So what the heck is Audiosyncrasies? That's exactly what we asked ourselves when we went on the air in 1984 and something we continue to ask from time to time. Before there was anything called an Americana or Triple-A format, before Paul Simon's Graceland sparked an interest in World music, and when a lot of Alternative music was an alternative to music, Ohio University Public Radio (WOUB-FM network) made the decision to pilot a music-driven, free-form program on our airwaves. The 90-minute program aired early in the evening, five days a week, with five different hosts.

The show presented five angles on the age-old quest for "good" music. It was quite an undertaking, to say the least -- completely dependent on the breadth of the hosts' knowledge and, of course, their personal tastes in music.

A station format change a few year's after the show's inception allowed for a re-examination of our locally-produced programs, including Audiosyncrasies. Two of the original hosts remained with a new version of the program -- a four-hour show on Sunday nights from 8 p.m. to midnight.

Eight sets of music are presented during each week's program, wherein each set follows a musical theme from beginning to end. A set may begin with Fred Astaire and conclude with Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and make perfect sense. This approach allows for endless musical possibilities, challenges, surprises and most importantly, an enjoyable listening experience.

The program has continued to flourish in this form since 1987 hosted by Mark Hellenberg and Rusty Smith. Hellenberg is a producer and afternoon classical music announcer at the station. Smith is the FM program manager and hosts weeknight jazz programming.

Audiosyncrasies offers a creative outlet for both hosts, who have extensive home music libraries and whose musical interests extend far beyond their daily hosting duties. For many years, both hosts have been involved in performing music on the local as well as national scene.

Their interest in many different styles of music -- from around the block to around the planet -- coupled with their love of radio, particularly the freeform radio of their youth, makes Audiosyncrasies a unique, idiosyncratic audio odyssey.

Try it and see!