Day 5 - Wonder
Since I began my quest to engage with sound in a deliberate and intentional way, I remembered a habit I had a couple of summers ago. I enjoyed watching fireflies in the field behind our house. The backdrop of the aging red barn, resting upon the gentle slope of the hill against the meadow before it, created a natural stage. One night, I was listening to classical music with my bluetooth hearing aids and noticed that a firefly would light up to the melody of the music at times. It seemed like the orchestra merged with the gentle glow of the lighning bugs and created a whole audio-visual experience that was mesmerizing, and calming.
Tonight, I sat at the window inside my She Shed and turned on the music again. Pausing in this moment, I waited for the symphony of the violin, piano, and cello to carry me into the profound. The fireflies began their dance and lit up the grass, tree leaves, fence posts, and flowers with their brief sparks of yellow. Their soft flicker came on just as the piano plinked a high chord or just as the rhythm quickened on the strings, I smiled gently and peacefully for the first time in days as I logged this precious sound memory into my mind and soul.
This experience was as enchanting as you can get without the aid of a camera filter or movie-making sorcery. I highly endorse it.
I recommend waiting until 9:30-10:00 pm EST (or whatever time is equivalent to about 30 minutes after sunset in your area) and find somewhere cozy to sit. If you can find a meadow or a large backyard where these delightful bugs usually frequent, that will give you a better performance. Once you begin to see a few flickers of the firefly light, put in your headphones and start by playing these 2 pieces from whatever music streaming service you have: “Clair de Lune” and “Spiegel im spiegel”. Allow your eyes to scan the area back and forth and you’ll notice that there will almost always be a burst of a glow just as an instrument plays its notes or right as the orchestra swells.
Magic.
~If you partake of this experiment and find more music that goes with this encounter, I’d love to know what pieces you found.
©️ Angela Cross
