DAVID La RUSSA

A RADIOGRAPHY

KESH, 1971
KESH staff, 1971Over the ensuing years my interest in radio only deepened. During senior year of high school I was able to convince the principal to let me use the P.A. announcement booth to broadcast tunes and such to the cafeteria crowds.

Radio station KESH (Kenmore East Senior High) was born and by the end of the year I had gathered a sizeable staff... sending out request, dedications, news and a lot of wackiness to the kids down the hall.

At College I majored in Art & English, but radio continued to play a big part in my life. During my junior year a dormitory hall-mate noticed my (already) burgeoning record collection and suggested a try out with WGSU, (Geneseo State University) the college’s FM radio station. I did, and soon found myself with a paid position as on-air host and supervisor of new personnel.

Geneseo, 1976
Geneseo 1976, Dave is to the right, seated on the wall

The station’s manager had a philosophy of broadcasting that was to have a lasting impact on my own. “The Continuum,” as he called it suggested that each selection should be thought of as a single piece in a stained glass window. Student announcers were encouraged to combine all genres of music with spoken word, sound effects (anything really) resulting in a unique presentation. I remember it taking days for the hosts to put together their weekly airshift which lasted 2, sometimes 3 hours.

After graduating in 1976 I tried my hand at a job relating to my major, as a photographer’s assistant, in Rochester New York.