Station Profile & History

Licensee
The Trustees of Davidson College

Power
100,000 watts (directional)

Frequency
89.9 FM

Type
Noncommercial, listener-supported public radio service qualified by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Hours
24 hours/day

Programming
24 hours/day classical music, with features and calendar announcements about the arts.

Purpose
The two-fold purpose of the station is to provide a high quality classical music and cultural arts programming service and to support the activities of local arts organizations and artists.

Budget
Approximately $1.8 million.

Audience
Approximately 100,000 listeners per week. Approximately 5,500 members.

History
Idea for station first took shape during the presidency of Dr. Grier Martin.

Timeline

1969
President Samuel R. Spencer, Jr. authorizes on-campus student station.

1973
Student station upgraded to 10-watt operation.

1978
WDAV begins full service professional operation at 18,500 watts with all classical programming.

1981
Transmitter site change, increased tower height to 350 feet and power increase to 20,000 watts.

1986
Move into then-new McMillan Building.

1987
Grant qualification from Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

1988
Broadcast day extended to 24-hours.

1989
Power increase to 100,000 watts (directional).

1995
Increased tower height to 815 feet to improve signal.

1996
News headlines added from Monitor Radio News.

1997
Affiliation with National Public Radio; addition of NPR News Headlines.

1998
WDAV Celebrates 20 Years of Classical Music & Support of the Arts.
wdav.org website launches.

2000
First digital recording, editing, storage and automation system installed. Davidson College approves Main Street lot.

2001
Architectural plans for new WDAV facility finalized and approved.

2002
New WDAV facility built and occupied.
WDAV launches online digital stream.

2003
New WDAV facility named the “Samuel W. Newell Building.”

2005
WDAV begins transmitting HD (digital) radio signal.

2007
Main Street Sessions series begins.

2008
A VOX Christmas debuts (later renamed Lessons & Carols from St. John’s).

2009
Biscuits & Bach debuts on Sunday mornings (March); A Carolina Christmas from Biltmore Estate with Kathy Mattea distributed by NPR.
WDAV begins producing concert programs from Brevard Music Center (June, July and August).

2010
WDAV begins producing programs from Spoleto Festival USA (May and June).
WDAV begins producing World of Opera (February) and Concierto (October).

2011
WDAV begins distributing World of Opera (October).

2012
WDAV and Concierto mobile apps launched.

2013
Antenna replaced after lightning damage.

2014
WDAV launches Young Chamber Musicians Competition (YCMC) in Tyler-Tallman Hall at Davidson College.

2015
YCMC expands to national competition.

2016
Reel Music becomes weekly series hosted by Matt Rogers.
YCMC moves to Duke Family Performance Hall at Davidson College to allow for larger audience.
WDAV achieves the #1 audience share of any classical music public radio station.
WDAV begins staging concerts at farmers markets for its Classical Harvest Concert Series.

2017
WDAV debuts a number of podcast series including Classical Road Trip, Piedmont Arts Podcast, From the John Clark Performance Studio, and WDAV Dispatch from Spoleto.
At the Opera with Lisa Simeone premieres.
WDAV becomes presenting sponsor of the Davidson College Concert Series.
WDAV’s Small Batch Concert Series launched at Free Range Brewing in Charlotte, NC.

2018
WDAV celebrates 40th Anniversary with a number of special station events and projects.