Centennial, Colo., Nov. 21, 2022 - Colorado Public Radio announced today the hiring of two new hosts for CPR Classical. Kabin Thomas joined CPR Classical on Nov. 16, and Patty Painter-Wakefield will join CPR Classical on Dec. 1.
“We’re excited to welcome two new voices to our airwaves. Both Kabin and Patty are steeped in years of classical music professionally,” said CPR Classical Program Director Monika Vischer. “This brings new, fresh perspectives from seasoned pros to our team and our work.”
Kabin Thomas joins CPR Classical with decades of experience as a tuba player, actor and professor of classical music. For 11 years, he taught classical music to students at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. During that time he was also the narrator and host of the Emmy Award-winning documentary, “The Sound of Dreams,” about the Hot Springs Music Festival.
Thomas was a substitute tuba player with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra for 14 years. He and his wife currently perform a show called, “Peace, Love, and TubaStanding,” which uses storytelling and music to tell a powerful story about love and courage amid racial tensions and fear.
Patty Painter-Wakefield’s career in radio started at WFDD in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, while she attended Wake Forest University. After college, she worked for another NPR affiliate, KGOU/KROU, while she earned a master’s degree in music history in Norman, Oklahoma. Painter-Wakefield worked at WUNC (Chapel Hill, North Carolina) from 1995 to 2013 as a classical music host. Since moving to Colorado in 2013, Painter-Wakefield has explored writing music, in addition to singing and playing music, and she has worked at a small church in various capacities.
“We are thrilled to bring these new voices to CPR Classical listeners. But it also means we are saying goodbye to two hosts. David Ginder and Marilyn Cooley left Colorado during the pandemic, but they have continued to provide excellent service for our audiences throughout this unprecedented time,” Sean Nethery, senior vice president of content, said. “They can’t stay on remotely from out of state, because CPR hosts need to be members of the Colorado community. We are grateful for their superb hosting and for continuing through this transition.”
David Ginder joined CPR Classical as a host in 2017. For the last five years, they have greeted listeners with Sunrise Serenade at 6 a.m. on weekdays and the choral music program “Sing!” on Sunday mornings. Other highlights include live broadcasts from Boettcher Hall with the Colorado Symphony, audio features for CPR Classical’s partnership with the Denver Art Museum for its Claude Monet exhibit, as well as the celebration of Beethoven’s 250th birth anniversary in 2020, and advocating for Colorado music each day on “Colorado Spotlight.” Ginder has been on the air with classical music for 48 years. Their last day on CPR Classical is Sunday, Nov. 27.
Marilyn Cooley joined CPR Classical in 2018, primarily hosting shows on Friday and Sunday evenings. In addition to her regular hosting, she also created special features such as “December Solstice,” an hour of reflective music for midwinter, and “A Life of Beethoven” to celebrate his birthday in December. Cooley also created features for the Beethoven 250 celebration. She is planning to continue with CPR Classical through the holidays.
Listeners will begin to hear the new hosts during this holiday season. CPR Classical airs statewide through a network of signals, which can be explored on this map.
Media inquiries: Clara Shelton, [email protected]. Photos and graphics related to this release can be found here.
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About Colorado Public Radio
Colorado Public Radio is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization delivering meaningful news, music, and cultural experiences to everyone in Colorado using the power of the human voice in all its forms. Roughly 95 percent of CPR’s funds come from the private support of listeners, businesses and foundations. For more information, visit www.cpr.org.
- CPR News delivers in-depth, insightful and impartial news and information from around the world, across the nation and throughout Colorado, examining its relevance to our state and connecting it to our community.
- CPR Classical takes listeners on an in-depth exploration of thoughtfully curated music – with an emphasis on Colorado’s classical community – providing context to a broad range of meaningful and compelling works from past to present.
- Indie 102.3 takes listeners inside the world of new and independent music – exposing them to up-and-coming artists and highlighting Colorado’s local music scene.
- Denverite is an online news source dedicated to Denver's curious and concerned.
- KRCC is a public radio station in Colorado Springs, Colorado, serving Southern Colorado. KRCC is operated by Colorado Public Radio in partnership with Colorado College.
