Click Here – "Coded music" (February 6, 2026)

Episode Overview

In this episode of "Click Here," host Dina Temple-Raston and reporter Karen Duffin tell the riveting, little-known story of four American musicians who, during the Cold War, undertook a secret mission to Soviet Russia. Their goal: connect with a clandestine group of Jewish dissident musicians known as the Phantom Orchestra, gather their stories amidst constant KGB surveillance, and smuggle those stories out—encoded in music. The episode blends suspense, ingenuity, and the enduring power of imagination, revealing how music became both a shield and a secret language of resistance under totalitarian rule.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. A Mission Inspired by Defiance and Imagination (00:02-02:41)

• Theme: The power of imaginative resistance in oppressive systems.
• Context: The Soviet Union, 1985—where state surveillance was omnipresent, and information flow was tightly controlled.
• Key Quote:

  "This is a story about people who didn't have political power or weapons or leverage. They had something else. They had music and a willingness to do something that felt, even to them, a little reckless."
  —Dina Temple-Raston (01:25)

2. The Secret: Musicians as Couriers (05:03-06:47)

• The Setup: Meryl Goldberg, Henkas Netsky, and fellow musicians travel to Moscow under the guise of a cultural exchange.
• First Obstacle: Upon landing, immediate KGB scrutiny.
  • Quote:

    "We land in Moscow and we get off the plane and people are talking in little microphones and we think, oh, oh."
    —Meryl Goldberg (05:37)

• Their True Mission: To meet, document, and help publicize the stories of the Phantom Orchestra—Jewish refusenik musicians banned from performing due to their desire to emigrate.

3. Concealing Stories in Music: Crafting the Code (10:03-12:42)

• Strategic Hiding: Paper records of names and addresses were too risky, so Meryl drew inspiration from WWII resistance fighter Josephine Baker, who smuggled secrets in sheet music.
• Music as Cipher:
  • Familiar notes A–G were mapped to letters, then completed the alphabet with chromatics (sharps/flats), allowing them to encode full messages.
  • Quote:

    "Just creating a code in music would be the easiest way to go about this."
    —Meryl Goldberg (02:41, reiterated 11:26)

• Demonstration: Meryl plays a snippet on saxophone that decoded to a contact’s name. (12:18-12:30)

4. Playing Cat-and-Mouse with the KGB (13:12-14:55)

• Constant Surveillance: Their hotel rooms were bugged, KGB trailed them in cars.
  • Memorable Moment:

    "We'd walk up the street and the last car on the block would flash its lights... then the first car on the next block would flash its lights."
    —Henkas Netsky (13:53)

• Small Acts of Defiance: Trolling their minders with off-key Russian folk tunes, for example.

5. Contact and Camaraderie: Meeting the Phantom Orchestra (14:55-21:05)

• Reaching Out: After a tense journey, they make contact with Issei Goldstein, directed there by coded directions in Meryl’s sheet music.
  • Quote:

    "I had the directions to their apartment actually encoded in my music."
    —Meryl Goldberg (14:20)

• Mutual Understanding: Despite laughs at their espionage inexperience, the Goldstein brothers welcome the Americans.
• Shared Vigilance:
  • Quote:

    "There were four cars he pointed to. He said, these are all KGB."
    —Henkas Netsky (15:14)

6. The Secret Concert: Music as Freedom (19:34-21:30)

• Profound Connection: In a cramped Soviet apartment, the Americans and Phantom Orchestra musicians play together—music being a momentary escape from oppression.
  • Quote:

    "Playing music was the time when, in their brains, they could be totally, 100% free. When we played together, we were free."
    —Meryl Goldberg (20:41)

• Notable Song: “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” plays as a universal anthem of hope.
  • Quote:

    "Probably the most profound music-making I have ever in my entire life made."
    —Meryl Goldberg (21:30)

7. Encoded Escape & Aftermath (22:18-25:03)

• Smuggling Stories: Overnight, the Americans encoded everything learned into music to take home.
  • Philosophy:

    "It was really important to get stories out there. It means you exist and other people know you exist. If your story is never told, it's like it hasn't happened."
    —Meryl Goldberg (22:33)

• Final Test: At the airport, the KGB search their bags but overlook the coded sheet music.
  • Quote:

    "And then they just hand it right back to me. Oh, it was just really fantastic."
    —Meryl Goldberg (23:47)

• Advocacy Back Home: They share the musicians’ stories widely, organizing concerts and petitions. Within two years, many of the Phantom Orchestra members are allowed to leave the USSR.
  • Meryl on Courage:

    "You know, the powers that be try to suppress you... but you're going to be in trouble if you don't speak up. So really, for me, the only choice is to speak up."
    —Meryl Goldberg (25:03)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

| Timestamp | Speaker | Quote/Description | |---|---|---| | 01:25 | Dina Temple-Raston | "Some of the most effective acts of defiance begin... not with force, but with something even more powerful. Imagination." | | 05:37 | Meryl Goldberg | "We land in Moscow and we get off the plane and people are talking in little microphones and we think, oh, oh." | | 11:26 | Meryl Goldberg | "Just creating a code in music would be the easiest, easiest way to go about this." | | 14:20 | Meryl Goldberg | "I had the directions to their apartment actually encoded in my music." | | 15:14 | Henkas Netsky | "There were four cars he pointed to. He said, these are all KGB." | | 20:41 | Meryl Goldberg | "Playing music was the time when, in their brains, they could be totally, 100% free. When we played together, we were free." | | 21:30 | Meryl Goldberg | "'Somewhere Over the Rainbow' touched us in a way that I hadn't been touched before... Probably the most profound music-making I have ever in my entire life made." | | 23:47 | Meryl Goldberg | "And then they just hand it right back to me. Oh, it was just really fantastic." | | 25:03 | Meryl Goldberg | "You're going to be in trouble if you don't speak up. So really, for me, the only choice is to speak up." |

Structured Timeline & Timestamps

• Opening Theme & Episode Framing - 00:02
• Mission Context & Recruitment - 05:03
• KGB Scrutiny at Moscow Arrival - 05:37
• Origins of the Phantom Orchestra - 06:47
• Why Musical Code? Inspiration from Josephine Baker - 10:03
• How the Music Cipher Worked - 11:26
• Life Under Surveillance, Small Acts of Defiance - 13:12-14:09
• Tracking Down the Goldsteins with Encoded Notes - 14:20
• Meeting the Phantom Orchestra - 14:55-15:19
• Secret Concert: Musical Solidarity - 19:34-21:30
• Night of Encoding the Stories - 22:18
• Airport Interrogation, Code Remains Undetected - 23:07-23:47
• Aftermath and the Power of Telling Stories - 24:11-25:22

Takeaways & Reflections

• Resistance through Art: Even without traditional power or weapons, defiance can manifest in creative, unexpected forms—in this case, through music.
• Courage under Surveillance: The episode makes clear the constant dangers for both visitors and dissidents, highlighting the small acts of bravery required each step of the way.
• Legacy: The coded music didn’t just convey secrets—it saved lives, aided global advocacy, and eventually helped bring about real change.

Closing Reflections (25:22-27:00)

Dina Temple-Raston closes by reflecting on the enduring question raised by the story:

"When a system decides who gets to exist and who gets to be heard, what do you do with the tools you already have?"
The episode leaves listeners considering their own power—imaginative or otherwise—in the face of injustice.

This summary encapsulates the main themes, chronologically traces the action, includes powerful quotations, and highlights both the strategic ingenuity and emotional stakes of a mission where music became both code and hope.