Dawn Chorus

There’s something primal about waking up to the sounds of nature. Somewhere deep inside the human brain, some nexus of ganglia relates somehow to the eternal chorus of chirps, tweets and caws. Members of The Studio, a work group associated with the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, uploaded birdcall recordings to a smartphone app that plugs them into the phone’s time alarm programming. Instead of being jolted awake by an abrupt buzz, your dream might be subtly invaded by the sweet whistle of a black-capped chickadee before you gradually awaken to the music of a choir of digital birds. The app, Dawn Chorus, includes actual recordings of 20 birds native to Western Pennsylvania acquired in part from Cornell University, one of the world’s leading centers of avian understanding. The free app is available through Apple store online.