Program director always wanted to be "KING-FM guy"

Sometimes a departure is just a departure.

When KING-FM (98.1) radio announced that program manager Bob Goldfarb was leaving, to be replaced by the station's Bryan Lowe, the arts community was abuzz. Goldfarb's tenure at KING-FM had lasted only a little more than two years, but it had been a controversial period that led to the unhappy departures of two highly popular hosts, George Shangrow and Tom Dahlstrom.

The loss of Shangrow and Dahlstrom — who'd been with the station 15 and 17 years, respectively — spurred a public outcry, with letters and e-mails arriving at The Seattle Times, as well as the KING-FM offices. During Goldfarb's relatively short tenure, the station's ratings also plummeted.

Was Goldfarb fired? Would Shangrow and Dahlstrom soon return?

No and no.

It seems clear that Goldfarb left KING-FM for the reasons he stated: a desire for a more flexible life, made possible by a return to consulting, which he began doing for KING once he left the staff in September. KING-FM board members and staffers alike attest that there was no firing.

Happily, it appears that the station's vital signs also are improving. This summer the number of listener minutes went up 28 percent from year to year (with the average listener upping time tuned to KING from 6 hours 15 minutes to 8 hours), and share ratings (the industry standard measurement) increased from 2.4 to 3. Online listeners at www.king.org are up, too. And with Bryan Lowe, who took up the reins in September, the station is in the hands of a program director who knows and loves the station, and has worked there since 1979.

Because of his experience in running the station's streaming, or online listening at www.king.org, Lowe also is positioned to understand the fine points of technology as it applies to KING-FM. The station was at the forefront nationally in creating a model for an Internet presence that really works.

"I've known Bryan for all 26 of his years at KING-FM," says Peter Newman, former program director whose retirement was followed by Goldfarb's arrival. Newman had earlier hired Goldfarb as a consultant.

"Bryan is a terrific choice, and his hiring demonstrates continuity in a greater sense at the station."

Lowe says he is continuing to consult with Goldfarb, who provides him with "very useful advice," but it's also clear that he is taking his own direction.

"I grew up here, and I played in the Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra, the Seattle Philharmonic, the Bellevue Philharmonic," Lowe explains.

"I want to make sure KING-FM really stays connected with the community. We have a wonderful audience loyalty, built up over a period of almost 60 years — that's a long, strong heritage. The community has an emotional ownership of the station, and they're so protective of KING-FM. We couldn't ask for better."

The station is connected to the community in other ways, too. It is jointly owned by Seattle Opera, the Seattle Symphony and ArtsFund, thanks to the unique provisions of the gift to the community of the station, made by former owners Harriet Bullitt and Priscilla Bullitt Collins.

"Essentially, we're owned by the Symphony, the Opera and ArtsFund," Lowe says, "and you can't get more local than that."

KING-FM board member Peter Donnelly, who steps down at the end of the year as the head of ArtsFund, says Lowe's "good ear for the community" will be one of his primary assets as program director.

Among Lowe's plans for the station are fine-tuning the mix of classical music and such features as the BBC News, probably eliminating some talk features in order to focus more on the music that listeners love.

He's looking for some pieces that stretch listeners a little, too, like the music of classical cellist Matt Haimovitz, who plays in such unusual venues as Ballard's Tractor Tavern.

Music also must suit the respective time of day. The workday usually has works of the classic era, plus composers Lowe views as relaxing — Debussy and Ravel, for instance. You're likely to hear baroque music in the morning, with that steady beat getting everyone through the commuter traffic.

What about the possible return of Shangrow and Dahlstrom to the announcing lineup? That isn't in Lowe's plans.

"George and Tom are my friends. But at this point I want to keep everybody I have — I owe them fair treatment, and I'm happy with them." Sean MacLean is now on as the afternoon drive guy, and Gigi Yellen works the 7 p.m.-to-midnight shift.

Lowe also is contacting major groups across the Northwest to put more concerts on the air.

"Not necessarily interviews," he explains. "Take the Auburn Symphony Orchestra: Talk doesn't necessarily help change people's perceptions of what that out-of-the-way orchestra might be, but when they hear the music, they will realize the quality."

Music will be featured right before a given local group's concert, as a way of pointing listeners toward live performance — a departure from Goldfarb's practice.

Lowe says the KING-FM job is the one he always wanted.

"Other kids want to be firefighters. I wanted to be the KING-FM guy. I love this work."

Melinda Bargreen: mbargreen@seattletimes.com