Buffalo Toronto Public Media Blog
Explore the latest stories, innovations, and community voices shaping public media. From behind-the-scenes looks at groundbreaking productions to in-depth features on local culture and initiatives, the BTPM Blog keeps you connected to the heart of public storytelling. Dive into inspiring narratives that amplify the power of media to inform and engage.
BTPM Blog
The Fight is On; You Matter More Than Ever
The White House has formally asked Congress to rescind federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Public Media needs your voice now more than ever.
Showing Up with Pride: BTPM at the Buffalo Pride Parade
BTPM arrived at Buffalo Pride with a full cast of lovable characters. It was a celebration and
Sounds of the Stadium: What a Bandits Game Feels Like Live
An inside look at Banditland: the energy, passion, and pride of Buffalo fans captured during the NLL Championship Game 3.
Reflections of Honor: Memorial Day and the Power of Remembrance
It’s easy to think of Memorial Day as a start to summer. But for families who’ve lost someone in uniform, it’s a day that never loses its gravity.
Scenes from "Meet Us at the Market"
Buffalo Toronto Public Media was among the many vendors at this past Saturday's opening of farmers' markets across Buffalo. Check out our gallery of photos in this blog.
Buffalo's Soundtrack: The Role of Music Shaping Local Culture
In Buffalo, music isn’t just entertainment — it’s part of our identity.
What is a meat raffle?!
A theoretical synopsis on why the meat raffle has such strong roots in the city of Buffalo.
More Than Static: Why Public Media Still Matters to Me
A personal reflection on how public media shaped my life — and why we can't afford to lose it.
Community Voices: A Spotlight on Local Creatives and Changemakers
Highlighting the local poetry community as amplifiers for community voices.
Pitch, Play, and Public Media: What Baseball Taught Me About Storytelling
A trip to the ballpark turned into a reflection on the timeless power of public media — and why its evolution matters as much as the game’s.
Buffalo’s Hidden Histories: What We Forget, What We Remember
Explore how history lives around us in everyday places and conversations.
The Art of Storytelling: How Public Media Shapes Local Narratives
Explore how public media serves as a vital storyteller for local communities, preserving history, amplifying underrepresented voices, and fostering a shared cultural identity.
The BTPM Classical Blog is presented by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra
BTPM Classical Blog
Taking Time To Relax
Marty Wimmer of BTPM Classical reflects on what a vacation should feel like, with some help from classical composers.
Music and Memories: A Singer’s Perspective
Kerrykate Abel, Buffalo’s First Lady of Cabaret, details her personal soundtrack in this BTPM Classical blog.
Who Brought Classical Music Into Your Life Part II
I wrote a blog post in 2023 titled, Who Brought Classical Music into Your Life? I mentioned Don Dolloff, a legendary classical music radio announcer on WCNY-FM in Syracuse, NY, where I grew up. Last month, I received a message that Mr. Dolloff called me at BTPM.
Shakespeare's TWELFTH NIGHT Returns to Delaware Park for SiDP’s 50th Season, But Is It “Free”?
So, some thoughts: Just as we at BTPM Classical try to avoid playing only single movements and excerpts in favor of the entire concerto, symphony, or opera, why not enjoy the entire play? Your attention span is longer than the duke’s.
Cloud Music
Ed. Simone reminisces on a trip to Costa Rica and how nature's music became the soundtrack to his trip.
How It Started Vs. How It’s Going: Spring Edition
The average last frost date in Western New York is April 30 to May 15, some sources say May 11-20 for Southern Ontario. On the calendar, March 20 is the official start of spring.
Video Game Music Weekend: March 21-23, 2025
Imagine you are a composer tasked with creating the score for a new movie. You have about one hundred minutes of time to fill and your music must enhance what is happening on the screen. Now imagine that movie is 20+ hours long!
Ravel at 150: The Fonzi of Classical Music
March 7th marks Ravel’s 150th birthday. We’ll celebrate on WNED Classical with several Ravel masterworks. RAVEL is cool – always has been – always will be. But what makes Ravel the Fonzi of classical music?
BTPM Classical salutes WNY’s High School Musicals
High school musicals are a tradition in WNY and once again BTPM Classical is celebrating them on the air!
The Rainbow Connection
“Why are there so many songs about rainbows and what’s on the other side?” That’s the opening line of a song from The Muppet Movie sung by Kermit the Frog as he sits in his swamp on a log with his banjo.
Two big composer birthdays
We’re celebrating two big composer birthdays in 2025 on BTPM Classical – Giovanni Palestrina and Johann Strauss, Jr.
Holiday Music Redux
Listeners of BTPM Classical are sometimes surprised to learn that I listen to not only what we call classical but to other types of music as well. And never more than at Christmas.
BTPM The Bridge Blog
Upcoming Local Shows for 6/13 - 6/19
Check out local shows for June 13 through June 19 at Nietzsche's, Duffy's Tavern, Cazenovia Park, and more.
Upcoming Local Shows for 6/6 - 6/12
Check out local shows for June 6 through June 12 at Goodbar, Jack Rabbit, Larkinville, and more.
Upcoming Local Shows for 5/30 - 6/3
Local shows across WNY & Southern Ontario, including Tyler Westcott, Tuesday Nite, Laila, and Rabbit Jaw!
Upcoming Local Shows for 5/23 - 5/29
Local shows across WNY & Southern Ontario, including Spud, SMAC!, and Science Man!
Upcoming Local Shows for 5/16 - 5/22
Local shows across WNY & Southern Ontario this week, including Buffalo Porchfest,Sally Schaefer, and Diyené.
Upcoming Local Shows for 5/9 - 5/15
Live performances happening across WNY and Southern Ontario between Friday, May 9 and Thursday, May 15.
Upcoming Local Shows for 5/2 - 5/8
Check out our list of upcoming live performances for the weekend of May 2 and forward from artists with roots in Western New York and Southern Ontario and catch a show near you!
Upcoming Local Shows for 4/25 - 5/1
Check out our list of upcoming live performances from artists with roots in Western New York and Southern Ontario and catch a show near you!
Upcoming Local Shows for 4/11 - 4/17
BTPM The Bridge aims to amplify the local music scene by highlighting live local music and featuring local artists on our station. Check out our list of upcoming live performances from artists with roots in Western New York and Southern Ontario and catch a show near you!
Heritage Moments
Heritage Moments: A Black poet's 'song of fiercest passion'
James Monroe Whitfield was a remarkable figure in a remarkable time: a free Black man who owned his own home and his own business in pre-Civil War America; a renowned Romantic poet; and a leading voice in the abolitionist movement.
Heritage Moments: From a death march to liberation, to a quiet street in Kenmore, love prevails
Gerda Weissmann Klein lived a life of unimaginable sadness, loss, and misery, yet paradoxically, one of soaring hope, happiness, and achievement.
Heritage Moments: From New York to Paris in 1908, via Buffalo and Mongolia
Imagine driving across the continent on unpaved roads, railroad ties and trackless wastes… in an open car with no heat, no windshield, no nothing.
Heritage Moments: Chauncey Olcott, WNYs 'Wild Irish Rose'
Chauncey Olcott, a son of Buffalo and Lockport, did not set foot in the Emerald Isle until he was 40 years old.
Heritage Moments: How 'racial covenants' segregated WNY neighborhoods
Today, if you own a home across the Western New York suburbs and even in certain neighborhoods in Buffalo itself, you may still find “racial covenants” in your deed.
Heritage Moments: That’s why we call it Buffalo. Maybe.
We know why most cities have their names, but not Buffalo. New York City is named after York, England; Los Angeles is the city of Our Lady, Queen of the…
Heritage Moments: Annie Edson Taylor, Falls daredevil and a widow’s hard choices
In the days before death benefits, pensions and social security, an aging widow had to fend for herself, even one who was a trained, experienced…
Heritage Moments: Mary Jemison of the Seneca Nation, the ‘White Woman of the Genesee’
In 1823 along the Genesee River there lived an old woman who was quite famous in the region. She was Seneca, yet her features were European and her…
Heritage Moments: Mortally wounded, William McKinley thinks of his assassin - and his wife
The Pan-American Exposition of 1901, a world’s fair that marked Buffalo’s arrival as a major city — it should have left a legacy of joy. Instead, it left…
Heritage Moments: The Attica Prison Uprising — 43 dead and a four-decade cover-up
The Attica Prison Uprising of 1971 is one of the most disturbing episodes in the history of New York State and, indeed, the nation as a whole. It lasted…
Heritage Moments: Marilyn Bell, the teenager who conquered eels, exhaustion and Lake Ontario
Overnight sensation — that term gets bandied about from time to time. But Marilyn Bell literally was one. At 11:07 p.m. on Sept. 8, 1954, when she dove…
Heritage Moments: Frederick Law Olmsted and the stroll that saved Niagara
Niagara Falls in the 1800s was an industrialist’s dreamland and a huckster’s paradise. Cheap waterpower abounded — all you had to do was build a channel…