A psychologist yesterday launched an electronic lullaby machine which is every parent's dream.

He claims it can calm a howling baby within seconds.

Steve Evans, from South Wales, says all parents have to do is play their baby the specially-selected lullabies for 20 minutes every morning and evening while it is still in the womb.

Mr Evans, currently studying for a PhD at Keele University, said: "A baby can be really screaming, literally bright red in the face, and within a matter of seconds of hearing the Babycalm it stops.

"It works with any baby as long as it's played to it during the later stages of pregnancy, from 16 to 27 weeks."

The Babycalm was a by-product of research by Mr Evans into the development of language using music as a stimulus.

Mr Evans researched lullabies from all over the world and discovered they all have the same pattern, similar to the higher frequencies of the heart.

He said: "The key to the success of Babycalm is the unique design of the musical themes. It features musical structures that were identified in lullabies found all around the world. We discovered that if our musical sequences were heard prior to birth, it could have a remarkable calming effect on the young infant after birth."

The device goes on sale in January and will cost £149 over the Internet on www.babycalm.com