Texas Bandmasters Association
Bandmasters Review • June 2013
19
If I have heard it once, I have
heard it 1,000 times. “I wish I
had met you back when I was
in school.” Every band director,
orchestra
leader, drumline
instructor or performing musician
that I have met over the past
10 years says something to that
effect. During lectures to hundreds
of music students, both middle
school and high school music
students reveal that they regularly
experience tinnitus and fullness
in their ears after long practices
and performances, which is an
indication of a temporary decrease
in hearing. Most music educators
experience the same.
Brass players are taught how
their embouchure should function.
Percussionists learn how to avoid
tendinitis and carpal tunnel
syndrome. Almost all musicians
learn how to avoid overuse injuries.
Yet very few music educators and
musicians take the time to learn
about how hearing functions and
what steps can be taken to maintain
healthy hearing. Any musician
knows that being a good musician
is about listening just as much as it
is about playing their instrument.
Six Recommendat ions:
1. Learn about hearing.
You use your hearing all the
time, but how much do you know
about how it works? If you’re
like most people, the answer is
probably, “Not that much.” The
process of capturing sounds from
the physical world and processing
them with our brains is among
the most complex and precise of
all of our senses.
Unfortunately, it’s
also a sense that
people tend to take
for granted, until
they experience
problems. The
more young musi-
cians learn about
how their hearing
works, the more
likely they are
to take personal
responsibility to
protect it. We are
a visual culture.
Seeing is believ-
ing. I recommend
watching
Auditory
Transduction
, a
seven-minutevideo
on
YouTube
using
3D animation that
explains howsound
enters the ears and
is processed by our brains. It’s a
fascinating anatomy lesson, put to
music. Show it on your first day
of class. Your students will leave
that day learning one of the most
important lessons in their music
education. The video can be
found at
www.youtube.com/
watch?v=PeTriGTENoc
2. Be curious.
Know how loud your classroom
can be. Sound level meters are
used to measure
sound pressure
levels (SPL). The
SPL meters are
affordable and are
available online
at
amazon.com
for as little as
$20.00. Hearing
loss is a function
of exposure time,
the average
sound level, and
the peak level
of very loud
sounds. Music
from a player’s
own instrument
or nearby instru-
ments can cause
permanent hear-
ing loss depend-
ing on the
intensity and
duration of the
sound. Some persons are more
susceptible to hearing loss from
high-level sound than others. Just
because it doesn’t seem too loud or
isn’t uncomfortable, doesn’t mean
that you or your students are not
at risk.
Hear for a Lifetime
®
Carolynn Travis - Global Brand Advocate, Etymot ic Research, Inc.
Music students
reveal that they
regularly experience
t inni tus and ful lness
in their ears after
long pract ices and
performances, which
is an indicat ion of a
temporary decrease
in hearing. Most
music educators
experience the same.
Etymot ic Research
wi l l offer free
hearing evaluat ions
at the convent ion
this summer.
Visi t their booth
for detai ls.