Editing Thai Elephant Orchestra (section)

==Background==
It has been noted since ancient times that elephants seem to have an affinity for music. Performing circus elephants commonly follow musical cues, and early American circuses such as [[Adam Forepaugh]] and [[Barnum & Bailey Circus|Barnum & Bailey]] even featured "elephant bands."<ref name=NYT(2000) />  In the 1950s, German evolutionary biologist [[Bernard Rensch]] found that elephants can distinguish 12 tones on the musical scale and remember simple melodies, even when played on different instruments at various pitches, timbres, and meters.<ref name=NYT(2000)>{{cite news|last=Scigliano|first=Eric|title=Think Tank; A Band With a Lot More to Offer Than Talented Trumpeters|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/12/16/arts/think-tank-a-band-with-a-lot-more-to-offer-than-talented-trumpeters.html|newspaper=New York Times|date=December 16, 2000|location=Arts}}</ref><ref name=Scientist>{{cite web|last=Flores|first=Graciela|title=When I see an elephant...paint?|url=http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/25148/title/When-I-see-an-elephant---paint-/|publisher=The Scientist|accessdate=21 March 2013|date=June 1, 2007}}</ref>

Three albums of music created by elephant musicians was conceived by New York-based musical artist Dave Soldier (a.k.a. [[David Sulzer]], PhD) and elephant expert Richard Lair, who works at the Thai Elephant Conservation Center in Lampang. [[Traditional Thai music]] is a genre familiar to the elephants, so they chose Thai music scales with a few blues notes. According to Lair, many of the elephants took to their assignment "with gusto".<ref name="PRI">{{cite web|title=Elephant Band : Transcript|url=http://www.loe.org/shows/segments.html?programID=01-P13-00009&segmentID=11|work=PRI : Living on Earth|publisher=World Media Foundation|accessdate=28 March 2013|location=Air Date: Week of March 2, 2001}}</ref>