PARAMUSICOLOGY: AN INVESTIGATION OF MUSIC AND PARANORMAL PHENOMENA Melvyn J. Willin Ph. D. Music Department University of Sheffield February 1999 IMAGING SERVICES NORTH Boston Spa, Wetherby West Yorkshire, LS23 7BQ www.bl.uk THESIS CONTAINS TAPE CASSETTE PARAMUSICOLOGY: AN INVESTIGATION OF MUSIC AND PARANORMALPBENOMENA Melvyn J. Willin SUMMARY The purpose of this thesis is to explore musical anomalies that are allegedly paranormal in origin. From a wide range of categories available, three areas are investigated: • music and telepathy • music written by mediums professedly contacted by dead composers • music being heard where the physical source of sound is unknown and presumed to be paranormal. In the first part a method of sensory masking (referred to as ganzfeld) is used to study the possibility of the emotional or physical content of music being capable of mind transference. A further experiment presents additional results relating to the highest scoring individuals in the previous trials. No systematic evidence for the telepathic communication of music was found. In the second section a number of mediums and the music they produced are investigated to examine the truthfulness of their claims of spiritual intervention in compositions and performances. Methods of composition are investigated and the music is analysed by experts. For the final part of the thesis locations are specified where reports of anomalous music have been asserted and people claiming to have heard such music are introduced and their statements examined. Literature from a variety of data bases is considered to ascertain whether the evidence for paranormal music consists of genuine material, misconceived perceptions or fraudulent claims. Only a very few examples of fraud are discovered, but seemingly genuine anomalies are generally found to consist of mistaken identities or the embroidery of anecdotal facts. It would appear that human susceptibility and enthusiasm for the paranormal are responsible for most of the data discovered. The results bring together information on two subjects that have not previously been seriously linked. CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS & DECLARATION AUTHOR PUBLICATIONS 11 CASSETTE CONTENTS 111 MUSIC EXAMPLES IV CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 INTRODUCTION 1 1.2 DEFINING THE PARANORMAL 1 1.3 BELIEF IN THE PARANORMAL 3 1.4 MUSIC AND THE PARANORMAL 6 CHAPTER 2: MUSIC AND EXTRA SENSORY PERCEPTION 9 2.1 INTRODUCTION 9 2.2 DEFINITIONS 9 2.3 ESP AND ALTERED STATES 9 2.4 GANZFELD 11 2.4.1 The nature of ganzfeld 11 2.4.2 Can ESP be enhanced in ganzfeld-like conditions? 12 2.5 SUMMARY 14 2.6 MUSIC AS THE SENDING TARGET IN GANZFELD 15 2.7 PREPARATION FOR THE EXPERIMENTS 16 2.7.1 Introduction 16 2.7.2 Participants 17 2.7.3 Safeguards and environment 17 2.7.4 Target music 19 2.8 PROCEDURE 22 2.8.1 Target preparation 26 2.8.1.1 Packaging 26 2.8.1.2 Randomisation 29 2.8.2 Apparatus 29 2.8.3 Blind judges 30 2.8.4 Experimenter scoring 31 2.9 SUMMARY 31 CHAPTER 3: RESULTS OF GANZFELD EXPERIMENTS 32 The first experiment: 3.1 THE PARTICIPANTS 32 3.1.1 Sex 32 3.1.2 Ages 33 3.1.3 Relationships between receivers and senders 33 3.1.4 Extra! introversion 33 3.1.5 Professions 34 3.1.6 Hobbies 34 3.1.7 Prior experience of paranonnal activity 34 3.2 LOCATIONS 35 3.3 RESULTS 35 3.3.1 Introduction 35 3.3.2 Receivers' transcripts 36 3.3.2.1 Visual images 37 3.3.2.2 Auditory sensations 42 3.3.2.3 Tactile sensations 45 3.3.2.4 Olfactory sensations 45 3.3.2.5 Emotional experiences 46 3.3.3 Results relating to receivers' personal details 47 3.3.3.1 Sex 47 3.3.3.2 Receiver/ sender relationships 49 3.3.3.3 Professions and hobbies 49 3.3.3.4 Prior experience ofparanonnal activity 50 3.3.3.5 Hit rate occurrence 51 3.3.4 Receivers' scores 53 3.3.5 Music chosen 56 3.3.6 Apparent preferences of music chosen 57 3.4 EXPERIMENTER EFFECT 58 3.5 EXPERIMENTER SCORING PROCEDURE 59 3.6 BLIND JUDGING PROCEDURE AND RESULTS 60 3.6.l Procedure 60 3.6.2 Results 61 3.6.3 Discussion 61 3.7 THE EXCEPTIONAL CASE OF COLIN AND ALISON 62 3.8 CONCLUSION 64 The second experiment: 3.9 INTRODUCTION 65 3.9.1 Preparation for the experiment 66 3.9.2 Receivers' personal details 66 3.9.3 Dates, places and times of day of trials 67 3 .10 RESULTS 67 3.10.1 Discussion of receivers' transcripts 68 3.10.2 The hit music 69 3.ll CONCLUSION 69 3.12 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE PROCEDURES 70 CHAPTER 4: MUSICAL MEDIUMSHIP 72 4.1 INTRODUCTION 72 4.2 MUSIC AND SPIRITUALISM 74 4.2.1 Introduction 74 4.2.2 Musical mediums 77 4.2.2.1 Introduction 77 4.2.2.2 Emma Hardinge Britten 79 4.2.2.3 Jesse Shepard 80 4.2.3 Advice from composers in spirit 82 4.2.3.1 Introduction 82 4.2.3.2 Florizel von Reuter 83 4.2.3.3 Charles Tweedale 85 4.2.3.4 Jelly d' Aranyi 86 4.2.3.5 David Scull Bispham 88 4.2.4 Discussion 89 4.3 PROFESSIONAL COMPOSERS' EXPERIENCES OF THE PARANORMAL 91 4.4 THE CONTEMPORARY SCENE CONCERNING MUSIC AND THE PARANORMAL 93 4.4.1 Composers and performers 93 4.4.2 John Lill interview 95 4.4.3 Contemporary musical mediums 99 4.4.3.1 Introduction 99 4.4.3.2 Rosemary Brown 100 4.4.3.3 The music of Rosemary Brown 104 4.5 CASE STUDIES OF MUSICAL MEDIUMS 109 4.5.1 Introduction 109 4.5.2 Issues of gender and sex 110 4.5.3 Personal characteristics of participants 110 4.6 ALLEGED T ANGffiLE MUSICAL EVIDENCE OF SPIRIT COMMUNICATION III 4.6.1 Introduction III 4.6.l.1 Case study no. 1 114 4.6.1.2 Case study no. 7 117 4.6.l.3 Case study no. 4 121 4.6.1.4 Case study no. 12 124 4.6.l.5 Case study no. 10 126 4.6.1.6 Case study no. 13 128 4.6.l.7 Case study no. 6 130 4.6.2 Appraisal of case studies 135 4.7 CONCLUSION 136 CHAPTER 5: PARANORMAL MANIFESTATIONS OF MUSIC 137 5.1 INTRODUCTION 137 5.2 GHOSTS AND APPARITIONS: DEFINITIONS 137 5.3 TYPES OF MANIFESTATIONS 138 5.4 MUSICAL APPARITIONS 142 5.4.1 Introduction 142 5.4.2 Early documentation 143 5.4.3 Paranormal music in castles 146 5.4.4 Paranormal music in abbeys and churches 154 5.4.5 Paranormal music in palaces and country houses 165 5.4.6 Paranormal music in public houses and hotels 172 5.4.7 Paranormal music in other buildings 175 5.4.8 Paranormal music in other locations 179 5.4.9 Paranormal music and people 184 5.5 CONCLUSION 186 CHAPTER 6: SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 189 6.1 INTRODUCTION 189 6.2 SUMMARY OF GANZFELD EXPERIMENTS 189 6.3 SUMMARY OF MUSICAL MEDIUMSIflP 191 6.4 SUMMARY OF PARANORMAL MUSIC 194 6.5 CONCLUSION 195 6.5.1 People 195 6.5.2 Locations 196 6.5.3 Times 197 6.5.4 Music 197 6.5.5 Final conclusion 198 GLOSSARY 202 APPENDIX A 205 APPENDIXB 206 APPENDIXC 207 APPENDIXD 209 APPENDIXE 210 APPENDIXF 212 APPENDIXG 214 APPENDIXH 216 APPENDIX I 235 APPENDIXJ 237 APPENDIXK 243 APPENDIXL 245 REFERENCES 247 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS & DECLARATION First, and foremost I would like to thank Eric Clarke and Robert Morris for all the advice and constructive criticism that they have given me over the last few years. In some ways equal to this has been the help that I have received from Tracy Goodway in acquainting me with the complexities of the computer world. In addition I would like to thank Serena Roney Dougal who helped me to direct my thoughts before undertaking this thesis and Guy Lyon Playfair who provided me with much food for thought during its execution. For listening to my ideas and making constructive comments I would also like to thank Sue Blackmore and Deborah Delanoy. I do not believe that I could have completed this research without the immense support that was given to me by the Society for Psychical Research to whom I am extremely grateful'. Finally, I would like to thank my friends and pupils who have coped with my many strange requests to undertake experiments during the last five years. DECLARATION This thesis has been written by myself and the work is my own. /lit-+- U-4- Melvyn Willin 11 AUTHOR PUBLICATIONS WiIlin, M. 1. (1996). A ganzfeld experiment using musical targets. Journal of the Society for Psychical Research, 1996,61, (842), 1-17. WiIlin, M. 1. (1996). A ganzfeld experiment using musical targets with previous high scorers from the general population. Journal of the Society for Psychical Research, 1996,61, (843), 103-108. Willin, M. 1. (1996). Music from beyond the veil - or within ourselves? The Skeptic, 1996, 10, (5-6), 37-40. Willin, M. 1. (1997). Music and Spiritualism. Journal ofthe Society for Psychical Research, 1997,62, (848), 46-57. WiUin, M. 1. (1998). Music and the paranormal. Classical Music, 14 February 1998, (600), 36-37. WiUin, M. 1. (in press). Paranormal manifestations ofmusic. Journal of the Society for Psychical Research. 111 CASSETTE CONTENTS Track 1: 'Consolation' by Rosemary Brown! Liszt (Rosemary Brown, piano.