Chris Wienk has been one of the Capital Region’s most trusted voices in music curation for decades, shaping what listeners across eastern New York discover through his work at WEXT and WMHT Public Media. As both a DJ and a programmer, Wienk represents a vanishing breed — the radio professional who treats the medium as a craft rather than a corporate obligation.
WEXT: Public Radio with Soul
Wienk currently serves as Afternoon DJ and Program Director at WEXT Radio, where he hosts weekday afternoon programming from 3 to 9 PM. His weekly “Rock N Soul” show — airing Fridays at 9 PM and Saturdays at 11 PM — explores the roots of rock through R&B, soul, and rhythm music from the 1950s through the 1970s, connecting contemporary listeners to the foundations of everything they love. He also serves as VP Radio and hosts “Bach’s Lunch” at Classical WMHT-FM, demonstrating a range that runs from garage rock to chamber music.
The Curator’s Ear
Wienk grew up in a musical household — his father played pipe organ and multiple instruments — and has described hearing Roxy Music’s “Love is the Drug” in the summer of 1975 as the epiphany that set his life’s course. That moment — the discovery of music with power and emotion — is what he recreates daily for his listeners. In a media landscape increasingly dominated by algorithms and auto-generated playlists, Wienk remains a human curator: someone who listens, selects, and sequences with intention. For the Capital Region’s music community, that matters more than ever.