WGAY and WQMR Washington's Quality Music Radio

ED WINTON Creator of Beautiful Music format for WGAY and WQMR Washington DC

The station signed on December 7, 1946 as WGAY,  under manager co-owner Joseph L. Brechner, WGAY was popular, and was soon owned by food broker John W Kluge ( who was to command WTTG-TV in DC and  the Metropolitan Broadcasting MetroMedia empire in later years). Kluge sold to Connie B. Gay a country music entrepreneur. It was believed that WGAY was named for Connie B. Gay, though it was merely coincidental. It was later purported that the station initially broadcast government job openings, and that WGAY stood for "Government And You." 

Connie B. Gay and operators, Ted Dorf, Ed Winton and Bill Doty and later Alan Campbell and Bob Chandler, are credited with creating the beautiful music format there, which was mostly instrumental music, with orchestral covers of showtunes, soundtrack excerpts, and standard popular songs. On February 1, 1960, the WGAY calls were moved to the FM band at 99.5 MHz, while the AM station became WQMR, for "Washington's Quality Music Radio." On Sunday afternoons at 1:00 p.m., Matinee at One played a complete Broadway show soundtrack with an explanation of the plot by Manager Ed Winton and produced by Bill Doty.  Initially operated as an experimental country music station (C. B. Gay was a country and western music promoter) but started simulcasting WQMR beautiful music fulltime around 1961. These simulcasts would usually end nightly at sunset when WQMR had to sign off as required by the FCC, and WGAY-FM contnued by playing country music operating from a 45rpm singles jukebox in a hallway closet just off the production  studio. WGAY-FM was rarely mentioned on the air or in advertisements. When Alan Campbell was hired in the fall of 1961 the FM station dropped country music in the evenings and went with the AM beautiful music format.

original studios, offices at transmitter site on Kemp Mill Road, Wheaton, Md.

Studios and offices World Building, Georgia Ave, Silver Spring, Md:

 WQMR soon increased in power from 1000 watts on the AM band, while WGAY would upgrade from 20 kilowatts monophonic on the low power FM band to a 50 kilowatt stereo signal. Both WQMR and WGAY moved to the World Building, located on Georgia Avenue, just north of the intersection of Maryland Route 410 (East-West-Highway) in Silver Spring, in 1966. This simulcast arrangement continued well into the 1980s, as WQMR call sign reverted back to WGAY. In the 1970's Chandler was known to arrange for recordings of music that he did the station did not have in the the library. C B Gay and co-owner manager Ted Dorf sold the station on September 1, 1984 to Greater Media.



also go to....

Bill Halvorsen's WQMR WGAY Memories Web Pages

50th anniversary year WDVR, PHILADELPHIA, PA

Previously called WDVR (Delaware Valley Radio) the station pioneered the Beautiful Music format beginning in 1963. Original staff included Rich Franklin and Dave Shayer, both broadcast veterans, and were two of the original air staff hired when they first went on the air May 13, 1963. Both, later, were Music Directors at 101.1 FM, and are still active in broadcasting today. Also part of the first air staff were Lou Klawansky (air name: Lee Kramer), Frank Goshy (air name: Frank Edwards), and Joaquin Bowman. Working with Jerry Lee, Marlin Taylor, Phil Stout (later Programmer of SRP), Dave Kurtz, Alan Campbell and others, WDVR skyrocketed to phenomenal success and became a broadcasting legend. 101.1 FM was, and is, one of the most successful independent FM stations in the country.

Sole owner

JOHN BARRY's Somewhere In Time

Most popular selection on the BEAUTIFULinstrumentals.com playlist
of over 3000 selections currently in rotation on the Internet station.
Voted number one by listeners via 'thumbs UP' on their station player.

While director Jeannot Szwarc's 1980 time-travel romance nearly drowned in a sea of its own bathos, the score of the Christopher Reeve/Jane Seymour vehicle has become something of a word-of-mouth classic. Chalk that status up to the late great English composer John Barry, whose lushly romantic score has largely overshadowed the film it was written for. Note to Titanic fans: if you liked the score for that film, you may fall in love with (or to) this one as well. Ironically, much of the action of Somewhere in Time takes place in 1912, the year the Titanic sank. --Jerry McCulley from amazon.com

AVAILABLE RECORDINGS

Composer, Conductor JOHN FOX memoirs

John Fox's natural talents for composing, arranging and conducting were tenderly nurtured in London's Royal College of Music where he achieved ARCM (Associate of Royal College of Music). John's undeniable genius forged in the crucible of toil, study and unremitting search for perfection has long been recognised by his peers. This autobiography contains the ups and downs of a lifetime in music some sad times, emotional and happy and some tragic disasters. Millions of listeners in the USA, Great Britain, Japan, South Africa and Germany, plus many other countries throughout the world, have found much pleasure and exhilaration in John's wonderful music including radio networks, his many record albums and live performances. Determination and hard work have seen him through some hard times, but it proves that if you have a talent (not only in music) that with a lot of hard study and love, the world will be at your feet! --Chris Morgan, BBC Executive Producer via amazon.com

Happy Birthday Ben

Happy Birthday Ben...sure you would have loved our beautiful instrumentals.
Benjamin Franklin (January 17, 1706 – April 17, 1790) was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat. As a scientist, he was a major figure in the American Enlightenment and the history of physics for his discoveries and theories regarding electricity. He invented the lightning rod, bifocals, the Franklin stove, a carriage odometer, and the glass 'armonica'. He facilitated many civic organizations, including a fire department and a university. His celebrity and political savvy were to be exploited frequently on Philly Talk Radio. However he did not invent radio and had to use The Saturday Evening Post and Poor Richard's Almanac. MORE

beautiful instrumentals.com | Beautiful music radio: Many of our records were found at KEYSTONE RECORD ...

beautiful instrumentals.com | Beautiful music radio: Many of our records were found at KEYSTONE RECORD ...: Keystone Record Collectors Site

Recent Station Stats...

Most popular selection ( Thumbs Up )
Somewhere In Time Suite by John Barry Top Countries tuning in
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Many of our records were found at KEYSTONE RECORD COLLECTORS...

Keystone Record Collectors Site

The Essential Danny Wright

The many recordings of keyboardist/composer Danny Wright are difficult to classify. His music is heard on www.BeautifulInstrumentals.com, www.MUSIClassical.com and RADIO nuages from the BIGroup of stations. He specializes in three distinct music styles: adult contemporary compositions, Broadway show tunes and movie themes, and classical music. His original compositions tend to be in the adult contemporary mode and are frequently inspired by classical composers such as Beethoven, Pachelbel and Debussy as well as by such Broadway greats as Gershwin, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Jerome Kern and Stephen Sondheim. MORE  |  AVAILABLE RECORDINGS

Jerzy F. Przybylski

Published on Jan 6, 2013 "Piano by The Sea" an Original Composition Written and Copyright (C) 2013 by Jerzy F. Przybylski ( ASCAP ) typed on Practice January 6, 2013 in HillCrest Concert Hall in La Verne, CA, USA

Love's River Laura Sullivan

Laura Sullivan composes soft Adult Contemporary/Classical and New Age Music. She is a pianist as well as a singer and writes, arranges and records most of her own music. She has composed many original songs which chart on international radio stations including our BEAUTIFUL instrumentals.com station. She also arranges unique new renditions of classical and traditional favorites. This long awaited musical offering includes eleven tracks of Laura Sullivan s emotional and soul touching piano music combined with Cello, Acoustic Guitar, English Horn, Oboe, Flugel Horn, and Trumpet. Laura Sullivan is joined on this album by Grammy award winning artist and founder of Windham Hill Records, the legendary Will Ackerman. Mr. Ackerman contributes his beautiful guitar playing on the sweet and loving track Blessed as well as producing four selections on the CD. Grammy winning artist Nancy Rumbel, from the beloved duo Tingstad and Rumbel, contributes her remarkable Oboe and English Horn skills to the mystical piece that leads off the CD, Secrets from the Deep. Other artists on the album include horn player Jeff Oster, winner of Album of the Year and Best Contemporary Instrumental Album awards at the NAR Lifestyle Music Awards presented by NewAgeReporter.com, world renowned cello player Eugene Friesen, and the great English Horn player, Jill Haley. - amazon.com

CREATION new album from Lawrence Sumpter

Once again Lawrence has brought to us a piece of art work that is truly a divine inspiration, and allowed the glorious sound to grace our presence. As usual the music is soothing and inspirational for all who listen. I recommend this album to all who want to experience something wonderful.-amazon.com
Several tracks from his album are being featured on our BEAUTIFUL instrumentals station.  

His Website
B002QGC85QThe album CREATION at amazon.com