Frog and toad chorus. 1am, 26 May 2016, Connecticut Hill Wildlife Management Area near Ithaca, New York. © Lang Elliott. PLEASE PLAY AT LOW VOLUME to simulate a natural listening experience.
The night before leaving on a weeklong journey, I drove to a nearby wildlife refuge to see what the frogs and toads were up to, knowing full well that changes were in the making and the amphibian soundscape would likely be quite different upon my return. I really didn’t plan on doing any recording. I just wanted to pay my respects to nature before leaving town. Little did I anticipate the wonderful mix of sound I would stumble upon.
Stopping alongside a large beaver pond, I noted that quite a number of Pickerel Frogs were snoring, so I decided to capture a soundscape featuring the chorus. To my delight, a lone American Toad soon began trilling from the other side of the pond and several Barred Owls started hooting from different locations way off in the distance. Wow … the addition of the toad and the owls elevated the chorus to a whole new level, producing a fantastic mix possessing a meditative zen-like quality … frog and toad “audio-haiku” at its best.
It is extremely difficult to get a pleasing, natural mix of frogs and toads where one species or the other is not overwhelming the soundscape. While the Pickerel Frogs may be a tad too loud, they do strike me as acceptable, especially given their prominence along the shoreline. What I truly appreciate about this recording is its extraordinary depth, with the different sound-objects originating from a variety of distances and directions. Especially delightful to me are the intimate water sounds (produced by small fish?), which inform the listener that the pond is only a few feet away.
If you set the volume so that nothing is overwhelming your ear, you should be able to relax into a very pleasurable and soothing listening experience. Please let me know what you think. I’m hopeful that this recording will transport you into nature and provide a taste of the magic to be found there.
Species in Chorus:
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Ahhh what we miss as we sleep. This is so magical- the owls my favorite but the entire concert heavenly. Just discovered your work and am an instant fan. Thank you!
We live mid coast Maine from May thru October and the nights are so silent unless the peepers are calling- wish we heard owls there.
I just got one of those pesky political calls and set the phone over next to my speaker – the caller must be enjoying it, because I haven’t heard the switch over to beep-beep-beep yet. Hee-hee-hee! I love it!
What a treasure! Thank you Lang, for this textured journey. Ah, the beautiful American Toad! There almost seems to be duetting with the Pickerel Frogs at times. And the little splashes of water are like glowing gems in this layered soundscape, which is both sparkling and velvety.
“glowing gems” … “sparkling and velvety” … nice!
This is lovely. I especially like the distant owl calls and little plops of the fish in the water.
Another super rich soundscape, thanks. This one makes me kind of feel like I’m inside a science fiction movie.
ah … but you ARE inside a science fiction movie!
Awesome. Very primal sounding. Reminds me of some of my campsites near boggy areas along the Knobstone trail in southern Indiana. One of your best, Lang, thanks for your sacrifice of sleep.
Glad you like it John! I had never heard of the Knobstone Trail, but I just checked it out by googling. Looks interesting. I was in the Hoosier National Forest for a night during my recent trip, but that’s over toward Bloomington.
So peaceful! Enjoy your WV trip. Hope you see and hear some interesting sounds at Canaan.
Carolyn: I am back from my trip. I ended up heading to western Kentucky and so did not visit Canaan Valley this time out. I’ll soon be sharing recordings from my trip, so please stay tuned!
Being now in my later 70s, I’ve been trying for seemingly ages to settle down & “practice” meditation to calm my buzzing head. This music of nature may well do the trick, and to know that it repeats as long as there’s juice in my computer is wonderful. As for the barred owl — abed late at night with my mate, I can no longer hear the one calling across Pemaquid Pond in Maine, but thanks to you, Lang, I have this recording. Thank you, Lang Elliott!
Dede: I am delighted to learn that my recording brings back your memories of hearing the barred owl calling across Pemaquid Pond. When my recordings evoke such pleasant memories, I know that I am on the right track. This is exactly why I am gifting these recordings to the world … not giving them away in a copyright sense … but rather sharing them away for the sake of putting them to good use before my time on earth runs out. Nothing would bug me more than dying with hundreds of un-shared jewels lying fallow within an old, dusty hard… Read more »
This one is wonderful! And to know that you recorded it at 1:00 am adds to an almost other-worldy quality. Otherworldy also in that all the intonations and little splashes of the featured creatures suggest the realms of the spirit; the result is a powerful intersection of spirit and tangible nature, of one’s inner and outer worlds. The pickerel frog guttural growls remind me of the meditative ‘throat-singing’ that Tibetan monks sometimes make! As a whole the recording makes one remember we are perched on a spherical chunk revolving through infinite space. Thank you for this gem.
When I listen to nature, I have two different (yet often simultaneous) experiences that inform one another. One has to do with appreciating via knowledge about the various sound objects, which in this case involves identifying the different frogs and knowing something of their life histories. Thus, the sounds interact with my memory, evoking recognition based on previous experience and knowledge. The other realm has to do with experiencing the texture of the sounds purely in the moment, tuning-into the way they “feel” and the unique way they fit together to create a whole. While sound objects are experienced (eg.… Read more »
Nice! So the second level of experience, the “tuning into the way the sounds ‘feel'”, is the “ZEN” part of the recording’s name! No-mind emptiness which can allow for a tremendous sense of fullness.
Amen!
In the world of soundscape art, there is a mode of appreciation termed “blind listening,” where soundscapes are created (by humans interacting with various objects) and presented to audiences in theatre settings with the curtains closed. That way the audience is forced to “just listen,” being deprived of seeing how the various sounds are being created. The same concept can be applied to nature. To enter into the mode of full sensory appreciation, one need only to close one’s eyes and then concentrate fully on the sound-field itself, without regard to identifying objects creating sounds. In a meditative sense, if… Read more »
This is a special one, Lang – — thanks. A concert that puts me right to sleep. I’m going to go snore with the pickerels right now. Buen viaje!
Imagine that … Ruth snoring with the Pickerels … how romantic!
Magnificent!
I daresay it is “magnificent,” at least according to my standards.
I’ve been very ill lately and this made me lie serenely and remind me that beyond my sickness, there really is a wonderful life in nature out there. Thanks loads.
You’re welcome Mary Ann, and I pray that get well soon so that you can be out there listening for yourself. Last autumn, when I was experiencing the worst after throat cancer treatment, I truly wondered if I would be able to once again be out in nature enjoying the frogs and owls.
This is definitely what Stravinsky was “hearing” (albeit in a different spot on the map) when he wrote the “Sacre du printemps”; & hearing the barred owl reminds me of the trick my pa played on me as a kid, for the longest time letting me think the aurora borealis we were watching was making those sounds … I love owls but I’m sorry if wasn’t the aurora, it was so deliciously spooky …
Ah … The Rite of Spring, definitely right on!
Wonderful combination of sounds! Love the barred owls in the distance – they sound almost eerie, like there’s not exactly an echo, but some sort of distortion of the sound – was it foggy or something? As lovely as this is, it could also be used as the background track for a scary movie, if you weren’t familiar with what was making the sounds. To hear so many different frogs/toads in one night – special.
Terry: that happens to owl sounds when they come from far away. The echoes bounce off hills and all combine to make the hoots sound “mushy” … but what you hear is exactly what I was hearing while standing there next to the pond.
Terry: that happens to owl sounds when they come from far away. The echoes bounce off hills and all combine to make the hoots sound “mushy” … but what you hear is exactly what I was hearing while standing there next to the pond.
Hard to pick faves, but this is definitely one of mine so far, up there with the hermit thrush – the textures in this one, like a table full of different kinds of bread, all delicious …
Nice description … “like a table full of different kinds of bread, all delicious” … and just a few sound objects with empty spaces between adds to the pleasure.
Mesmerizing! What a gift!
Thank you Fran!
Beautiful! I’ve been thoroughly transported. Very pleasing to listen to the variety of sounds divided by varying levels of distance. Really puts one’s ears in a dimensional landscape.
hugely dimensional for sure!