Skip to main content

Support WBUR

What does it sound like when you give every train in New York City an instrument?

07:29
A subway train pulls into a station in New York, Monday, Feb. 21, 2022. (Seth Wenig/AP)
A subway train pulls into a station in New York, Monday, Feb. 21, 2022. (Seth Wenig/AP)

The B line on the New York City subway is a tenor saxophone. The A is a jazz trombone. And the No. 3 line is an upright bass.

Joshua Wolk is a designer and engineer who assigned different instruments to every train in New York City, creating a small jazz combo that plays on an interactive website.

Here & Now's Indira Lakshmanan speaks with Wolk about what inspired him to do this.

This segment aired on May 25, 2026.

Support WBUR

Support WBUR

Listen Live