This week: the sounds you hear in the trees after dark, and why you have almost certainly never seen them. Plus a full events calendar, and the Washington Friends of Music festival returns to the Meeting House on Friday for the second of its four August concerts.
Glad you’re back!
Patrick
The Litchfield Ledger
The best thing about Litchfield County isn't the landscape.
It's the people you haven't met yet.
Thu, Aug 20, 2026
6:30 PM
You’ve Heard Them. But Have You Ever Seen One?
Walk outside after dark this week, and you’re hearing one of the oldest sounds in nature.
Long before people, and even before the first dinosaurs, the ancestors of today’s katydids were already singing in ancient forests. More than 230 million years later, that chorus still returns every summer, and August is when it reaches its peak in Litchfield County.
After hatching in the spring, katydids spend the summer growing. By August, the survivors have reached adulthood, and the males spend warm evenings calling for mates before the first hard frost ends the season. That’s why the trees seem to buzz after sunset this time of year.
The remarkable part is that while katydids are at their loudest, they’re also at their hardest to find.
Their wings are shaped and colored almost exactly like leaves, complete with delicate veins that blend seamlessly into the tree canopy. They spend the day sitting perfectly still, making them nearly invisible even when you’re looking right at them. It’s a disguise that has worked for hundreds of millions of years.
Their name comes from their call, which people long ago heard as “Katy did… Katy didn’t.” The sound itself is made by rubbing one wing against the other.
It doesn’t last long. As September nights cool, the chorus begins to fade, and the first hard frost silences it until a new generation hatches next spring.
CHECK OUT OUR WONDERFUL SPONSOR:
Washington Friends of Music Summer Festival 2026
There are a lot of summer events around here, but this is one I’d genuinely make time for.
This Friday, August 14 at 5:30, six acclaimed musicians play three works that span more than eighty years: Beethoven's String Trio in C Minor, Reicha's rarely heard Clarinet Quintet, and Brahms's warm, lyrical "Spring" Quintet. Two more concerts follow on the 21st and the 28th.
There's something about hearing string instruments in a small historic room that recordings just can't capture. The sound resonates through the space, and through you, with a depth and warmth that's almost otherworldly.
Tickets are $40 in advance or $45 at the door, and students and anyone under 21 get in free. You can buy online or at the Hickory Stick Bookshop in Washington. If you've never experienced chamber music up close, this is a wonderful place to start.
HELP KEEP US GOING ❤️
Thousands of readers across Litchfield County read The Litchfield Ledger each week for free.
Many of them choose to support it so we can keep documenting the rivers, forests, towns, history, and hidden corners of this place we all love.
If you like the work we do here, consider helping us keep it going.
Thank you for reading!
Patrick, Founder
Tuesday the 11th
Statewide, Connecticut – Primary Day. Polls are open until 8 PM for the Republican and Democratic primaries. Check where you vote before you go. 6:00 AM – 8:00 PM FIND YOUR POLLING PLACE
White Memorial Conservation Center, Litchfield – Children's Free Week at the Nature Museum. Admission is free for kids twelve and under with an adult, through Sunday. Through Sunday VISIT THE MUSEUM
Wednesday the 12th
Litchfield Green, Litchfield – The Summer Concerts series on the Green. Bring a chair and a picnic. 5:00 PM MUSIC ON THE GREEN
Hollow Park, Woodbury – The Woodbury Parks & Rec summer concert series, Wednesday evenings with a food truck on site. 6:30 PM CATCH THE SHOW
Macricostas Preserve, New Preston – Summer Saunters, a casual evening walk with the Steep Rock Association. 5:30 PM WALK AT DUSK
Thursday the 13th
Judea Garden, New Preston – Weed & Wine Thursdays at the Steep Rock garden that grows food for area food banks. Pull weeds, then stay for a glass. Weekly through August 20. 5:30 PM WEED AND WINE
White Memorial Conservation Center, Litchfield – Nature's Nursery, an outdoor program for ages three to six. 4:00 PM MEET NATURE
Friday the 14th
The Meeting House, Washington – The Washington Friends of Music Summer Festival, second of four Friday concerts: Beethoven's String Trio in C Minor, Reicha's Clarinet Quintet, and Brahms's "Spring" Quintet, played by six musicians including violinist Geneva Lewis and clarinetist Vadim Lando. Students and anyone under 21 free. 5:30 PM HEAR THE PROGRAM
Litchfield Community Center, Litchfield – The Al Fenton Big Band plays the Summer Sunset Free Concert Series, eighteen pieces of big band jazz and swing. Food truck on site, BYOB. 6:00 PM BIG BAND NIGHT
Harwinton Fairgrounds, Harwinton – The Black Bear Americana Music Fest opens, three days of roots music on four stages, with camping and food trucks. Through Sunday. 12:00 PM INTO THE WEEKEND
Alain White Field, Bantam – The Bantam Community Farmers Market. 3:00 PM SHOP LOCAL
Kent Farmers Market, Kent – Growers and makers on the green, Friday afternoons. 3:00 PM – 6:00 PM SHOP THE MARKET
Saturday the 15th
Tapping Reeve Meadow, Litchfield – Plein Air Litchfield Family Picnic Day, a community paint-out and the last practice run before the fall festival. Pack a picnic, play antique games, and let the painters make you their subject. All Day JOIN THE PAINTERS
Cornwall Village Green, Cornwall – The Cornwall COOP Farmers Market on the green. 9:00 AM SHOP THE GREEN
The Wish House, West Cornwall – The West Cornwall Farm Market. 10:00 AM MEET THE GROWERS
Cornwall Historical Society, Cornwall – Militia Outfitting with Warren Stevens, a free family history event. 1:00 PM OUTFIT THE MILITIA
Judea Garden, New Preston – Open Garden Day, with light refreshments and the summer interns presenting their projects. 3:00 PM VISIT THE GARDEN
Gordon Hall, Music Mountain, Falls Village – The Zaccai Curtis Quartet, 2025 Grammy winners, playing Afro-Cuban jazz. 7:00 PM HEAR THE QUARTET
Infinity Hall, Norfolk – Eaglemania, the Eagles tribute. 8:00 PM TAKE IT EASY
Sunday the 16th
Gordon Hall, Music Mountain, Falls Village – The Ulysses Quartet with pianist Max Levinson. Works by Grosshandler, Mozart, and Schumann. 3:00 PM HEAR THE QUARTET
Washington Depot, Washington – Strut Your Mutt, the summer dog social. 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM WALK THE DOG
Hopkins Vineyard, Warren – Live music at the vineyard through the afternoon. 2:00 PM WINE AMONG THE VINES
Monday the 17th
Woodbury Public Library, Woodbury – Clothing Swap drop-off begins. Bring clean, gently used adult clothing and accessories through Friday for the August 22 swap. During library hours CLEAN OUT THE CLOSET
A few poll respondents mentioned they didn’t know the Ledger was on Instagram! It is. Photographs of the county between issues, plus events that don’t make the newsletter.
