Binaural Beats
Brainwave Entrainment for Relaxation, Meditation &
Creativity
Victoria Powell
Binaural Beats in Contemporary Music
Alexis Kirke
Clinical Use
Meg Deak
•Received her Master in Creative Arts Therapy from
Hahnemann University
•Has over 15 years of experience with vibroacoustics and brainwave entrainment
•Composed the soundtrack for his film “Many Worlds” using binaural beats
I asked Alexis, “Do you think that more musicians will use binaural beats as a
part of their compositions in the future?”
“Yes. And they already are,” he replied.
As for specific names, he did not give me too many, but he was contacted
by one of icelandic singer Björk’s team members about possible use of binaural beats in the future.
What are binaural beats?
Meg Deak
MCAT, LPC
Binaural beats can be described as an
“auditory illusion” that occurs when two
tones of slightly different frequencies are
presented to the respective human ears
(Reedijk).
For example:
History
Prior to the discovery of the binaural beat phenonmenon was the discovery of coupled oscillations , also known as “entrainment” by the
Dutch inventor and scientist Christian Huygens in the 1600s. While two of
his clocks were mounted on the same structure, their pendulums’ movements became synchronized. It was their natural way of working together to conserve energy. In simplified terms, entrainment can be defined
as two vibrating bodies, eventually starting to vibrate together (Bradt).
When it comes to brainwave entrainment, one way this can be
achieved is through listening to specific audio frequencies.
Responses to binaural beats are detectable in the human EEG (Reedijk).
My Tracks
In order to conduct my experiment, I needed to create
tracks for my research participants to listen to.
•Using Audacity, I created Binaural Beats of 8 Hz using various carrier tone frequencies.
•I inserted an mp3 of a popular song into the digital audio
workstation, and then mixed the three tracks down to one
track for an easy listening experience.
Schumann Resonances
As her left headphone
plays 200 Hz and her right
headphone plays 210 Hz,
her brain subjectively perceives a frequency of 10
Hz.
The sound is localized near
the back of the head. The
exact process by which the
brain produces the beats
are unclear, but the reticular activation system and
the inferior colliculus play a
significant role (Kuwada).
Meg’s client receives treatment
Binaural beats are known for effective brainwave entrainment of human brains. Most people do not have the desire or attention span to
listen to a pure sine wave tone for 10 minutes. Binaural beats could be
more effective on a larger scale if they are automatically interlayed
into contemporary music of the user’s choice.
My research consists of a controlled study with two groups. Group A
will listen to pure binaural beats at 8 Hz. Group B will listen to the tracks I
have mixed to include popular songs overlayed with binaural beats at
8 Hz.
I will gain information by conducting short listening sessions with volunteer peers as research participants. I will record their first-person experiences through open ended interviews, observation, and a short mood
scale survey similar to PANAS (Positive and Negative Affect Scale).
Heinrich Wilhelm Dove
The phenomenon of binaural beats was discovered in 1839 by the Prussian scientist, Heinrich Wilhelm Dove.
Many scientists have gone on to study binaural beats, including Dr. Gerald Oster who
created the Oster Curve. The Oster Curve is useful for determining the optimal carrier frequency for listening to each waveform sum (or binaural beat).
The Schumann resonances are a set of electromagnetic waves af various frequencies which can be found and measured throughout the
Earth’s ionosphere cavity (Besser).
•They are in the extremely low frequency range (ELF)
•Consist of magnetic and electric waves, excited by lightning discharge
(Besser).
•The lowest Schumann resonance is approximately 7.83 Hz
My hypothesis: If humans entrain their brainwave frequencies to 7.83~
8 Hz, they may also conserve energy and become more efficient and
productive in daily lives by entraining with the natural frequency of the
Earth.
(Unfortunately I do not have the means to formally test this hypothesis).
EPOC Emotiv EEG electrodes placement
view from the side (Norhazman).
Bibliography
Besser, B. P. “Synopsis of the Historical Development of Schumann Resonances.” Radio Science
42.2 (2007): RS2S02.
Bradt, Joke, Dr. “Dr. Joke Bradt.” Personal interview. 25 Mar. 2015.
Deak, Meg. “Meg Deak; Binaural Beats.” E-mail interview. 8 Apr. 2015.
First, David. “The Music of the Sphere: An Investigation into Asymptotic Harmonics, Brainwave
Entrainment and the Earth as a Giant Bell.” Leonardo Music Journal 13 (2003): 31-7.
Kirke, Alexis. “Alexis Kirke; Binaural Beats.” E-mail interview. 9 Apr. 2015.
Kuwada, S. “Responses of Cat Inferior Collicular Neurons to Interaural Delays and Binaural Beats: A
Comparison of Techniques.” The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 65.S1 (1979): S85.
Norhazman, H., et al. “The Investigation of Alpha Frontal Energy Asymmetry on Normal and Stress
Subjects After Listening to the Binaural Beats 10 Hz”.
Reedijk, SA, A. Bolders, and B. Hommel. “The Impact of Binaural Beats on Creativity.” FRONTIERS
IN HUMAN NEUROSCIENCE 7 (2013): 786.
Ross, B., et al. “Human Cortical Responses to Slow and Fast Binaural Beats Reveal Multiple
Mechanisms of Binaural Hearing.” Journal of neurophysiology 112.8 (2014): 1871-84.