Nocturne

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.

Zoe and Sarah were young, free explorers on a spontaneous summer road trip. As darkness began to fall, the map on Zoe’s phone directed them to a short cut that would speed up their drive and get them to a safe place to spend the night. But that's not what happened.

Ever since he was a child, Clark Strand has awoken in the middle of the night and gone out walking. One night a voice spoke directly in his ear, saying, “Don’t go out tonight. Remain calm and be very very still.” His life has never been the same.

What is it about the night, about what happens in the darkness, when most people are asleep? Vanessa and radio host, Rod Quinn muse about this and much more, on this week's bonus episode. They also chat with callers from across Australia sharing their feelings and observations about the night, in an excerpt of Overnights from ABC Radio in Australia.

What is it about the night, about what happens in the darkness, when most people are asleep? Vanessa and radio host, Rod Quinn muse about this and much more, and hear from callers across Australia sharing their feelings and observations about the...

There’s really nothing else like late night call in shows on the radio – other humans, in real time, just chatting. It can bring comfort and normalcy to the hours that can feel like anything but comforting or normal.

Katie Nelson is a journalist based in Kenya, where she covers human rights and global health issues. Her work puts her in dangerous and challenging situations, far from home. But not that long ago, Katie could barely get out of bed.

For two months a year, in a small Norwegian city, the sun never goes above the horizon. One researcher visits to find out why its citizens are happy despite the lack of light.

Poetry and the night are some of the last remaining domains of “unknowing”; places where it’s acceptable to digest the world slowly and without conclusion, and where one can linger in, and traverse, experiences like solitude, impermanence, and wonder. Poets Cecily Parks and Tom Harding are both drawn to explore the intersection between the quiet tender moments of night and the act of writing and reading poetry. It’s a space where one can capture fleeting wisps from the darkness, and then send them off for others to hold like fireflies in a jar. Poems from the night are like fragments of dreams forgotten upon waking, reminders of things lost to us in the day.

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Quiet Transmission Credits

Nocturne is produced by Vanessa Lowe. Nick White is our senior editor.

Nocturne is distributed by KCRW, and receives support from KCRW's Independent Producer Project, which provides resources to creative storytellers around the world.

Special thanks to Alex Espinoza, Jeremy Cherfas, Herrin Hopper, David Green, Mary Jo Eyler, Marta Pelrine-Bacon, Tara, Chris Glover, Ashley Cummings, Benjamin Yeamans, Maria Samuelsen, Misty Lytle, Sleep with Me Podcast, Tara, Tim Harincar

More information about the work of Cecily Parks, and her relationship with the moon, can be found here. Find information about the work of Tom Harding here. For more about Robert Macfarlane’s collection of words that should be saved read this .

Music

Nocturne theme music by Kent Sparling

Additional music:

Kent Sparling \\ Fieldlines \\ Jeffrey Foster \\ Kid Otter

Episode Artwork: Robin Galante

What makes a place home? Is it a place that feels like a refuge? Is it somewhere you sleep really, really well? What if the place that feels like home is a secret apartment in the bowels of a giant mall?