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Torture and Punishment Through Music 1161

and publishers began to work more closely together, rather than having multiple publishers pdnt the same song. New songs were marketed as singers and pianists, called pluggers, performed new songs for custom.ers who frequented music stores. Some traveled to help sell songs. , , and were among those who worked as pluggers. Some of the biggest hits of were "Give My Regards to Broadway" (George Cohan, 1904), "Alexan­ der's Band" (Irving Berlin, 1911), and "Ain't She Sweet" (Yellen and Ager, 1927). Some of the Tin Pan Alley music houses came together in 1895 to form the Music Publishers Associate of the , which still exists as an education and advocacy organization for music publishers. Simi­ larly, the American Society of and Publish­ ers, founded in 1941, was established to protect the rights of composers and publishers. As the phonograph, radio, and rock 'n' roll became more popular and music tastes change~ Tin Pan Alley declined. Yet the songs that were wdtten and published during the Tin Pan Alley era are permanently part of the history and culh1re of American society.

See also: Am1strong, Louis; Berlin, Irving; Blues; Country Music; Folk Music; Gersh\vin, George; Improvisation; Jazz; The music publishing house Leo Feist on West 28th Street Joplin, Scott; Kern, Jerome; Porter, Cole; Radio; Rodgers, in , undated photo. This area is also known Richard, and Hammerstein, Oscar; Rock 'n' Roll; Swing as Tin Pan Al!ey, since numerous famous music publishers Music set up shop here. (AP Photo) Official \Veb Sites: Music Publishers of the United States: http://\vww.mpa. many popular musicians and songwriters, including orgj Louis Annstrong (1901-1971), Irvilrg Berlin (1888- American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers: 1989), Jerome Kern (1885-1945), George Gershwin http://W'.vw.ascap.com/ (1898-1937), (1867-1917), ( 1892-1964), and ( 1902-1979). During Further Reading this era, songs were judged to be popular based on the Furia, Philip, and Michael Lasser. 2006. AmericaS Songs: number of copies that were sold, rather than 171€ Stories Behind the Songs ofBroadwa;~ , and the number of albums or downloads, so the publishers Tin Pan Alley. New York: Routledge. focused on promoting their sheet music to the public. Hischak, Thomas S. 2002.111e Tin Pan Alley Song Some music, like jazz and the blues, was not easy to cap­ Encyclopedia. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. ture in written form because of its improvisationa1nahtre, Jacqueline Edmondson but they attempted to publish this music nonetheless. The origins of the name Tin Pan Alley are not known. The most popular explanation is that a reporter for the New York Herald walked West 28th Street and said that the sound of competing he heard through the open windows was like that of clanging tin pans. Lon­ Torture and Punishment don and other cities around the world adopted 'Tin Pan Alley" to describe their music publishing districts. Through Music Tin Pan Alley published songs from a wide range of Music played very loud for even short durations has the genres: , rags, jazz, the blues, country, folk, big ability to inflict pain and physical damage on the audi­ bands, and swing. Because of changes in copyright laws tory system. Music played below the pain threshold in the late nineteenth century, songwriters, composers, (approximately 130 decibels) can elicit a variety of

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negative physiological and psychological responses if addition, the lyrical content of songs is often cited as played for long enough or deemed unwelcome or both­ a parameter that contributes to aggravation and stress. ersome by the listener. The U.S. military, intelligence, Claims have been made that a detainee's conservative and law enforcement communities have used music in cultural, religious, or political beliefs can be chal­ this fashion to a variety of ends. lenged by songs containing explicit sexual content, Srudies, both short-term and longitudinal, support religious blasphemy, or American political ideals. the idea that exposure to noise has negative physical and However, the wide variety of songs reportedly used by psychological effects. It is well known that noise, even U.S. authorities suggests that lyrical content is not an at levels below the hearing damage level (approximately important factor. 85 decibels), can cause annoyance, sleep disturbance, The use of music by the United States to coerce, tor­ cognitive impairment, physiological stress reactions, ture, or punish human beings first gained notoriety in endoctine imbalance, and cardiovascular disorders. For 1989 when U.S. forces played loud music outside of the example, shmt-term laboratory studies carried out on Vatican Embassy in Panama City in an attempt to secure humans have shown that the exposure to noise affects the surrender of deposed leader Manuel Noriega. the sympathetic and endocrine system, resulting in acute Reports claim that music was played around the embassy physiological responses including increased heart rate, to mask the sounds of negotiations happening inside. heart palpitations, raised blood pressure, vasoconstric­ \Vhen it was leamed that the loud music was irritating tion, and release of stress hormones (Babisch 20 II). Noriega, it was continued around the clock in an attempt Noise is a psychological concept and is defined gen­ to harass and possibly expedite his surrender. This musi­ erally as sound that is unwanted by a listener. Any sound cal aspect of the operation was stopped once it was stimulus can be classified as noise when it is unpleasant, determined that the loud music was having a negative is bothersome, interferes with important activities, or is effect on the staff and residents of the embassy. believed to be physiologically harmful (Cohen and The second notable instance occurred in 1993, when Weinstein 1981 ). Such sounds can fall into these catego­ loud music was used to aggravate and disorient mem­ ries because of their amplitude, frequency range, and bers of the Branch Davidians during the fifty-one-day intermittency, or because of their situational context. standoff in Waco, Texas. In this case, loud, distorted Unwanted effects of sound that are related to its physical music was part of a broader program of intimidation. It properties include the masking of wanted sound, audi­ is reported that these tactics may have in fact hindered tory fatigue, hearing damage, excessive loudness, both­ negotiations (Dellllis 1993) and prolonged the standoff. ersomeness, and ability to startle (Cohen and \Veinstein The declaration of the "Global War on Terror" in 1981; Kryter 1970). 200 I ushered in a new era of the use of music by the Studies also suggest that the context of music plays military and intelligence agencies in an offensive capac­ an important role in detennining its effects on annoy­ ity. The U.S. invasion of Afghanistan (2001), the estab­ ance, perfonnance, and possibly health. The distinction lishment of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp at the between music and noise is psychological and subjec­ Guantanamo Bay Naval Base (2002), and the invasion tive, and any piece of music can be perceived as noise if of Iraq (2003) were all underscored by the military's use it is deemed unwelcome. Thus, even fairly loud music of aggressive interrogation techniques against detainees may sometimes be interpreted as desirable, while rela­ in an attempt to gather information about security risks tively soft music can be interpreted as noise. For exam­ facing the United States. In 2003 reports began to ple, although one person might enjoy listening to an emerge about the use of music in such interrogations album of rock music at IIO decibels, another person and questions arose about whether or not such a use of might find the same stimulus quite offensive, and though music amounted to torture. The BBC reported that a person may enjoy a favorite song at 80 decibels during detainees in Iraq were being exposed for prolonged peri­ day, the same person might find that same song at the ods to music from children's television programs and same volume quite bothersome if subjected to it while from rock bands like Metallica (active 1981-present). trying to sleep (Cohen and Weinstein 1981). The U.S. Psychological Operations (PsyOps) Some researchers have claimed more informally said that loud music was being used to break down pris­ that, because of culhual differences, playing ·western oners' resistance through sleep deprivation and music to non-\Vesterners (or vice versa) creates a aggravation. never-ending series of musical expectation violations The largest amount of evidence of music's use to (Senior 2009). Because such musical violations are facilitate interrogations comes from investigations into associated with arousal in \Vesterners, a heightened claims of detainee abuse at the Abu Ghraib prison in level of arousal might be generated in non-\Vestern­ Iraq (U.S. Department of Defense 2006). During the ers, creating a sense of frustration or confusion. In time in question (October to December 2003), Abu

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Ghraib was under the authority of the Combined Joint Testimony from former detainees, as well as military Task Force (CJTF)-7. The declassified CJTF-7 "Inter­ and intelligence personnel, describes music being used rogation and Counter-Resistance Policy" explicitly to prepare detainees for interrogations (Johnson and states that music can be used to increase a detainee's fear Cloonan, 2008, 152). Detainees would be prevented level to an extremely high degree, a state called "Fear­ from sleeping and subjected to loud music for periods Up Harsh." These policies were revised in October 2003, ranging from ten to ninety-six hours. This could be and the use ofloud music was prohibited. In declassified combined with being chained in a stress position or documents, however, interrogators specifically request being forced to stand and being subjected to extreme an exception to CJTF-Ts policy in order to subject a cold or heat. The idea that music used in this context detainee to "loud music" over a seventy-two-hour period represents abuse is supported by numerous scientific in conjunction with sleep deprivation and stress posi­ studies on the physical and psychological effects of tions (U.S. Department of Army 2003). It is unknown sound and noise. how many such exemptions were requested or granted. The public reaction to learning that music was being A 2006 Department of Defense investigation of detainee used in interrogations was mixed. Many people decried abuse found evidence that detainees had been subjected the practice as a clear example of abuse and inhumane numerous times to loud music in violation of the CJTF-7 treatment, whereas others treated it as a humorous foot­ policy. Although most evidence that loud music was note to a serious national security effort. Proponents of used related to the Abu Ghraib scandal, there are numer­ enhanced interrogation techniques dismissed the prac­ ous claims that the practice is prevalent at detention tice of using loud nmsic, paradoxically as both neces­ facilities in Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay. sary for national security and harmless. The music The United Nations defines torture as "any act by reportedly used at the Guantanamo Bay facility ranged which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or from the "Sesame Street Theme Song," to 's mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such (1972-) "White America," to 's (1943-) purposes as obtaining from him or a third person infor­ "Mandy." mation or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a In 2009 a number of high-profile musicians endorsed third person has committed or is suspected of having a Freedom of Information Act request for the declassifi­ committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third cation of all records pertaining to the use of music in person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any interrogation practices (Helin 2009). Condemnation of kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the the practice has been nearly universal among artists. instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a Some of the most outspoken of these atiists are Trent public official or other person acting in an official capac­ Reznor of Inch Nails (active 1988-present), Tom ity" (United Nations General Assembly 1984). Torture Morello of Rage Against the Machine (active 1991- is illegal in the United States and in all U.S. territories. 2000, 2007-present), Pearl Jam (active 1990-present), In an attempt to comply with intemational and domestic and Rosa!llle Cash (1955-). law, the Bush administration adopted a policy com­ monly referred to as "stress and duress," which used See also: Children's Television Music; Metallica; Morello, Tom; Pearl Jam; Psychology of Music; Rage Against the enhanced interrogation techniques on detainees. These Machine included (but were not limited to) waterboarding, loud music, light control, sleep deprivation, stress positions, Fm·ther Reading and controlled fear (U.S. DoD/Office of the Inspector Babisch, Wolfgang. 2011. "Cardiovascular Effects of General2006). This policy was based in part on a 1978 Noise." Noise and Health 13, no. 52: 201. ruling by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). Cohen, Sheldon, and Neil Weinstein. 1981. "Nonauditory The Irish government sued the United Kingdom, claim­ Effects of Noise on Behavior and Health." Journal ofSocial ing that Irish citizens had been subjected to five inter­ /ssues37,no.l:36-70. rogation techniques that amounted to torture. The techniques were wall standing, hooding, subjection to Cusick, Suzanne. 2006. "Mt1sic as Torture/1vfusic as noise, deprivation of sleep, and deprivation of food. The Weapon." Revista Transcultural de Mllsica!Transcu/tuml ECHR ruled that "the five techniques amounted to a Music Review 10. http://www.sibetrans.com/trans/al52/ practice of inhuman and degrading treatment;' but did music-as-torture-music-as-weapon (accessed September 20, not meet the definition of torture" ( lt United 2011). Kingdom, 1978). Numerous human rights organizations Dennis, Edward. 1993. Evaluation ofthe Handling ofthe believe that the "stress and duress" program does meet Branch Davidian Stand-offinJJbco, Texas. http://www. the definition of torture and is therefore illegal under j ustice.gov/publ icati ons/waco/wacotx. pdf (accessed both domestic and intemationallaw (Grieve 2004). September 20, 2011 ).

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Grieve, Thomas. 2004. "Stress and Duress." Salon Musical toys can enrich the environment in which young Magazine, May 6. http://www.salon.com/2004/05/06/roth_6/ children play, leam, and grow. (accessed June 25, 2012). Music in Early Childhood Hei.m, Joe. 2009. "Musicians Seek Guantanamo Records on Detainee Torture." Washington Post, October 22. http:// Early childhood music education practice frequently W\vw.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/contentl continues to be modeled around traditions of develop­ article/2009/1 0/21/AR20091 021 03743.html (accessed mental psychology. Accordingly to this tradition, devel­ September 20, 20 II). opment is assumed to be regulated to all children and resistant to influence from the surrounding environment. Ireland\\ United Kingdom, 5310171 [1978] ECHR I More recent accounts recognize development to be situ­ (January 18, 1978). http://www.bailii.org/eu/cases/ ated and arising from shared processes of interaction ECHR/1978/J.html (accessed September 20, 2011). between children and the people and things around them Johnson, Bn1ce, and Martin Cloonan. 2008. Dark Side of (Young 2008). These shared processes occur most fre­ the Time: Popular Music and Violence. Hampshire, UK: quently through play. Ashgate. Throughout early childhood, children learn about Kryter, Karl. 1970. The Effocts ofNoise on Man. New their world primarily through the wonderful process of York: Academic Press. play. They develop an understanding of local culture Kryter, Karl. 1972. "Cardiovascular Effects of Noise." though their play by helping them learn both how to AmericanJoumal ofPublic Health 62, no. 3:389-398. interact with people and about the impact their actions can have on people and objects in their surroundings. Senior, Jennifer. 2009. "PsyOps Rock!" New JOrk The substance of this play generally consists of the envi­ Magazine, October 23. http://nymag.com/news/ ronmental experiences to which they have been exposed. intelligencer/60310/ (accessed September 20, 2011). During these early years, young children leam to explore Shatz, Adam. 2009. "Short Cuts." London Review of and express musical sounds and to develop the mental Books 31, no. 14: 21. http http://www.lrb.co.uk/v3llnl4/ representati011s necessary to be able to organize the adam-shat7lshort-cuts (accessed September 20, 2011 ). music of their culture. Children's early musical behavior United Nations General Assembly. 1984. Comention may include humming, singing, chanting, moving, and agahlsl Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading using objects, toys, or instmments to explore or com­ Treatment or Punishment, Article 1. A/RES/39/46. http:// municate sound. www.un.org/documents/ga/res/39/a39r046.htm (accessed Engagement with music is essential to the cultural September 20, 20 II). practices of many young children's experiences of daily U.S. Department of Defense. Office of the Inspector life and has been acknowledged as a powerful force in General. 2006. Review ofDoD-Directed Investigations of early development. Early childhood music educators Detainee Abuse. Washington, DC: Government Printing stress the importance of providing rich musical environ­ Office. ments for young children. The introduction to the National Association for Music Education Standards U.S. Department of the Army. Joint Interrogation and Debriefing Center. 2003. "Request for Exception to CJTF-7 states, "The years before children enter kindergarten are Interrogation and Counter Resistance Policy." AETV-i\11, critical for their musical development," and infants and toddlers "should experience music daily while receiving November 30. http://www.scvhistory.com/scvhistory/signaV eating, physical contact" (Music Educators National iraq/reportsffAG94-exceptionrcquest. pdf (accessed September 20, 20 II). Conference 1994). Although parent-infant and early childhood music classes have become increasingly pop­ Richard Randall ular in recent years, they reach a relatively small number of children and families. Children's earliest and most intimate musical experiences generally take place in their homes.

The Explosion of Musical Toys Toys and Music in American Culture Musical toys have increasingly become staples for The first electronic music keyboard dates back to 1952, young children in Ametican culture. Most allow chil­ but the research on the "Mozart efJect" (Rauscher, Shaw, dren to experience, respond to, and even create music and Ky 1995) launched an international phenomenon and manipulate sounds. The range of these musical that prompted an increase in marketing musical toys for practices is enabled through advances in technology. young children in recent decades. The 1993 study

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