JJ Abernathy | Music Times

July 16, 2017 marks the 48th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon launch, when NASA astronauts Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin "Buzz" E. Aldrin, Jr. would complete a national primary goal set by President John F. Kennedy on May 25, 1961: to perform a team lunar landing and return to Earth. The mission would last eight days, three hours, 18 minutes and 35 seconds, with the landing on July 20 viewed by over 530 million viewers in a live global broadcast. Its success brought hope and optimism despite cultures in conflict during the dark days of the disheartening Vietnam War and the spirited space race.

Fly Me to the Moon

Frank Sinatra's 1964 recording of "Fly Me to the Moon" became associated with NASA's Apollo space program, a song that had been played on the Apollo 10 mission to orbit the Moon. On the Apollo 11 mission, the song became the first music heard on the Moon as Buzz Aldrin stepped onto the lunar surface and played Sinatra’s rendition on a portable cassette player, a magnificent moment, indeed.

{{props.notification}} {{props.tag}} {{props.expression}} {{props.linkSubscribe.text}} {{#modules.acquisition.inline}}{{/modules.acquisition.inline}} ... Our reporting. Your stories. Get unlimited digital access to exclusive content. Subscribe Now

This song was also sung by jazz contralto and pianist Diana Krall at the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11, and later, in a solemn manner, at the 2012 memorial service for Armstrong.

Music Out of the Moon

But that is not the only music listened to on the Apollo 11 mission.

Mickey Kapp, a Hollywood producer, had compiled a cassette tape of tracks for Armstrong to carry on the Apollo moon flight. Armstrong played the tape from the spacecraft during the flight back from the Moon when it was about 171,000 miles from Earth, telling Mission Control, "That's an old favorite of mine, an album made about 20 years ago, called “Music Out of the Moon.”

The music to which Armstrong referred was recorded in 1947 on the Capitol label, and composed by Harry Revel, conducted and arranged by Les Baxter, with special space sound effects contributed by Dr. Samuel Hoffman utilizing the theremin—an instrument that added an otherworldly effect to jazz sounds reminiscent of the Forties.

Baxter commissioned a cellist, a rhythm section, a French horn, and vocal harmonies—and with the theremin’s added touch, Baxter created such titles as “Lunar Rhapsody,” “Moon Moods,” “Lunette,” “Celestial Nocturne,” “Mist O’ the Moon” and “Radar Blues,” in what some refer to as lounge or exotica genres.

Otherwordly Sounds on the Theremin

The theremin was invented in 1920 by a Russian physicist known as Leon Theremin , who originally developed the instrument to support the Soviet government’s research into proximity sensors. After a lengthy tour of Europe demonstrating his invention to full houses, Theremin moved to the United States, placing a patent on the invention in 1928, later transferring his marketable assets to RCA

The theremin is “played” as a musician stands in front of the instrument waving his or her hands in the vicinity of two antennas, avoiding actual physical contact with the instrument. Sounds are altered by the positioning and motioning of the hands and the proximity of the hands to the antennas. This creates unique sounds mingled with the breath of standard instruments and artistic vocals. Relative to “Music out of the Moon,” the theremin adds an element some have described as Les Paul-esque fused with an intimation of the cosmos, if ever so slight.

First Man in the Making

According to Space.com, Universal Studios projects a 2018 release of “First Man,” the story of Neil Armstrong from 1961-1969, based on James R. Hansen’s book of the same name. Ryan Gosling plays Armstrong, and Damien Chazelle directs (both of “La La Land” fame). Purportedly the movie will be released as a prelude to the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission, and I am eager to hear the soundtrack, which I am sure will recapture the flavor and essence of such a monumental event in history.

Resources: National Aeronautics and Space Administration and Space.com.

“Music Out of the Moon” selections may be accessed on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLW7Qq3bOCI247Xp_T0v4TUKJ_g-5ilFh