Will Radio Filarmonía suffer the same fate as Radio Oasis? An interview as part of the 40th anniversary

Of the 22 members that made up the team of Radio Philharmonic, now only six keep the programming offered by this emblematic radio station alive. On the verge of its 40th anniversary, its commitment to continue as the main broadcaster of classical music in Peru is more valid than ever.

Since its first broadcast on January 1, 1984, under the name Solarmonía on 88.9 FM, the emblematic radio station maintains its main objective of being a cultural broadcaster that serves as a musical bastion within Peruvian society. “The listener has changed and so has the way music is appreciated, now the compositions found on the radio are quick to consume and easy to forget, but classical music endures over time, what we do is proof of this.””, mentions the former executive director of Radio Filarmonía and member of the Filarmonía Cultural Association, Pauline Barrón Mifflin.

In addition to classical music programming, which makes up 80% of its regular programming, the station includes programs such as “An encounter with our Creole music”, “Hanac-Pacha”, “Sonidos del Mundo”, hosted by Mabela Martínez, “ From song to song” directed by Carlos Flores Ledesma, “The Sunday Chat”, “Palco Real” and “Show Time” by Nicolás Kisic.

A classic radio

How to compete against radio stations that broadcast other types of music? It’s just not done. “We are not a commercial radio station, we are not in any ranking, nor have we won anyone’s bet, we do this out of pure conviction,” says Barrón, who took on great challenges to keep Radio Filarmonía alive. “To guarantee that it has another ten more years of broadcasting to reach 50 years, very tough decisions have been made, but they work to keep the signal on broadcast”explains Barrón.

This series of difficult provisions worsened during the pandemic, at which time they went from 14 to 4 sponsors, encouraging the horizon of contributions that help maintain the radio to be expanded. “The State supports us, but we do not want to belong to it, that is why we seek private support with donations from Friends of Radio, a group of people who contribute, and the events we hold, in addition to the few sponsors who are always present ”says Barrón about Radio Filarmonía, which is now hosted at the Betel facilities in Morro Solar.

However, the station continues to adapt to new technologies and seek innovative strategies to maintain its relevance and reach to today’s audience. Although the news of the closure of Radio Oasis maintains concern about the future of this iconic radio station, Radio Filarmonía will continue its usual transmission. “Since Filarmonía was founded we have always dealt with this type of permanent crisis, whether the transmission will be turned off, whether we are going to stop for a long time or whether we will be able to continue for several more years, but they are things that we always manage to overcome”he concludes.