For 70 years, far-flung listeners knew they had found the BBC on their radio dial when they heard the jaunty notes of the Irish jig Lillibulero. Its brassy, old-fashioned sound spoke of men in dinner jackets and vintage radio microphones, and there was a minor public outcry when it was formally dropped more than a decade ago.
Since then the World Service, which has an audience of 79 million, has used a musical motif which, according to controller Mary Hockaday “changed every now and then in rather an ad hoc way”.
But from tomorrow morning, the English-language station will have a new jingle, letting listeners across the world know unquestionably that London is calling. The signature tune is a nod to the station’s long traditions, with even a beat or two of the BBC’s famous pips to send a message about values in an age of “fake news”.
“Musical identity is important to a station, not just for hunting for it on the airwaves, but to give a sense of what the station is about,” said Hockaday. “The experience of listening live is still strong and our audience is growing, so I wanted it to say that serious and authoritative news is still at the heart of the World Service.”
The theme, to be played on the hour, every hour, was written by a team at London music production company Mcasso and has a digitally generated beat, but it also features the strings of the BBC Concert Orchestra.
“The opportunity of commissioning key identity music, as well as some programme themes with similar instrumentation, seemed important. We asked the composers to respect the history of the service, while coming up with a fresh and distinctive sound. It is pure genius that they picked up on the pips, reaching out to people through the ether. It is open-hearted and open-minded, which is exactly what it should be. I’m looking forward to hearing what listeners think.” (The Guardian)
