Celestial Navigation

The Big Shed Podcast

Producer Tom Niemisto weaves between an interview with tall-ship captain Samantha Heyman and an astronomer/poet around a bonfire under a broad star-filled sky. The stars are governed by a perfect order and yet, they create a chaos of mystery. We link astronomy to creation myths in constellations. We search for deeper meaning the night sky or, with rigorous mathematics, we search for our physical location through navigation. This is Tom's first non-narrated audio work and, as with many radio stories, he sat on the great verite tape from the bonfire for two years before deciding to weave it with the tall-ship captains' voice. And... check this out... He scored the the music himself and performed it with his cello, seeking to "evoke the undulating horizon off a ship's deck, and the glint of stars trying to tell you something." We'd say he nailed it. The original version of this piece was commissioned by Julie Sabatier for Destination DIY on Oregon Public Broadcasting. It will be broadcast on December 4th on OPB on a show entitled "DIY: Rituals." Photo by Fmmr via Creative Commons.