'Some people think I'm crazy': Musician composes cicada jazz

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You're listening to a duet

Location: Princeton, New Jersey

David Rothenberg uses the cicadas' trill as his guide

He can pluck out several distinct sounds produced by the insects

(SOUNDBITE) (English) DAVID ROTHENBERG, PROFESSOR OF PHILOSOPHY AND MUSIC AT THE NEW JERSEY INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, SAYING:"For example, you hear 'doooo' - you hear that, that continuous tone. That's made by millions of cicadas doing this: 'fair-oh, fair-oh' - literally that's what they do."

UPSOT

(SOUNDBITE) (English) DAVID ROTHENBERG, PROFESSOR OF PHILOSOPHY AND MUSIC AT THE NEW JERSEY INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, SAYING:

"Now we hear something unusual ''ch-ch-ch-ch'. That's the third of the three cicada species - and hardest to hear, because it gets drowned out later by. That's called Magicicada septendecula. And they're like shakers doing a rhythm: 'ch-ch-ch-ch'.

UPSOT

(SOUNDBITE) (English) DAVID ROTHENBERG, PROFESSOR OF PHILOSOPHY AND MUSIC AT THE NEW JERSEY INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, SAYING:

"The easiest to hear is one called Magicicada cassinii - individual goes (MIMICS SOUND). Kind of noisy. But then when you have millions of them, they synchronize in waves of noise: 'shhh-shhh'.

Rothernberg has also written jazz compositions

accompanied by the calls of birds and humpback whales

(SOUNDBITE) (English) DAVID ROTHENBERG, PROFESSOR OF PHILOSOPHY AND MUSIC AT THE NEW JERSEY INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, SAYING:"Yes, some people, of course, think I'm crazy, like it's just this gimmick; it's just this gimmick, you're just like adding this nature stuff to music. But, you know, one thing about my approach is I've written these long, involved, very serious books about music and nature, dealing with birds, whales, and bugs - showing the story of the science, the poetry, and the artistic reflection on these phenomena over the centuries. Like it's serious stuff that nature has inspired humanity and all art forms more than anything else for centuries. And so the music-nature connection is always something that's worth investigating. And the more you pay attention to nature is the only way we're going to save it without destroying it."