Nocturne
The Sound of Moonlight
There are over 3500 species of crickets and each has a different song. One man fills his apartment in Brooklyn with their music, and then takes them out in public to perform alongside them. And then he eats them.
By Vanessa Lowe • • 30m ListenWhere I live, it’s coming up on cricket time. Particularly on warm summer nights, the air is alive with their singing - a sound that activates deep and long-lived memories from childhood and beyond. Of these crickets songs that permeate the night, and catapult me back, Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote, "If moonlight could be heard, it would sound like that."
John Himmelman follows crickets through the night, and can identify different species by their songs. Adam Brody fills his apartment in Brooklyn with their music, and then takes them out in public to perform alongside them. And then he eats them.
Music: Nocturne theme music by Kent SparlingAdditional music: Kent Sparling \ Jeffrey Foster \ Kid Otter \ Adam Brody
Producers:Vanessa Lowe, Lene Bech Sillesen
Find out more about John Himmelman’s books and illustrations. Most of the cricket sounds heard in The Sound of Moonlight were recorded by John.
Lene Bech Sillesen produced Cricket Orchestra. Cricket Orchestra was originally produced for BRIC Radio. (https://www.bricartsmedia.org/bric-radio) Find Lene on Twitter @lenebechs
Episode artwork: Robin Galante