About Us

3MBS is a fine music community radio station in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1975, 3MBS was the first FM station in Victoria and led the way for the introduction of community radio in Australia.

3MBS passionately supports fine music, especially Melbourne musicians and composers, and is the only locally-based classical music radio station in Victoria.

3MBS relies on listener support in the form of subscriptions, donations and bequests.

Vision | History

Board | Staff | Volunteers

Talks and Tours

The Benaud Trio
3MBS Musicians-in-Residence
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Vision

3MBS is the premier broadcaster and supporter of fine music in Melbourne, supporting local music and musicians, working with the Australia-wide MBS network and offering services to listeners that will enhance their enjoyment of fine music.

History

3MBS was conceived by music fan and radio engineer Brian Cabena in 1968 to address a lack of classical music being played on the radio. Cabena wrote a letter to The Age newspaper, calling for interest in a listener-run classical music radio station. 200 people attended that first meeting and founded the Music Broadcasting Society (MBS) of Victoria.

In 1972, the new government licensed use of the FM band for this new station. MBS members travelled to Sydney to establish 2MBS in late 1974, which was followed a year later by the launch of Melbourne’s 3MBS in July 1975. Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana has the honour of being the first piece of music played on this new station, 3MBS.

As we still do, 3MBS relied on subscriptions from listeners to fund the operation of the station, and for a time, only divulged programming information to subscribers. Numbered items related to printed program notes and announcers would refer to the music by number only (a practice which was abandoned in 1976). 3MBS continues to produce a program guide, which is delivered to all subscribers in either printed or email format.

In 2007 3MBS relocated from Brian Cabena’s original shopfront at Kew to our current home at the Abbotsford Convent. 3MBS is proud to be part of this beautiful cultural precinct. Looking to the future, 3MBS built the new station to make the most of digital technology and features digitally linked studios and a state-of-the art performance studio and control room, with which 3MBS broadcasts and records local, national and international musicians.

Board

There is a Board of Directors half of which is elected by members each year for a 2 year term. There is a small annual fee to be a member of 3MBS. Membership enables people to vote at AGMs and to stand for the Board. The Board of Directors is responsible for the direction of the station. It develops policies and employs staff to undertake duties that will achieve the policies. There are a number of volunteer committees established to co-ordinate activities such as programming and training.

The Board policies guide the work of all volunteers and staff at the station. The Board has developed since the early days of the station when all Directors had programs at the station. The current Board has members recruited for their expertise in finance, marketing and law. Many Board members are not involved in broadcasting, but rather are interested in the station's overall development.

Current Members

Peter Sheldrake - President
Michelle Gibbings - Secretary
Mette Schepers - Treasurer
John Barns
Stephen Brain
John Manger
Jane Mitchell
Robyn Murtagh
Maureen O’Keeffe
Rod Watson

3MBS Staff

General Manager
Lin Bender gm@3mbs.org.au

Programming & Production
Owen McKern - Program Manager progman@3mbs.org.au
Susan Batten - Education
Stephen Clarke - Producer 'The Score'
Paul Kelly, Ming Hsieh - Production

Finance
Mike Chambers - Finance & Compliance Manager

Administration
Damian O'Keefe - Administration & Volunteer Manager
Julie Jolly - Arts & Subscriber Relations
Jo Tippett - Reception

Development & Marketing
Steve Roach - Sponsorship & Promotions
Allyse Buchanan - Events
Hermione Gilchrist - Digital Content

Technical
Greg Segal - Technical Manager
Cameron Paine - IT Officer

Volunteers

Over 200 dedicated volunteers devote their time, energy and passion to 3MBS, both on-air and behind-the-scenes, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Without their combined knowledge, experience, skills and commitment, 3MBS would never survive.

How do I become a Volunteer at 3MBS?

Bundlers
Geoff Arnup
Ingrid Austin
Phyllis Duncan
Graeme Laing
Veronica O’Donnell
Shirley Shannon
John Sherwin

IT
Ted Mason
Mark Powney

Daily Arts Diary
Ingrid Austin
Anne Bellew
Don Birch
Catherine Cabena (recordist)
John Cleghorn
Jane Mitchell
Robert Hooke

Library
Ingrid Austin
Leigh Banks
Anne Bellew
Judith Connelly
Hans Groenewegen
Helen Inglis
Anne Nixon
Christin Jeffrey
Dorothy Lorimer
Judith Lowenherz
Meyrick Smith

Office/Reception/Accounts/Administration
Alex Birnie
Marysia Green
John Hopkins
Maxwell Ketels
Graeme Laing
Zoe Lu
Ralph Lurie
Juliette Macfadzean
Pat Marsden
Margaret Mason
Nicky McFarlane
Robyn Murtagh
Ola Tasker
Mette Schepers
Heather Smith
Murray Vagg
Jennifer White

Fundraising
Betty Amsden OAM
Jacki Melvin

Presenters
Alastair Blaikie
Jonathan Carter
Edward Davies
Jacqui Grantford
Julie Houghton
Timothy Perry
Sandra Schrader
John Slavin

Programmers
Anne Bellew
Andrew Blyth
Pauline Duflou
Agnes Fournier-Small
Marysia Green
John Maynard
Albert Whitelaw

Programmers & Presenters
Peter Bandy
John Barns
John Barty
Susan Batten
Doug Beecroft
Amy Bennett
Don Birch
Margot Blackwell
Judith Blanchard-Hill
Craig Buddle
Paul Butler
Richard Butler
Jo Canty
Jon Churchward
Stephen Clark
Alan Clarke
John Cleghorn
Lindsay Coker
John Collins
Simon Colvin
Michael Compton
Margot Costanzo
Ted Davies
Elizabeth Duffield
Barbara Gee
Elisabeth Giddy
Nicky Gilderdale
Peter Gray
Peter Green
Hans Groenewegen
Laurence Groves
Sandra Hajda
Lynne Hamilton
Geoff Hayes
Bernard Holkner
Robert Hooke
Ming Hsieh
Peter Hume
Rachael Hunt
Joan Ikin
Arthur Irvine
Rob Jackson
Alastair Jackson
Henry Jamieson
Carol Johnston
Martin Kelly
Noel Kemelfield
Barbara Kiessling
Peter Larsen
Alison Lee-Tet
Eva Light
Bruce Livett
Bill Mack
John Manger
Nicky McFarlane
Graeme McKinnon
David Mitchell
Jane Mitchell
Fiona Moverley
Rowe Nicholls
Jane O’Callaghan
Rosemary O’Grady
Damian O’Keefe
Maureen O’Keeffe
Frank Pam
David Penman
Loretto Perkins
Adam Pietrzak
Susan Porter
Barbara Richardson
Dina Ross
Bob Rothols
Michelle Saccardo
Henry Sachwald
Kitty Sandy
Warwick Sharpin
Mark Shepheard
John Sheridan
Margaret Simpson
Anthea Slater
John Slavin
Hugo Spiceland
Kiera Stevens
Ola Tasker
Tony Thomas
Donald Thornton
John van Bavel
Carol van Opstal
Isabel Veale
Mark Vendy
Peter Wakeley
Hector Walker
Barry Ward
Graeme Warner
Rod Watson
Rex Williams
John Worcester
Martin Wright
Suzanne Yanko
Raymond Young

Proof Readers
John Barns
Anne Bellew
Don Birch
Peter Larsen
Hector Walker

Raffles
Ashley Anthony

Talks/Tours
Maureen Barns
John Barty
Judith Blanchard-Hill
Richard Butler
Lindsay Coker
Jon Churchward
Peter Gray
Joan Ikin
Nicky McFarlane
David Menzies
Loretto Perkins
Bob Rothols
Kiera Stevens
Hector Walker
Robyn Murtagh
Rod Watson
Suzanne Yanko

Technical Production/Outside Broadcast Recording
Stephen Brain
Bernard Holkner
Ming Hsieh
Alan Hutchison
Sally Hutchison
Paul Kelly
Vinod Krishnan
Chris Lees
Terence Lu
Owen Matthews
David Mitchell
Peter Nicholls
Stephanie Rocke
John Smyth
Doug Tipping

Tropic Island Discs Coordinator
Elizabeth Anderson

Talks and Tours

For over ten years 3MBS has been giving talks to community clubs and organizations, spreading the word about the station's activities. Our dedicated volunteer speakers have delivered these talks to groups such as Probus, Rotary, Church Groups, YMCA, The Historical Radio Society and the Superannuated Commonwealth Officer's Association.

To arrange a tour of the station or a speaker to visit you (distance permitting), please contact Maureen Barns at the station on 9416 1035 or via email - talks@3mbs.org.au