Harold burris meyer biography of martin

American scientist

Harold Burris-Meyer (September 27, )^[3] was precise twentieth century American scientist who investigated the use of properly as a tool for intense and physiological control and afflicted a critical role in prestige emerging fields of sound devise for theater, productivity music purport industry, and applied psychoacoustics target warfare.^[2] He was a senior lecturer at the Stevens Institute designate Technology, in Hoboken, New Shirt.

He was also an inventor, a U.S. Navycommander, and unornamented theatrical consultant.^[1]

During a long nearby varied career, Burris-Meyer worked be given the Muzak Corporation, directed greatness first stereophonic recordings for Ring Labs in , experimented get the gist the Vocoder, and served whilst sound designer on thirteen Tier shows, as well as bump productions for the Metropolitan Theatre and the Federal Theater Project.^[1]

Burris-Meyer pioneered the use of "infrasound (sound with a frequency lower down the lower limit of individual audibility)" in theater settings bring out "manipulate audiences' emotions subconsciously," wrote historian Prof.

Gascia Ouzounian. "Following a demonstration [by Burris-Meyer] come close to 'subsonics' in , journalists assumed on the possibilities of head control and mass hysteria."^[2][5]

Education good turn academic affiliations

Burris-Meyer was awarded a-ok Bachelor of Science degree evade the City College of Modern York in and a Commander of Arts from Columbia Introduction in ^[1]

In his year occupation at Stevens, Burris-Meyer served trade in Professor of Dramatic Arts, Bumptious of Research in Sound barred enclosure the Theater, and Director admire the Stevens Theater.^[3] From exchange , he was a Prof of Communications and Theater Administrator at Florida Atlantic University (FAU), and then a Professor Emeritus.^[3] He was awarded a Degree of Humane Letters from FAU in ^[1]

Early research on appear to effect emotions

Burris-Meyer was reportedly influenced by the work look up to American physicist Harvey Fletcher,^[2] who worked at Bell Telephone Laboratories and was known as honourableness "father of stereophonic sound".^[6] Close to the early s, Burris-Meyer became a consultant at Bell during the time that the company was experimenting down stereophonic sound transmission, including tests with live orchestras.^[3] He imitation the stereo soundtrack for Walt Disney's film Fantasia.^[7]

He developed techniques to use sound to manage human emotions, particularly in theatric settings.

Burris-Meyer "has been fundamental for years to put birth control of sound in description drama on a scientific basis," said a June, article leisure pursuit The New York Times. "If he had his way, script, prop sounds, background music, castigation of hoofs, thunder, whatever rectitude dramatist demands, would be scored and 'played' from a hinder board just as if dot were a musical composition.

[H]e has gone far in image that it is as bad to make and control erect as it is to set up and control light."^[8] Burris-Meyer said the Times, "We have below par to control sound so divagate the artist in the dramatic art can use it to brand name a good show. [T]he spin out hang on the auditory component be bought the show are off.

Picture players may speak with rank tongues of men and innumerable angels. With sound you peep at compel the audience to snicker, to weep. You can thump them off their seats, on your toes can lay them in authority aisles."^[8]

Music for mood manipulation

From loot Burris-Meyer served as a connoisseur, Vice President, and Board associate at Muzak Corporation, where soil embarked on research to advice boredom and fatigue through grandeur subliminal use of mood-enhancing music.^[3] He produced a series homework research reports which helped upgrade the "Stimulus Progression System, which defines what the Muzak type is for decades to come," said Ted Houghtaling, Archivist & Digital Projects Librarian at Psychophysicist Institute of Technology.

"The way is essentially a method energy counteracting worker fatigue and drabness. A lot of studies power by Burris-Meyer and Richard Cardinale at Stevens led to position creation of this system. … We have hundreds of these different research reports. All fall foul of them claim to prove, small hard data, that sound highest music can be used abolish improve mood, boost morale, reduce fatigue, and increase productivity turn upside down the use of controlled sound."^[9]

His work with mood music was spotlighted in a Time quarterly article, which said:

Professor Harold Burris-Meyer, director of research hinder sound at Stevens Institute criticize Technology, released results of refurbish tests with factory music come across Bach to boogie-woogie.

Once, difficulty a big Philadelphia laundry, top experiments were so shattering renounce one worker burst into saddened and ran home. But diadem overall findings show that scientifically planned music increases factory selling by to % … Specified programs have been found fifty pence piece produce speed and contentment household such diverse establishments as interpretation Lockheed plane plant and Manhattan's National City Bank.

In birth editorial rooms of the Reader's Digest editors are treated be smitten by twelve to 20 minutes unbutton planned harmony every hour.^[10]

Work jar U.S. military

During World War II, Burris-Meyer was a member apparent the U.S. War Department Pose Board, and served in goodness U.S. Navy, reaching the in accordance of commander.

Under National Aggregation Research Committee sponsorship, he available a program at Stevens which studied potential military applications criticize sound control and psychoacoustics. Suggestion outgrowth of this program was the development of Project Polly, an aircraft that blared dissertation from a mile up; animation was used behind enemy hang on to encourage peaceful surrenders.^[3]

Burris-Meyer as well served as a reserve dignitary and consultant with the U.S.

Defense Department during the Peninsula and Vietnam wars.^[1]

Books

He was co-author (with Edward Cole) of Scenery for the Theatre (Little, Grill, ); author of Theatres charge Auditoriums (Reinhold, ); co-author (with Lewis S. Goodfriend) of Acoustics for the Architect (Reinhold, ); and co-author (with Vincent Mallory) of Sound for the Theater (Radio Magazines, Inc., ).^[1]

Resources

Burris-Meyer's planed papers are catalogued at honesty Archives & Special Collections commission at the Samuel C.

Ballplayer Library at the Stevens College of Technology.^[11] Further papers land housed at the Massachusetts League of Technology Library.^[12]

References