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The History of Nature Sounds: Part 1
Nature sounds
prior to the Internet era were pretty much all the same. You had the
standards: ocean waves, thunderstorms, waterfalls, crickets, flowing rivers,
and birds... and more birds. Only a few companies put out these recordings as
distributing them was a major undertaking. Then came the 'New Age' music era.
You pretty much had all the same sounds but Celtic harp, pan flute, piano and
other relaxation music were added to the mix. It was all very nice and
certainly relaxing. The next gizmo to be added to the 'nature sound' genre'
was nature sound 'machines'. These could range from cheap alarm clocks, with
the aforementioned nature sounds built into microchips, to much more
extensive devices. Now there are 'virtual' sleep sounds Apps for Iphones...
but they all still have the same problem. They are looped sounds and
therefore the repetitiveness of the audio can cause listeners to quickly bore
of the sounds.
I like to think
that we, The Virtual Sound Company, have innovated the next generation of
nature sounds. Our sleep sounds are unique as they are specifically
designed for sleep induction. Of course, we have our versions of more
conventional relaxation sounds in the Pure Ambiance
section, but overall our sounds are recorded to promote visualization and,
therefore, sleep. We use distant background sounds to simulate and
stimulate . By simulating an actual environment (i.e. riding in an
airliner, being on a beach vacation) we are stimulating
the listener's imagination. This visual imagery occurs in all of our brains
in a region known as the Secondary
Visual Cortex. It is the same area that is stimulated during meditation
involving imagery. As nature would have it; it is also the same place that is
stimulated during dreaming. Ergo, Virtual Dreamer.
So, when you
hear distant volleyball players on a beach... visualize the volleyball
players. When you hear the buckling of seat belts on the airliner... picture
it in your mind. This will assist you in reaching the Theta brainwave state.
The Theta
brainwave state is the jumping off point to deep sleep. I sometimes
refer to it as the daydream state.
Visualizing to
achieve deep relaxation is nothing new. People have been meditating for
hundreds of years. Nature sounds are nothing new. Combining the two is
new... and it has helped this insomniac conquer some pretty serious
sleeping issues. This is why we can, and do, guarantee
it.
I hope you have
a great Independence Day holiday and get some sleep!
Dream good
dreams!
Brad McBride
Comments?
email me
