What Are The Schumann Resonances?
Schumann resonances (or frequencies) are standing electromagnetic waves that are present in our atmosphere - the space between the Earth's surface and the Earth's ionosphere.
What does that mean? Think of a guitar string. Different strings of different sizes create different 'resonances' or 'notes'. For example, the standard A string resonates at 440 Hz when tuned, and we perceive that as the note A in music.
Now, imagine that the band of air that surrounds our planet is a string on an instrument. Lightning, which strikes the earth some 50 times per second in different locations, is the pick that 'plucks' that string, creating an extreme low frequency (ELF) electromagnetic resonance. Due to the 'width' of that string (the space between earth and the ionosphere) and the 'length' of that string (the circumference of the earth), the particular string which is the earth's atmosphere resonates at varying frequencies between 7 and 8 Hz with an agreed-upon primary resonance of 7.83Hz (the fundamental frequency).
Notes have harmonics - other resonances that perfectly align with the primary. The harmonics of the Schumann resonances include vibrations at 14.3, 20.8, 27.3, and 33.8Hz.
The dominant electromagnetic fields in our atmosphere resonate in a very similar bandwidth to our brain (0 to 100 Hz approximately), and research has been done that shows evidence that these electromagnetic vibrations can actually impact our brainwaves and other biological activity. We are not going to dive into the science here, but have included extensive references below if you want to geek out on this.
In our track 'Beyond the Dream Drum' we use the primary resonance and several of the higher harmonics as the sound signals intended to create a 'frequency-following response' in your brain. In 'brainwave' terms the signals that we used fall into the bands associated with 'relaxation', 'a standard waking awareness', and 'higher cognitive function'.
It makes sense that the dominant electrical frequencies would line up so deeply with what is considered our state of standard waking awareness. However, lightning is no longer the only thing creating electromagnetic frequencies in our environment. Cell phone towers and the phones themselves, routers, computers, and all sorts of appliances really generate their own frequencies. We chose the frequency set for Beyond the Dream Drum with the intention of helping you remember and reconnect with the natural resonant frequencies of the planet.
If you are interested in learning more about the resonances:
Research Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schumann_resonances
https://www.biologicalmedicineinstitute.com/post/2019/09/20/schumann-resonances-and-their-effect-on-human-bioregulation
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2021.646277/full
https://www.lynchburgparksandrec.com/tree-hugging-hippies-right-part-iv/
https://www.indiatimes.com/technology/science-and-future/earth-heartbeat-of-7-83-hz-schumann-resonance-human-behaviour-536813.html
https://bigthink.com/hard-science/schumann-resonance-earths-heartbeat/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5551208/
https://interestingengineering.com/what-is-the-schumann-resonance
https://plus.maths.org/content/citizen-science-schumann-resonances
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sunearth/news/gallery/schumann-resonance.html