Kevin O'Connor: How to survive the 'graveyard shift' of classical hosting

After nearly 40 years in this unique profession, I’ve established a few of my own truisms.

Chiefly: I cherish the privilege of sharing music and stories with an engaged audience. The hours when that happens, however, are of less concern.

Some radio people might bristle at this, but after all these decades, I embrace all shifts that come my way. That includes hosting overnight. So-called “prime time” is great, but any time people are listening is all the inspiration I need.

With that in mind, here are five advantages to working the often-dreaded “graveyard shift,” from midnight to 6 a.m.

 But please don’t share. Then everybody will want in, and I’ll be out of a job!

1. Solitude

It’s true that the nature of radio announcing is a solo act, usually. Overnight music shows are almost exclusively lone affairs. As a confirmed introvert, I can be inhibited when people are in the building. There’s something magical about the American Public Media studios when they are abandoned. It’s like broadcasting from some lair in an unearthly domain. And I don’t have to share my snacks and coffee!

2. Music flow

In a format like classical music, it can be challenging to present the essence of the genre when there are daily elements that must be inserted during prime-time shifts, such as news and weather. Such concerns diminish after hours. I have ample opportunity to play and discuss key lengthier pieces such as symphonies and concerti. From my experience, overnight audiences tend to be more eclectic — or at least they are open to more adventurous sounds.

3. The haunting      

In the 1990s, I worked in Kansas at a small community station in Garden City. It was housed in an old post office, and ghost stories from staff and listeners were abundant. Robberies and other crimes were in its past, and the city was home to the notorious Clutter family murders immortalized by Truman Capote in his book In Cold Blood. Anytime I was alone there after dark, which was often, every pin drop seemed to elicit a spine shiver. Usually, it was a mouse or structural creaking. If a radio show like Michael Barone’s Pipedreams was on the air, it would amplify the eeriness. I have not experienced a chill to that extent at APM, but the romance is indisputably present. Anyone who likes a good horror flick will concur.

4. Watching the sunrise

Look out any window of the fourth floor of Kling Public Media Center in downtown St. Paul, Minnesota, and you will see urban charm like no other. Grand old churches, light-rail paths, hotels, streets and buildings are all illuminated as the sun comes up. This is never mundane to a night owl who is rarely up before 9 a.m. I always pause to appreciate it. And it’s usually right before relief shows up, when departure and sleep are imminent.

5. Multitasking 

With longer pieces and fewer distractions, I have more leisure to research pieces and composers.  This little luxury allows me to dig deeper. I often tell people that I am getting paid to take music appreciation classes. With the proliferation of documents and media on the internet, we live in a golden age. And APM has a great physical library, filled with books and CDs, that offers a more cerebral experience. My first shift in college radio was overnight. I’ve rarely seen a better recap than this clip:

Do what you love; love what you do.