Electronic Voice Phenomena - The Dead Speak!
by George Hanover

The Beginning of Electronic Voice Phenomena

Recording devices have been around so long that we tend to think that they have always been around. However, that is not the case. Consumer tape recorders didn't become available until the 1950s and they were large reels. But as the new devices made it to the market, some people found they did more than they thought! Once such person was a Swedish citizen named Friedrich Jurgenson. In 1959, he was using his tape recorder to record bird calls in a forest. Alone in a quiet forest, Jurgenson recorded a number of bird calls. It wasn't until he played back the tape that he got the shock of his life! In addition to the bird sounds, there were human voices on the recording. Keep in mind that there was no one around. But the biggest shock to him was hearing his mother's voice call his name and then say, "Friedrich, you are being watched." Jurgenson's mother had been dead for a number of years. Just to be sure he wasn't imagining things, Friedrich Jurgenson spent the next four years with careful experimentation and recorded several thousand voices.

EVP Goes Mainstream

In 1965, Dr. Konstantin Raudive, psychologist and author, visited Jurgenson and together, they made a number of successful recordings. Returning to his home in Germany on the edge of the Black Forest, Raudive began a research project that resulting in cataloging and analyzing over 80,000 paranormal voices with the help of fellow scientist and engineers. When the task was completed, he wrote a book called, Breakthrough, which inspired other investigators and amateurs to attempt spirit voice recording. One well known English researcher was G. Gilbert Bonner who made many thousands of recordings, some with extended dialog up to 30 minutes.

Can Anybody Record EVPs?

I believe the answer is yes. It just takes time, patience and being in the right place. The right place is where spirits are likely to be found. Patience means taking a lot of time and also, doing it on a consistent basis. Another important factor is whether or not the spirits want to make an effort to say something to you. Some will ignore you, others can't get the energy necessary to affect the recording. With persistence and going places where spirits are likely to be, such as a battlefield, you increase your chances of getting an EVP.

How is it Done?

It's really very simple. Start your recording device and ask questions. Give time for an answer and then go on to the next question. Remember, it is very unlikely you will hear anything until the recording is played back. Tape devices work but digital devices also work. Either way, you will need to put the recording into a computer with sound editing software. The old fashion way of course, was to listen to the recordings through headphones over and over hoping to find an EVP. With a computer, you can see the sounds and when you find an EVP, enhance it. This wasn't possible in the old days.

A Real Life Example

Although you can get an EVP in other places, areas where spirits are likely to be located are places where many people died such as battlefields or old, multigeneration homes where people lived and died at home. Cemeteries are other possible sites. A few years ago, I ran an EVP expedition during the afternoon at Cheatham Hill Battlefield near Marietta, GA. This place is noted for paranormal activity. Even so, in a couple of hours time, I only got two EVPs. One EVP said Help and the other said Who are You? Hear the voices and find out the story behind these EVPs.. In about 90 minutes of taping, the length of two sides of a cassette tape, those two sounds were the only unusual ones. I went back a couple of years later and this time, I heard what sounded like artillery fire on the tape. It faded in and out and was not audible when I was recording.

Conclusion

EVPs are an easy way to study the paranormal. The equipment is economical and with persistence, you'll probably record paranormal sounds. It's just another demonstration that there is more to reality than we consciously see or hear.
© Copyright 2010, George Hanover