You might be hearing some different tunes in the car soon.
Jazz programming has returned to many listeners in the Pittsburgh metro area with the addition of WZUM, the Pittsburgh Jazz Channel, at 101.1 FM.
WZUM's coverage area
"We're thrilled to provide this greatly needed service for the community of music fans and musicians for which Pittsburgh is famous," said Scott Hanley, general manager of WZUM. "This has been a dream, deferred, for tens of thousands of listeners in the region."
WZUM touts itself as pioneering a new approach for local radio, with the ability to broadcast from anywhere in the region without the need for a brick-and-mortar building.
"We are on the bleeding edge of modern radio and how it's done," said Chuck Leavens, the president of Pittsburgh Public Media, which owns the station. Leavens also is chief engineer and announcer at WZUM.
The station is run by former staffers of WDUQ. Essential Public Media, a WYEP subsidiary, purchased 90.5 FM in 2011 from Duquesne University and dropped its largely jazz format and WDUQ call letters.
WZUM can be heard on 88.1 FM from Bethany, WV; 1550 AM in Braddock; and 101.1 FM from Pittsburgh's North Side. The station is available everywhere via
www.wzum.org
.