Sound For Control Healing
Sound For Control Healing
Sound For Control Healing
Approved by:
______________________
Pauline Oliveros
Director of Thesis
______________________
_________________________
Maggi Payne
Marianne Sheldon
Reading Committee:
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John Bischoff
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Maggi Payne
Table Of Contents
Introduction
Military and Law Enforcement Applications
Subliminals
1
4
9
Sound Healing
15
My Work
25
Bibliography
33
Introduction
Throughout history, sound has been recognized and used to affect the human body
and mind in a variety of ways. The use of chanting, drumming and musical instruments to
induce altered or mystical states of conscious can be found in cultures worldwide. As
analog and digital electronic methods of sound production and analysis became available,
research began to explore how and why sound affects human biology and consciousness.
In the 20th century, exponential advances in technology have led to rapid advancement in
the applications of sound.
I became interested in sound as a healing modality in 2002, before I began studies
at Mills College. A personal meditation practice led me to research the use of binaural
beat frequencies, a sound production technique involving sine waves, as a meditation
enhancer and general anxiety reducer. I have studied the effects of brainwave entrainment
through listening to binaural beat frequencies and their variety of applications including:
sleep induction, learning enhancement, relaxation and meditation induction, and memory
improvement. Overall brain health is improved through neurotransmitter production
balance and hemispheric synchronization. My studies led me to commercially available
recordings which included spoken messages, guided meditations or affirmations mixed
with other audio and binaural beat frequencies in such a way that they could only barely
be heard consciously. These techniques were described as subliminal or supraliminal
message delivery. In the modality of healing sound, subliminal recordings are used to
implant positive ideas and motivations for behavior change in the listener.
As I researched further on the topic of subliminal messages I discovered that a
long-standing controversy existed around them, whether they were real, effective (and
to what degree), and if they were still in use in mainstream media or otherwise. Research
uncovered several documented cases where subliminal messages had been used on the
public, and suggested other applications in the public sector. Public outcry had led the
FCC to suggest that advertisers abandon the technique, however a Canadian Broadcasting
Corporation (CBC) interoffice memo notes that a radio program in the 1980s was
actively using subliminal content. This suggests that the use of subliminal messages in
television and radio signals may have only been officially discontinued. Articles from
the 1970s until recently have also reported the use of subliminal messages that are
embedded in the music played in public spaces such as department stores to decrease
theft. This use of subliminal technology was and is clearly projected on a public
uninformed about the effects, and in most cases entirely unaware of their use or
existence. Through my own research it became clear that technology was available that
could calm and slow a listeners brainwaves, bringing the listener to a more
subconsciously open state for message delivery. The messages could be used to
produce both desirable and undesirable effects in the listener.
As I researched the use of concealing possibly undesirable messages for unaware
listeners, I was alarmed to see that sound was also being put into use by the military and
law enforcement agencies as a form of non-lethal weaponry. The non-lethal weaponry in
use today includes a variety of sound-based technology that is used in riot and crowd
control. This technology amplifies and projects sound that can damage or shock the
human body. During the Gulf War, sound warfare technology such as the Silent Sound
Spread Spectrum (S-Quad) system was used to embed subliminal messages and EEG
pattern-altering frequencies in radio and television carrier frequencies in the Middle East
(High-Tech Psychological Warfare). There are a number of registered patents of soundbased technology that are unreported in the media capable of damaging effects on
humans as well as broadcasting of subliminal audio signals.
During my time at Mills, I continued my research on the healing modalities of
sound, and composed my graduate Signal Flow performance as a sound healing
meditation utilizing brainwave entrainment techniques. The composition also
incorporated research on the induction of sound frequencies into the human body as a
form of vibrational therapy. I have since completed a CD recording utilizing the
techniques of subliminal message delivery and brainwave entrainment discussed in this
paper. (See accompanying CD entitled Affirmations.)
An informed consumer can easily access the new technology of sound and use it
to facilitate healing or control over others. This paper discusses the variety of positive and
negative uses of sound on human beings. My included CD is an example of the positive
applications of such technologies in a self-healing, meditation and self-empowerment
tool.
the S-Quad system also could clearly be applied to uses beyond the military, for both
positive and manipulative ends in the public sector. The use of subliminal message
embedding in media as well as background sound in public spaces has been a
controversial topic of public discussion since the late 1950's.
Part 2: Subliminals
In 1979, Time Magazine ran an article entitled Secret Voices: Messages That
Manipulate. The article describes a black box being installed in about 50 department
stores in the US and Canada, and gaining popularity as a theft-deterrent. A very basic
description of the device explains that it mixes an audio signal containing anti-theft
messages (the article gives the examples, I am honest. I will not steal) looped and
repeated at very high speed, about 9,000 times per hour, at very low volume into the
stores background music. From the article, One undisclosed East Coast chain is said to
have cut the number of thefts by 37%, for a savings of $600,000 during a nine-month
trial. In Toronto, a real estate office uses a black box to inspire sales personnel (Secret
Voices). Hal C. Becker, founder of the Behavioral Engineering Center and inventor of
the black box, proclaims, I see no reason why there wont be audio-conditioning in the
same way we now have air conditioning.
Beckers former partner, Louis Romberg, is described as having established his
own subliminal service operation in Toronto, providing subliminal pep talks to hockeys
Montreal Canadiens, while Becker is also working with an unidentified National
Football League team. Becker suggests that if subliminals were put on TV, they could
be directed specifically at such killers as obesity, drugs and bad driving. We could
eliminate weight problems in one generation, reduce auto insurance by 50% (Secret
Voices). Becker also mentions that he has already turned down politicians' and
advertisers' offers to hire him, and that he is not worried about abuses of the technology.
The article ends with a quote from Aryeh Neier, former executive director of the
American Civil Liberties Union, who insists, people have a right to go about their
business without being subjected to manipulation they dont even know about (Secret
Voices).
A more recent article reports the same use of technology by a larger number of
major department stores in the US, focusing specifically on Old Navys use of anti-theft
message imbedding. Old Navy reports similar decreases in shop-lifting following
implementation of the technology, and the article noted a rising interest in embedding the
messages in audio in stores and shopping centers around the country. The specifics of the
"black boxes" used to embed subliminal messages in audio signals have not been publicly
released. The technology could, for example, mix an audio signal into the bass
frequencies of the music at a very low level, generally -15dB to -20dB. Only focused
attention would reveal a murmuring sound beneath the bassline. Combined with
brainwave entrainment techniques such as trance-inducing rhythms and binaural beat
frequencies, the penetration of messages past the critical, right-brain directly to the
subconscious could be achieved. This same technique can be put to positive application
by exchanging messages to control shopper impulses with messages customized to
inspire desired behavioral and mental pattern changes. The recording included with this
thesis demonstrates a healthy and empowering application of a technique used for social
control in this country.
The 1979 Time Magazine article also recalls the ground breaking visual
subliminal message embedding work of marketing researcher James Vicary in the mid1950's. Vicarys experiments with a theatre in New Jersey were first documented in 1957
by The New Yorker, and then The Wall Street Journal. Vicary inserted frames of text, such
as Hungry? Eat popcorn and suggestions to drink Coca-Cola in between frames of a
film shown in the theatre in an attempt to boost sales of refreshments. The Wall Street
Journal described the announcement by the company responsible for the technology:
Sales of Coca-Cola reportedly rose 18.1% and popcorn purchases zoomed
57.7% over the theatres usual sales. These claims and the explanation of
the purported phenomenon were made at a press conference yesterday
afternoon by executives of a new firm called Subliminal Projection Co.,
Inc. The movie patrons had been subjected to invisible advertising that
by-passed their conscious and assertedly struck deep into their subconscious. The trick was accomplished by flashing commercials past the
viewers eyes so rapidly that viewers were unaware they had seen them
(qtd. in Radford).
The story was gradually reported with increasing dramatic license and intrigue. A
1957 editorial in the Saturday Review announced, Welcome to 1984, and fearfully
speculated, if the device is successful for putting over popcorn, why not politicians or
anything else? If it is possible to prompt the subconscious into making certain judgments
of human character, why wouldnt it be possible to use invisible messages for the purpose
of annihilating a reputation or promoting it (qtd. in Radford)? Aldous Huxley wrote
about the use of subliminal projection machines in his Brave New World Revisited in
1958, suggesting that, The scientific dictator of tomorrow will set up his whispering
machines and subliminal projectors in schools and hospitals, and in all public places
where audiences can be given a preliminary softening up by suggestibility increasing
oratory or rituals (qtd. in Radford).
Public response to the reported use of subliminal advertising led to further
editorial condemnation of the technique in the press over the next two years. Concern
grew that the use of subliminal messages in advertising could be a form of
brainwashing, and demands began to be made that subliminals should be federally
regulated and/or banned. Speculation of possible conspiracies by hidden persuaders in
the media prompted the writing of a popular book expos of the same name, The Hidden
Persuaders by Vance Packard. The book described the rise of "professional persuaders"
in the media; professionally applying psychology and social science research to sales
tactics in what was termed the "depth approach." Packard summed up the anxiety of the
public surrounding the advanced "motivational research" being applied to advertisements,
"Large-scale efforts are being made. . . to channel our unthinking habits, our purchasing
decisions, and our thought processes. . . Typically these efforts take place beneath our
level of awareness; so that the appeals which move us are often, in a sense, hidden (qtd.
in Ellison)." Public opinion decided that the embedding of subliminal messages in
advertising was ethically wrong.
In November 1957, the National Association of Radio and Television
Broadcasters requested that all 300 of its member stations refrain from using subliminals
pending "review and consideration (qtd. in FCC Subliminal)," cautioning that the use
of subliminals could do more harm than good to advertisers based on public fear reaction.
Republican Representative William Dawson began congressional hearings on
subliminals, demanding that the FCC limit the application of subliminals in advertising.
Although a number of statements were released by the FCC asserting that they did not
approve of subliminals being used, they never specifically restricted the use of
subliminals, as it was decided that such restriction would be a censorship violation.
There is evidence that the techniques were never fully abandoned, as examples
have arisen of more recent subliminal telecasts. Frames showing pictures of a skull and
the word blood were also inserted in the horror movie The Exorcist (1973) to enhance
the emotional impact of the film. In 1973 a television commercial for childrens toys was
taken off the air by the Federal Communications Commission for including the
subliminal message Get it! imbedded between frames. The FCC then issued a warning
against further TV or radio subliminations (qtd. in Ellison). In a study conducted by the
Journal of Advertising in the 1980's, 78% of the respondents claimed knowledge of
subliminals in advertising, 50% of whom believed subliminal techniques were used
"always" or "often," and 23% who believed they were used "sometimes (Zanot, Pinkus,
Lamp 39-45)." The conclusion of the article was that subliminal advertisement was alive
and well. Whether the techniques were effective was another matter. In 1989 the Journal
of Mind and Behavior published a detailed analysis of "Subliminal Techniques as
Propaganda Tools." The conclusion reached was that some subliminal methods, such as
the described embedding of spoken recordings in audio frequencies, could deliver
messages successfully, although the influence would likely be weak. As subliminals
would bypass rational criticism, they were acknowledged as a valid persuasion technique.
The analysis concluded, "the undetectability of subliminal stimuli may diminish their
resistibility relative to other persuasion techniques (Bornstein 231)."
A declassified CIA memo shows the Intelligence Agency's interests in conducting
research and analyses on subliminal perception as a subproject of its MKULTRA research
program in 1958 (CIA, Gottlieb). A report appeared soon after in the CIA's classified
journal Studies in Intelligence, though not necessarily the one referred to in the memo,
entitled The Operational Potential of Subliminal Perception. The conclusion of the
report was that subliminals could be effective but not in a reliable way, and many
variables were at play in terms of level of effectiveness and results. Along with other
techniques studied by the CIA, including hypnosis and extrasensory perception, it was
found that "although they occasionally produce dramatic results, their lack of reliability
and their requirement for extremely precise controls have limited their operational utility
to a very few very specialized instances (CIA, Gafford)." The purpose of such research
by the intelligence agency was to explore possibilities of altering a target's behavior
without awareness of said behavior change or its stimulus. It is unknown what research
has been conducted by the government in the period between the late 1950's and the
reported application of Silent Sound Spread Spectrum technology in the Gulf War
described in the previous section.
The conclusion reached from the publicly available research and documentation is
that subliminal message embedding can be effective to varying degrees. Combined with
brainwave entrainment techniques discussed in the next section of this thesis, the
subconscious effects on the listener can be increased. When the subliminal content is
custom designed for or by its target listening audience to contain positive affirmations or
guided meditations, the technology can be put to use in a healthy way to create positive
changes in mental and physical behavior.
discovered that pulsing tones called binaural beats occurred in the brain when two
distinct tones of different frequencies were played separately to each ear. The brain
begins to resonate and produce brainwaves matching the frequency of the stimulus
binaural beat, a process called entraining. As most of the brainwaves at play in the human
brain are usually below 20Hz and the human ears range of hearing does not go much
below 20Hz, direct listening to such frequencies will not register in the listeners
perception. Instead, these frequencies can be stimulated through the use of two discrete
stereo frequencies whose difference equals less than 20. The difference between the two
tones is the frequency at which the binaural beat will pulse. Therefore, a 200Hz tone in
the left ear and a 210Hz tone in the right ear will produce a binaural beating frequency of
10Hz, only perceptible to the listener within his/her own brain. The hemispheres of the
brain will then resonate and entrain to this frequency.
Robert Monroes research into binaural beats at the Monroe Institute of Applied
Sciences confirmed their effectiveness in brainwave entrainment. Monroe conducted
thousands of experiments using an EEG machine to monitor subjects brainwave patterns.
He also noted that the alterations of brainwave activity did not only occur in the area of
the brain responsible for hearing, or only in one hemisphere or the other, but that rather
the entire brain resonated, the wave forms of both hemispheres becoming identical in
frequency, amplitude, phase and coherence (qtd. in Thompson Scientific). This is the
description of the phenomenon termed hemispheric synchronization.
A number of researchers, including Dr. Lester Fehmi, director of the Princeton
Behavioral Medicine and Biofeedback Clinic, have verified this phenomenon. Dr. Arthur
Hastings described the effectiveness of binaural beats in sleep induction in his paper
understand the different brainwave states experienced by humans every day. Brainwave
frequencies are the measurement of the frequency of electrical pulses between neurons in
groups of brain cells (Mann 7). Research mapping brainwaves and their associated states
of consciousness has led to a classification system of Greek letters to differentiate
frequencies of brainwave activity. It was found that the normal range of brainwave
frequencies in the cerebral cortex neurons lay approximately between 0.5Hz to 30Hz. The
conclusion drawn from many studies posited that the brainwave states could be
categorized into Beta, Alpha, Theta, and Delta frequencies, associated with different
waking and sleeping states. Different researchers have labeled different ranges of
frequency as Beta, Alpha and so on, but a general range has been agreed on (Hutchinson).
The transition between different states is subtle and without specific start and end points.
Beta brainwaves are associated with externally directed linear thinking mental
activity, or day-time waking consciousness. The state is characterized by focus and
directed attention. Brainwaves of 12Hz and up are typically labeled as Beta waves. Most
of our daily, "working" consciousness is active between 13Hz and 20Hz, with increase in
frequency being related to increase in concentration and alertness. Beta frequencies above
20Hz tend to be associated with anxiety and arousal.
Alpha brainwaves are associated with internally directed non-linear mental
activity, a state of resting relaxation, contemplation and day dreaming. The state begins
around 12Hz down to about 8Hz, with relaxation deepening as the frequency slows. The
aim of meditation practice is to induce Alpha (and lower) brainwaves in the practitioner,
entering a state of non-directed or open focus, while maintaining wakeful awareness.
Alpha has been characterized as a super-learning state by many producers of brainwave
music in a store, public space or on the radio, combined with subliminal message
embedding techniques, could theoretically be used to induce a more subconsciously
"open" state in the unaware listener to accept the embedded messages uncritically. The
application of such a technique on unknowing people would assumably have a wide and
varied range of effects in different individuals.
Delta brainwaves appear in deep, dreamless sleep periods of physical restoration.
Delta begins below 4Hz. While asleep in the Delta state, the brain releases large
quantities of healing growth hormone. In meditation studies, conscious experience of
Delta wave states has been associated with mystical experiences of the void; states of
free-floating, timeless consciousness. Delta binaural beats are typically used in sleep
induction recordings.
Multiple layers of binaural beat frequencies were also found to produce multiple
resonating wave patterns within the listener's brain. As the brain is constantly producing
waves of a wide variety of frequencies, the induced wave pattern of a binaural beat
frequency will only be the dominant frequency in a varied spectrum. Therefore, other
brainwave frequencies can be stimulated along with the dominant frequency
(Hutchinson). Which frequency becomes the dominant frequency usually depends upon
which layer of sound producing a binaural beat is loudest to the listener. Entraining with
multiple layers of binaural beats has become its own technique to more creatively induce
different brainstates. A popular application of two layers has been to use a dominant
frequency to slow the listener's brainwaves to the Theta state, and then apply a second
signal in the upper Alpha range. This has the effect of bringing a more alert, focused
awareness associated with Alpha to the deeply relaxed, dreamlike Theta state.
value of the delay timing. Studies of binaural beats have been conducted mainly using
stereo headphones, to completely separate the two signals going into the brain. Studies
using stereo speakers in a room environment found the binaural beating and brainwave
entrainment effect present as long as the left and right channels of sound were audibly
separated to the listener. The listener's subjective experience of the clarity of a sustained
beating effect would indicate the efficacy of the stereo separation. As long as the effect is
audible, even if only on the edge of hearing, the entrainment and synchronization is
taking place.
As brainwave patterns move from Alpha to Theta to Delta, the amplitude of the
waves increases. This increased amplitude is taxing to the nervous system in its current
structure. The stimulation causes the brain to respond by creating new neural pathways
and to reorganize itself at a more complex level of functioning. Hemispheric
synchronization encourages balanced left and right brain processing and increased
communication between parts of the brain previously unconnected (Thompson The
Scientific Research).
Dr. Margaret Patterson and biochemist Dr. Ifor Capel at the Marie Curie Cancer
Memorial Foundation Research Department in Surrey, England found that the application
of specific frequencies to the brain would speed up the production of a variety of
neurotransmitters (McAuliffe). A 10Hz signal was found to boost serotonin production,
and a 4Hz signal produced catecholamines, a vital neurotransmitter for memory and
learning. Increased production of these neurotransmitters as well as acetylcholine has
been found to greatly enhance memory and learning. Binaural beats also release
endorphins in the brain which have been found to have powerful strengthening effect on
learning and have been known to reverse amnesia. Neuroscientists have discovered that
endorphins, serve as the bodys natural reward system, providing us with a rush of
pleasure whenever we learn something or act in some way that is conducive to our
survival as a species (qtd. in Thompson The Scientific Research). When the brain is
flooded with endorphins, the suggestion of a new belief system or behavior change is
more likely to be perceived as beneficial and adopted. Dr. Vincent Giampapa, M.D., of
Longevity Institute International and Vice President of the American Society of AntiAging Medicine, released a study showing that binaural beat frequency induction
dramatically increased production of DHEA and melatonin and a decrease of cortisol,
three hormones found to be proportionally related to increased longevity and well-being.
Dr. Giampapa states:
It has been shown that induced brainwave states can affect superlearning,
increased creativity, sleep induction, pain control, behavior modification,
focusing of attention, relief from stress, increased memory, and dramatic
improvements in mental and emotional health (qtd. in Thompson The
Scientific Research).
There is a new type of sound healing technology called vibro-tactile induction
technology. By using vibrating magnetic plates to translate sound waves into magnetic
pulses, a recording can be projected through the body of the patient, resonating with
different tissues depending on the frequencies involved, and stimulating the spinal cord,
brainstem and brain. This sound healing modality focuses on healing the body with
physical resonance. Chiropractic spinal adjustments use sound to vibrate a vertebra back
into position, for example. Cranial bones and cerebro-spinal fluid can also be influenced
with sound resonance. Dr. Jeffery Thompson of the Center for Neuroacoustic Research
describes the application of the technology:
an octave of the harmonic frequency of a specific chakra. The most commonly found
tuning system related to the chakras relates frequencies close to the note of C to the
root chakra, B to the sacral chakra, and so on, up to D for the crown chakra. I am
unaware of any scientific basis or studies supporting the relation of these sound
frequencies to these energy systems or the glands and organs associated with them.
Based on my research on brainwave entrainment and modalities of sound healing,
I began a project to practically apply what Id learned and to experiment with healing
sound. The project evolved into my Signal Flow performance in April of 2004. I had been
following my own meditation practice for over a year, and had incorporated listening to
binaural beat recordings for thirty minutes to an hour almost daily. My meditations
centered on deep breathing, mental affirmations, and visualization of various healing
techniques. I decided to frame my composition around the stimulation and healing of the
chakra system of the body, which I had become very familiar with in my studies and was
comfortable visualizing.
The piece was divided into seven sections, one for each chakra system, beginning
with the root and moving up to the crown chakra. The sound programming was done with
PC software called BrainWave Generator. Each section consisted of seven layers of stereo
sine waves producing binaural beat frequencies, with an additional layer of amplitudemodulated white noise. Each sine wave layer consisted of two slightly detuned sine
waves producing a binaural beat frequency, which additionally could be amplitudemodulated rhythmically to produce a pulsing effect at a different rate from the binaural
beat, for example. Graphic envelopes could be drawn to control dynamic volume,
frequency and modulation rates. The first part of the process involved collecting all the
frequency values I could find that related to the chakra system being focused on. These
were collected from several compendiums found on the internet, with references to a
variety of books, research studies and papers the frequency values had been taken from.
Some were scientifically based and straight-forward to understand, others featured vague
or non-scientific descriptions of effects. As I was keeping all of the binaural beat
frequencies below 15Hz, and tonal frequencies below 1000Hz, the question of which
frequencies from the list to use was mainly an aesthetic decision. The frequencies of each
section were generally focused on the chakra tuning system equating a near-"C"
frequency to the root chakra, "B" for the sacral chakra and so on, with harmonies of 5ths
and 7ths, and some unique frequencies from researchers who claimed (with nonconfirmable sources) effects on chakras, organs, glands etc. The first section, for
example, was centered on frequencies effecting the root chakra. Tonal frequencies of "C"
(256Hz) and its octaves were used in three layers, with binaural beats calculated by
dividing the frequency in half (lowering the octave) until resulting in frequencies fitting
below the Beta range. In the first section, binaural beat frequencies of 8Hz (Alpha) and
16Hz (Beta) were used, incorporating a technique of harmonic frequency combination,
which was found to produce smoother response and deeper entrainment to the waves.
In several sections of the piece I also included commonly used sound healing
frequencies called Schumann's resonances. The Schumann's resonances, named after
German physicist W.O. Schumann in 1954, are naturally circulating rhythmic
electromagnetic signals passing between the Earth and the ionosphere (30-250 miles up).
Research, while still in the hypothetical stage, has suggested that human biology is
directly and constantly effected by these electromagnetic frequencies. The frequencies
average to 7.83Hz, a threshold frequency between Alpha and Theta, and a desirable
meditative state. As many international historical trance-inducing practices such as
dancing and drumming have involved rhythms around this tempo, it makes sense that
their efficacy and aesthetic effect on listeners is due to the similarity to a naturally
occurring magnetic field constantly influencing our bodies and minds. Subjectively, the
application of Schumann resonances in binaural beat frequencies has been described as
grounding, connecting one with the natural rhythm of the Earth. Other "natural"
frequencies have been calculated from the revolution/orbit periods of Earth and other
planets, which has produced a movement of sound healing based on astrology. For the
root chakra, which is associated with connection to the Earth, I used a tonal frequency of
192.18Hz, an octave equivalent of the period of one Earth (synodic) day. As the tone is
near to a "G," the harmony with the chakra "C" tone was aesthetically pleasant. Later in
the piece, a tonal frequency of 136.1Hz (approximately a "C#") was used, an equivalent
of the period of one revolution of the Earth around the Sun. In Indian music this tone is
called the "sadja" or "father to others," and is a keynote. Other beat frequencies used in
the piece were frequencies associated with increased production of neurotransmitters, for
example 1.05Hz which has been shown to stimulate the pituitary gland to produce
healing growth hormone.
I wanted the piece to have the maximum healing effect possible based on
soundness and validity of the research involved. The binaural beat frequency element of
the piece was scientifically sound and proven to have a tangible effect on the human
brain. The tonal element, the concept of using specific audible tone frequencies to
resonate certain parts of the body, had little grounding in laboratory-based research
studies, however it was empirically backed by large groups of practitioners from many
backgrounds and eras who had written on the subject. A number of sound healing
frequencies associated with parts of the body were found in another researcher's
compilation of associations taken from two esoteric Latin texts. The scientific validity of
these values was unverifiable, but were included to add another, more experimental and
mysticism-based element to the frequencies. I also wanted feedback from the audience as
to the subjective efficacy of these tonal elements. Two such frequencies used in the
composition were 196.5Hz, which was said to be related to the heart (fourth chakra), and
its octave 393Hz, related to the eyes (sixth chakra) (Abbott, Yanis). The piece was
intended to be played in a concert hall or small performance setting, as opposed to
resonantly conducted into the listener via vibrating plates. The role of the tonal element
seemed to be the setting of aesthetic mood and texture, with healing resonance results
intended but not specifically expected. The hemispheric synchronization and brainwave
entrainment would do its work regardless of other effects. The framing and
contextualization of the piece as a chakra healing meditation would hopefully inspire the
listener to focus and meditate on those parts of him/herself while listening.
Having found a variety of appropriate frequencies both binaural and tonal, I began
assembling layers of sine waves which I could fade in and out in combination with each
other to produce harmonies and beating effects. Each segment stayed in the same general
frequency range. The binaural beats begin around 15Hz, the waking-consciousness-Beta
state, and slowly decrease to low-Alpha mid-Theta levels, where they hover for most of
the piece. At certain times in the piece, lower-Theta and Delta signals are introduced to
stimulate a deeper trance and dream-like state, combined with upper-Alpha signals to
stimulate conscious awareness and maintain wakefulness. In the final minutes of the
piece the signals return to the low-end of the Beta range to leave the listener in a relaxed
but wakeful, alert state.
In the Signal Flow performance of the piece, each chakra section lasted about four
minutes, with an additional three minutes at the beginning and end of the piece to shift
the binaural frequencies and slowly fade in/out. The sections of the piece were originally
created as fifteen minute meditation sessions with steady binaural beats. The sessions
were listened to while adjustments were made until the dynamic fades, levels and rates of
amplitude modulation, tonal harmonies, and binaural beats were found to be aesthetically
pleasant and relaxing. The session was then scaled down to four minute length and
exported into an audio file, which was edited in a multi-track editing program.
Equalization was used to emphasize certain frequencies in each section, and each section
was cross-faded by about twenty to thirty-five seconds with the section following it to
create a seamless transition. For the performance, the composition was sent through two
inputs of a stereo mixer with multi-band EQ, which was used to sculpt the dynamics of
the live sound.
The input to the other stereo channel of the mixer was provided by a laptop
running a modular synthesis and real-time processing program called Jeskola Buzz. The
software was used to create a real-time synthesizer environment controlled with a MIDI
keyboard. The synthesizer environment consisted of two two-oscillator wave generators
with ADSR envelopes and low frequency oscillator (LFO)-controlled lowpass (LP) filter.
The generators were set to generate sustaining tones with slowly shifting dynamics and
filtering. The output was then sent through a series of reverb, delay, LFO-controlled
phaser and flanger, LFO-controlled resonant LP and bandpass (BP) filters, and EQ
processors. Control of various parameters of the synthesizer environment were assigned
to control knobs on the MIDI keyboard. The output was sent to two more inputs to the
stereo mixer and mixed with the binaural beat composition. The synthesizer was
controlled and played live during the Signal Flow performance. Tones were chosen which
harmonized with the sine wave composition, mostly in fifths, and also to make slow
slides of pitch. The tones would occasionally interact with the sine waves and produce
additional beating frequencies which added unexpected elements to the texture. Creating
a performance instrument to play in real-time along with the composed sequences of sine
waves gave the performance a more dynamic and improvisational quality for me as well
as a level of unpredictability interacting with the other layers.
The Signal Flow composition was entitled 333 and was performed in the Mills
College Chapel. Four speakers were positioned around the audience so that the difference
in left and right channels of the audio would be readily apparent no matter where the
listener was seated due to proper stereo separation, and perception of the binaural beats
would be insured. The interaction of the waves in the space would also produce audible
pulsations or monaural beats. Small cards were handed out with the title of the piece and
explanation of the process and concept, along with suggestions to relax, close the eyes,
meditate, walk around the space and/or focus on the chakras. Movement around the space
was found to produce changes in the apparent perception of the beat patterns as well as
frequencies and harmonics perceived. Following the performance, some of the students in
the audience approached me to relate their subjective experiences of the sound. Three
people described moments when they felt specific areas of their body being stimulated. A
student who had been raised in an Indian family which meditated and was familiar with
the chakra system said that she had found the sound effecting her energetically. An older
couple who had been practicing an esoteric meditation and visualization technique
(Merkaba) for many years said that they found the piece a deeply moving experience, one
of them moved to tears, and very stimulating to their chakras. They compared the effects
of the piece to their experience of their own meditation technique.
Subjectively, my experience with binaural beat frequencies and healing sound has
deepened and intensified as Ive made it a regular part of my life. Generally, the more I
meditate with binaural recordings, the more centered and free of anxiety I feel. Binaural
beats could always be expected to help induce sleep and in many cases listening to
binaural beats when tired would relieve much of the feeling of fatigue. I currently
meditate with binaural beats several times a week, and also use commercial recordings of
guided meditations and mental exercises together with binaural beats. Applying the
techniques of subliminal/supraliminal message delivery and sound healing researched in
this thesis, I have been able to create my own affirmation and guided meditation
recordings with brainwave entrainment techniques comparable to professional,
commercially available recordings. I plan to continue composing and performing with
sound healing techniques and to sell customized meditation and affirmation recordings to
the public. I have also incorporated sound healing techniques into my personal healing
practice in combination with Reiki and other holistic healing techniques, and eventually
intend to offer healing services to the public as well.
The healing modalities of sound technology described in this paper are available
to any member of the public with a computer and a pair of headphones for as little as $30,
as well as on commercially available CDs. Many of the non-lethal weaponry and related
devices are likewise available to the public from a number of electronics and surplus
catalogues in print and online. Just as sound can be used to induce gentle, relaxing and
relatively subtle brainwave changes and shifts of consciousness, so can it be amplified to
extreme levels capable of doing damage physically and mentally to human beings. Sound
must be viewed as energy, which can be used to affect the environment and individuals in
positive life-enhancing ways as well as negative life-destroying ways. Through the
application of healing sound techniques, we can empower and heal ourselves mentally
and physically.
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