An interval signal, or tuning signal, is a characteristic sound or musical phrase used in international broadcasting and by some domestic broadcasters, played before commencement or during breaks in transmission, but most commonly between programmes in different languages. It serves several purposes:
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The practice began in Europe in the 1920s and 1930s and was carried over into shortwave broadcasts. The use of interval signals has declined with the advent of digital tuning systems, but has not vanished. Interval signals were not required on commercial channels in the USA, where jingles were used as identification.
Broadcasting services and interval signals
Kazoe-uta (Japanese counting song)
さくら さくら ("Sakura Sakura" - Cherry Blossoms) .
Formerly used
Trumpet version of Kupředu levá ("Forward, Left") by Jan Seidl
Adagio – Allegro molto from Symphony No. 9 by Dvořák.
Песня о Родине ("Wide Is My Motherland")
Midnight in Moscow, played by balalaika.
Numbers stations interval signals
Numbers stations are often named after their interval signals, such as The Lincolnshire Poacher or Magnetic Fields after "Magnetic Fields Part 1" by Jean-Michel Jarre.