In early summer, as darkness descends, Berlin resonates with the sound of nightingales. You can hear their haunting, ever-changing songs in parks, woodlands and gardens across the city. From Kreuzberg to Treptower, Tempelhof to Hasenheide, Berlin has become a refuge for one of the most celebrated and mythologised birds on earth.

The city is the summer home for over one and a half thousand nesting pairs. Nobody’s quite sure why nightingales have adopted the city so enthusiastically. Maybe it’s Berlin’s enlightened policy towards park management which leaves areas of untended scrub and dense bushes providing ground-nesting nightingales with perfect cover.

Whatever the reason, this blossoming of nightingales means that their song has become the soundtrack to countless moments in Berlin’s residents’ lives: lovers listening to the nightingale’s melody in the depths of the night; a childhood memory of illness soothed by hearing the song – and the German name Nachtigall – for the first time; and a visit to one of the few architectural remnants of Germania, Hitler’s megalomaniacal plan for a new city on the site of Berlin.

This programme, first broadcast on BBC Radio 3 in June 2021, gathers memories of the nightingale’s lingering, multi-faceted song and the sounds of city evenings to create an audio portrait of Berlin, its people and the bird to whom it’s given refuge.

We hear too from a group of musicians who seek out nightingales in the city’s parks to play alongside them. They describe feeling their way into the nightingale’s song, the call-and-response between bird and human and the sense of each listening to the other. Some even describe themselves as nightingales: they’ve travelled from far countries to make music in Berlin.

The programme is made in collaboration with Berlin Museum of Natural History’s Forschungsfall Nachtigall project that asks members of the public to record nightingales and send in their recordings – along with stories and memories of the bird which has become a symbol of the city.

With the voices of Sarah Darwin, Korhan Erel, Gaby Hartel, Volker Lankow, Christopher and Erika Lehmpfuhl, Charlotte Neidhardt, Philip Oltermann, Sascha Penshorn, Tina Roeske, David Rothenberg and Cymin Samawatie.

Featuring music from David Rothenberg’s 'Nightingale Cities' project and 'Berlin Bülbül by David Rothenberg and Korhan Erel.

Location recordings in Berlin by Martyna Poznańska and Monika Dorniak.

Producer: Jeremy Grange

Photograph courtesy of Kim Mortega

Between The Ears - The Nightingales Of Berlin

🖤✨ The Miracle Syndicate — When the Wires Cross

I wake in a room I’ve never left.
Paint cracked with a name half-spoken.
Your face on the screen won’t stay still—
Flickers, then fades, then is broken.

And I can’t recall if we said goodbye,
Or if we were never allowed to try.

When the wires cross, when the current runs cold,
Will you find me again in the static?
If this life was torn, if the reel unrolled,
Will you meet me again—automatic?

I trace your voice through the machine,
A loop that the future corrupted.
Your hands were warm in a dream unseen,
But time, in its loop, is disrupted.

And I don’t know if you hear me now,
Or if this is just some vow.

When the wires cross, when the current runs cold,
Will you find me again in the static?
If this life was torn, if the reel unrolled,
Will you meet me again—automatic?

I send you a signal through glass and coil,
A message that slips through the seams.
Maybe we meet when the tapes unspool,
In another of someone’s dreams.

Hear me now.
Hear me now,
Or if this is just some vow.

When the wires cross, when the current runs cold,
Will you find me again in the static?
If this life was torn, if the reel unrolled,
Will you meet me again—automatic?

Credits:

Nayeli Astra: Vox, Synths & Sequencers
Elena Morgenstern: Backing Vox, Guitar
Brad Astra: Programming, Percussion, Bass Guitar, Rhythm Guitar

Special Thanks:
To the ravens who guided our melodies, the universe for its endless inspiration, and to everyone who has been part of this journey. This music collection is dedicated to those who dream with their eyes open.

In Loving Memory:
To Rio, who always listened. 🐾🖤✨

Recorded at:
Nude Studio · Calgary, Alberta

Artwork + Photography:
Brad Astra

Label:
Painful Records Ltd.

© 2025 The Miracle Syndicate · All rights reserved
Written and Produced by Brad Astra

Released by:
Painful Records

When the Wires Cross

☔️✨ The Miracle Syndicate - "Take Back the Rain"

The rain pinned shadows to the glass,
Your boots by the door, untouched.
The chair still held the shape you made —
And I couldn’t bring myself to dust.

You said you’d be back when the clouds broke.
But it’s been weeks since the sky last spoke.

I keep your coat where the light bends cold,
By the window where the jasmines died.
You once said love was a borrowed coat —
And I just wore it for the ride.

The kettle clicks, then gives up the heat.
I pour two cups, then drink both slow.
It’s easier than asking out loud
If there’s something I should know.

The world is wet with answers
I don’t know how to phrase.
So I fold myself into the static
Of this unspoken haze.

I keep your coat where the light bends cold,
Near the stack of books you’d never start.
You once said love is a crooked flame —
It warms the skin, but skips the heart.

The days repeat in lowercase.
No clocks, no calls, just sound.
I trace the rings your glass once left,
Like trying to unwrite the ground.

If you return, take back the rain.
Take the stillness you left behind.
But leave the blue light in the hall —
It’s the only thing still kind.

Credits:

Nayeli Astra: Vox, Synths & Sequencers
Elena Morgenstern: Backing Vox, Guitar
Brad Astra: Programming, Percussion, Bass Guitar, Rhythm Guitar

Special Thanks:
To the ravens who guided our melodies, the universe for its endless inspiration, and to everyone who has been part of this journey. This music collection is dedicated to those who dream with their eyes open.

In Loving Memory:
To Rio, who always listened. 🐾🖤✨

Recorded at:
Nude Studio · Calgary, Alberta

Artwork + Photography:
Brad Astra

Label:
Painful Records Ltd.

© 2025 The Miracle Syndicate · All rights reserved

Produced by The Miracle Syndicate

Take Back the Rain

🖤✨ The Miracle Syndicate - "Practiced on Me"

She said I looked tired, but smiled when I spoke —
The kind of smile you offer a patient.
My coffee was cold before I noticed
That her chair had never been taken.

I tried to remember what we talked about —
But my mouth held no shape.
I wiped her lipstick off my glass,
But it was never there in the first place.

I wrote down half of a name
In the steam on the window,
But it bled down the glass
Like it didn’t want to be known.
She may have loved me —
Or just practiced it on me
In case it ever counted.

The restaurant closed and I kept sitting,
Listening for footsteps that never walked away.
A waiter asked if I was alright,
And I said I was just waiting for a mistake.

He smiled like I was joking,
The way you smile at someone you pity.
I left a tip for the absence,
Then walked home through a city
That didn’t blink when I crossed the street.

I said her name out loud —
But it wasn’t mine to say.
It sounded like someone I almost was
But lost somewhere halfway.
She may have loved me —
Or was just testing the weight
Of what a goodbye might weigh.

There are conversations we never had
That I still apologize for.
She might’ve been real,
But I kept building her
Each time she vanished more.

In the end, I forgot her face
But not the silence she taught me to hear.
And sometimes, when I pass the place —
I swear, I see her disappear.

Practiced on Me

🏝️✨ The Miracle Syndicate - "Voices in the Sky"

We sailed over seven seas
Searching for that missing key
Unlock a new
World harmony

Climb the highest mountain range
Then we took the longest train
Looking for our
Perfect refrain

I hear voices in the sky
(In the sky)
In the sky
(In the sky)

Hidden rhythms in the rivers run
Blinding beats in the desert sun
Hear them today
Play all as one

Distant voices in a far off sky
Led us to the elusive prize
To the new sound
We testify

I hear voices in the sky
(In the sky)
In the sky
(In the sky)

There's hidden rhythms in the sun
In the sun
I hear voices in the sky
In the sky

Original song by Paul Spencer, Peter Oxendale, and Russell Small (Dario G).
All rights remain with the original copyright holders.
This is a non-commercial, artistic reinterpretation for tribute and personal expression.

Produced by The Miracle Syndicate

Voices in the Sky

💔 The Miracle Syndicate — Salt for the Wound /v1

Your name tastes bitter when I pray,
A broken hymn I choke back down.
Every promise frays like wire—
Pull tight enough… it just cuts out.

This isn’t healing… this is hiding.
Dress the wound, but leave it raw.

Pour salt into the wound—
Make it shine beneath the skin.
Pain’s the only thing that stays
When nothing else gets in.

The bottle’s empty, the lights are low,
I count the cracks across the floor.
One for every time you swore
You’d never leave…
But left once more.

Pour salt into the wound—
Let it sparkle in the pain.
I don’t want it gone, I need it here—
The only thing that knows my name.

Pour salt into the wound—
Let it sparkle in the pain.
I don’t want it gone, I need it here—
The only thing that knows my soul.

Credits:

Nayeli Astra: Vox, Guitar
Elena Morgenstern: Vox, Piano, Synths & Sequencers
Brad Astra: Vox, Programming, Percussion, Bass

Special Thanks:
To the ravens who guided our melodies, the universe for its endless inspiration, and to everyone who has been part of this journey. This music collection is dedicated to those who dream with their eyes open.

In Loving Memory:
To Rio, who always listened.

Recorded at:
Nude Studio · Calgary, Alberta

Artwork + Photography:
Brad Astra

Label:
Painful Records Ltd.

© 2025 The Miracle Syndicate · All rights reserved
Written and Produced by Brad Astra

Salt for the Wound

Close to Pain
by The Miracle Syndicate 🖤✨

No, I'm not relieved.

We say farewell.
We turn around…
The stark dusk view —
and the sea —
is real.

What would you do?

I have pain.

Pain!
We have pain.

That star waits through the night.
That star fights for real light.

Duh, yeah. Me.

This is our life.
This is our love.
For some heated pain.

I still see us in the passing —
in the car I drive when you exclaim,
through salted tears,
you scream with the loud, 
Goodbye.

Godspeed.

I have —

Pain!
We have pain.

That star waits through the night.
That star fights for real light.

And so free the pain.

This is our life.
This is our love.
For some heated pain.

This is for some heated pain.

That star longs to shine its brightest light.
That star longs to sleep under satellites.

It feels right.
It’s all right
to keep you close again.

If we fall right,
it’s all right —
if we keep it close to pain.

Credits:

Nayeli Astra Xóchitl: Vox, Guitar
Elena Morgenstern: Vox, Synths & Sequencers
Brad Astra: Programming, Percussion, Bass Guitar, Rhythm Guitar

Special Thanks:
To the ravens who guided our melodies, the universe for its endless inspiration, and to everyone who has been part of this journey. This music collection is dedicated to those who dream with their eyes open.

In Loving Memory:
To Rio, who always listened. 🐾🖤✨

Recorded at:
Nude Studio · Calgary, Alberta

Artwork + Photography:
Brad Astra

Label:
Painful Records Ltd.

© 2025 The Miracle Syndicate · All rights reserved

Produced by The Miracle Syndicate

Close to Pain

🌈🖤✨ You Bring Me Colour
by The Miracle Syndicate

This city hums in silver tones,
the lights don’t burn, they only glow.
Nothing moves, nothing fades,
then you bring me colour…

Was it real? Was it you?
Or just the way the dark bleeds through?

Your silhouette on empty streets,
reflections move but never speak.
Your shadow lingers, pulls me through,
but every road still leads to you…

Was it real? Was it true?
Or just the way the dark bleeds through?

You bring me colour, but only in the end.
Was it ever really there,
or just the way the story bends?

Was it real? Was it true?
Or just the way the dark bleeds through?

You bring me colour, but only in the end.
Was it ever really there,
or just the way the story bends?

I swore I heard your voice tonight,
a thread of gold in black and white.
I swore I felt your hands in mine,
but maybe it was just the time…

Was it real? Was it true?
Or just the way the dark bleeds through?

Was it real? Was it true?
Or just the way the dark bleeds through?

You bring me colour, but only in the end.
Was it ever really there,
or just the way the story bends?

I trace the lines, the shape of loss,
a love that fades but never stops.
I call your name, but hear no sound,
a neon flicker underground.

You bring me colour, but only in the end.
Was it ever really there,
or just the way the story bends?

I trace the lines, the shape of loss,
a love that fades but never stops.
I call your name, but hear no sound,
a glitter flicker underground.

The streets are grey, the lights have dimmed,
the memory burns, then caves within.
I close my eyes, you’re almost near…
but every time, you disappear.

You bring me colour…
but only in the end.

You Bring Me Colour

🖤✨ The Sky Might Fall
by The Miracle Syndicate

The sky might fall
But I will not crash
When lights burn everything down
I’ve walked through this silence in bliss

I’m standing tall
When it comes to pass
I’ll find my way out
Someone needed this trip

The sky might fall
But I will not crash
When lights burn everything down
I’ve walked through this silence in bliss

Let it all come down—
I won’t close my eyes
I was made for the end
Not afraid to say goodbye
When the sky turns black
And the ground pulls apart
I’ll be fire in the wreckage
Still beating, still heart

Let the heavens crack—
I’ve already bled through worse
Black out every sun
I’ll crawl from the wreck unrehearsed
Tear the ground in half—
I’ve slept beneath its weight
Erase my name from every wall
I was never yours to break

The sky might fall
But I will not crash
When the lights burn everything down
I’ll walk through this silence in bliss

Credits:

Nayeli Astra: Vox, Guitar
Elena Morgenstern: Backing Vox, Synths & Sequencers
Brad Astra: Programming, Percussion, Bass Guitar, Rhythm Guitar

Special Thanks:
To the ravens who guided our melodies, the universe for its endless inspiration, and to everyone who has been part of this journey. This music collection is dedicated to those who dream with their eyes open.

In Loving Memory:
To Rio, who always listened.

Recorded at:
Nude Studio · Calgary, Alberta

Artwork + Photography:
Brad Astra

Label:
Painful Records Ltd.

© 2025 The Miracle Syndicate · All rights reserved
Written and Produced by Brad Astra

The Sky Might Fall

💔✨ We Rehearsed Our Collapse
by The Miracle Syndicate

Your name drips slow from the concrete below.
I taste iron in fog that never lets go.
No shape, no flame—just the weight of the air.
I sung your goodbye to a face that’s not there.

This isn’t grief—this is what comes after:
The stillness we borrow, the silence we shatter.

The deadened groans where the birch trees lean—
We rehearsed our collapse… and called it serene.
No gods in this static, no saints on the line,
Just a girl at the shore, pretending she’s fine.

I walked past the place where I last saw your face.
Oh, somebody erased it and left it no trace.
No wire, no signal—just distant decay.
You never returned. You can’t shake that away.

I’m not waiting—I’m wired to remain
In places where no one remembers my name.

The deadened groans where the birch trees lean—
We rehearsed our collapse… and called it serene.
No gods in this static, no saints on the line,
Just a girl at the shore, pretending she’s fine.

In the deep.
Feels like a dream.

We rehearsed our collapse…

All that we built—paper on stone.
All that we said—cut to dial tones.
You weren’t the ending. I was.

I’m not waiting—I’m wired to remain
In places where no one remembers my name.

The deadened groans where the birch trees lean—
We rehearsed our collapse… and called it serene.
No gods in this static, no saints on the line,
Just a girl at the shore, pretending she’s fine.

I’m just a girl at the shore, pretending she’s fine.

Credits:

Nayeli Astra: Vox, Guitar
Elena Morgenstern: Backing Vox, Synths & Sequencers
Brad Astra: Programming, Percussion, Bass Guitar, Rhythm Guitar

Special Thanks:
To the ravens who guided our melodies, the universe for its endless inspiration, and to everyone who has been part of this journey. This music collection is dedicated to those who dream with their eyes open.

In Loving Memory:
To Rio, who always listened.

Recorded at:
Nude Studio · Calgary, Alberta

Artwork + Photography:
Brad Astra

Label:
Painful Records Ltd.

© 2025 The Miracle Syndicate · All rights reserved
Written and Produced by Brad Astra

We Rehearsed Our Collapse

All mistakes are intentional.

Produced by The Miracle Syndicate
Published by Painful Records Ltd.