After a torrid few weeks in which everything has gone wrong for RTÉ, in one instance at least it’s heading in the right direction. The decision to bring forward the transmission of Arena (RTÉ Radio 1, weekdays) nudges the network’s much-touted but habitually hidden cultural remit out of the evening shadows, albeit fractionally, with Seán Rocks’s arts magazine now kicking off at 6.30pm rather than 7pm. While hardly a monumental development, and possibly a coincidental one, it’s surely welcome, the earlier start reminding listeners that there’s more to Radio 1′s weekday output than grim news and light chat, as can sometimes seem the case.
But if Rocks has any expectations that the new slot will shake things up, he’s not letting on. Instead, it’s business as usual, with Arena following its tried and trusted (and only very occasionally tired) format of interviews, reviews and excerpts from across the artistic spectrum. If the formula is conventional, however, the content is more adventurous. On Monday, Rocks talks to sean-nós singer Iarla Ó Lionáird about his ambient musical contribution to a forthcoming multimedia installation by artist Niamh McCann on the Border at the site of the Battle of the Boyne.
If this sounds almost parodically avant-garde, the interview piques interest rather than invites sneers. Regarding the show’s central premise – the establishment of the Border – Rocks suggests “it’s a difficult thing to work your head around in artistic terms”, while Ó Lionáird says his approach to composing the music fitted with the concept’s ambiguity: “That’s my way of saying I don’t know what I did,” he chuckles. Such honesty is refreshing, and ensures an appeal to a more general listenership, but the brief clips from Ó Lionáird’s work show the tangible results of all that agonising.
One senses that, having helmed Arena in insouciantly confident fashion for more than a decade, Rocks would take any influx of additional listeners in his stride
Similarly, Tuesday’s conversation with musicians Rónán Ó Snodaigh and Myles O’Reilly about their new album moves from airy muso speak about the recording process to Ó Snodaigh’s poignant reflection on writing a song for his late mother, interspersed with vivid live renditions. Rocks – who also hosts a lively Sunday afternoon show on Lyric FM – is a versatile presence, alive to the subtleties of his wide artistic brief, but remaining grounded on behalf of the audience. Talking to writer Sinéad Gleeson about Art Monster, American author Lauren Elkin’s new book on female artists, the host engages thoughtfully about gender and body politics in visual art, but can’t help firing off the odd cheeky question: “What is an art monster?” It’s just on the right side of glib, yet equally speaks of an awareness of a lay audience.
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Either way, one senses having helmed Arena in insouciantly confident fashion for more than a decade, Rocks would take any influx of additional listeners in his stride. Not that the latest tentative move into prime time is likely to unduly trouble his show’s ratings. But with the future shape of Radio 1′s schedule still uncertain, it’s worth pointing out that specialist coverage of the arts wasn’t always bounced to the margins.
In the late 1990s, Arena’s forerunner The Arts Show moved from evenings to afternoons, under the amiable tutelage of Mike Murphy. As Murphy later recalled, the programme lost some core listeners, but tripled its numbers. Rattlebag, which succeeded The Arts Show, retained an afternoon slot, allowing presenter Myles Dungan to bring a raft of cultural items to a mainstream audience.
As things stand, Arena’s new transmission time means it now clashes with Culture File, Luke Clancy’s dependably unpredictable daily dive into the arts on Lorcan Murray’s Classic Drive (Lyric FM, weekdays). The podcast-friendly nature of Clancy’s compellingly offbeat featurettes means it’s not a zero-sum choice for interested consumers, but it’s frustrating that RTÉ's two regular radio arts slots are now effectively rivals. And that’s before one gets to the exquisite irony that Montrose bosses were actively considering closing down the classical-focused Lyric – both a public service and cultural asset – at the same time they were underwriting lucrative side deals for their highest-paid presenter.
Speaking of whom, The Ryan Tubridy Show (RTÉ Radio 1, weekdays) carries some intriguing creative content, as Oliver Callan continues as stand-in host on the ever-more-pointlessly titled show. On Wednesday, Callan talks to the author (and Irish Times contributor) Sarah Gilmartin about her new novel set in Celtic Tiger-era kitchens, touching on issues such as #MeToo, while on Tuesday he chats with artist Jennifer Humphreys about a project promoting visual artists with intellectual disabilities. Humphreys is a particularly arresting guest, self-aware and driven: describing her disability as missing the “cop-on gene” (despite glaring evidence to the contrary), she has extensively studied at art colleges, and seeks to make her living as an artist.
It’s a genuinely inspiring story. Callan, however, isn’t as natural an interviewer as Tubridy in such circumstances, sounding slightly hesitant at times. Moreover, while his satirical show Callan’s Kicks is often savagely funny, during his opening monologues, the guest host comes across as slightly too pleased with himself, unintentionally but unfortunately. It turns out this easy listening business is more difficult that it sounds. Still, Callan’s interviews probably count as cultural broadcasting, even if the coverage inevitably focuses on human interest more than aesthetics.
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When it comes to dedicated arts programming, as RTÉ producer Kevin Brew noted in an article for The Irish Times this week, the network has a rich seam of stimulating and innovative radio productions. But too often, this output can only found on the fringes. (And yes, there could be more attention paid to arts radio in this column. Mark down as “must do better”.) Surely one way for the State broadcaster to atone for its catastrophic missteps would be to place its cultural offerings front and centre. Arena’s new time slot is a positive move, but there’s a long way to go.
