledo.

Cresswell said that when he came to Toledo from New York City in 2009 one of his aims was to work closely
with the region’s musical communities, including through a program like this.
The program will feature live performances along with interviews with performers and composers as well as
peeks backstage at rehearsals and master classes.
The idea, Cresswell said, is to "capture compelling stories" about the music.
Showell said the competitions hosted by the school including the Peatee Art Song Competition, the David
Dubois Piano Competition as well as the concerto and chamber music competitions will also be featured.

The series will especially highlight contemporary music activities, Cresswell said.
BGSU is "kind of a Midwest mecca for modern music. That’s what caught the attention of the folks in
Chicago."
The programs will be curated and co-hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Jennifer Higdon, a BGSU
graduate, and Emily Freeman Brown, the university’s director of orchestral activities.
WFMT, the classical music public radio station in Chicago, will serve as executive producer of the
programs. Cresswell said it is the largest distributor of classical music programs in the country.
Cresswell, who has worked on national broadcasts of the Metropolitan Opera, will write the scripts and
coordinate the efforts.
An initial run of 13 hour-long programs are now being produced and are scheduled to start airing next
January.
Showell said the opening of the Wolfe Center for the Arts gives BGSU an ideal place to record programs.

Showell made the announcement before the first performance in the Wolfe Center’s Donnell Theatre.
The performance was an opera gala featuring some of opera’s greatest hits performed by faculty and
graduate student soloists, university choral ensembles and the Bowling Green Philharmonia.
The two-hour gala concluded with a performance of the "Triumphal March" from "Aida"
performed by about 300 singers and instrumentalists, including a brass section in the catwalks
The gala will be staged again tonight at 8.