Musicians rock. Their performances bring us so much enjoyment. The drawback is that music is nearly always loud, in fact, many people like it better that way. The musicians themselves are at an even greater risk of hearing damage since they are subjected to loud music nearly every day.
Whether your living depends on music or not, you’ll still want to be able to hear your favorite songs when you’re in your later years of life. For musicians, safeguarding their hearing is the key to an extended and successful career. For the rest of us, hearing protection is the key to a lifetime of musical fulfillment and enrichment.
Sometimes it can be surprising how loud music can be
Most people would say that a jet engine is really loud.
Is music actually that loud? People may not be so quick to answer that question if you ask them if a violin or acoustic guitar is loud. Imagine their surprise when they discover the reality: that music is indeed loud! Even classical music can get to fairly loud volumes that can easily harm your hearing.
A violin, for instance, can produce sounds well over 90 dB. A leaf blower is around this noisy. To put that into context, the European Union laws dictate that any work environment louder than 85 dB will require the use of hearing protection.
And your hearing can be seriously damaged over time if you’re working with music every day, especially if you don’t wear hearing protection.
How can you safeguard your hearing?
Okay, musicians who want to preserve their hearing for years to come need to protect their ears. So what can musicians do to safeguard their ears and still take pleasure in the music they love so much?
Here are a couple of strategies:
- Take breaks: Like any part of your body, your ears can become exhausted and might need a little break. So take regular breaks from the noise. This will help prevent your ears from becoming overwhelmed with noise (and damage). With regard to hearing, how long you’re exposed is almost as important as how high the volume is. The difference between the ideal amount of stimulation and too much can come down to taking regular breaks.
- Track your volume: Knowledge is power, right? So being aware of volume levels of noises around you will help you safeguard your hearing. Usually, this is as easy as monitoring your volume settings on amps and receivers. But you can also purchase a decibel meter app for your smartphone to make it convenient to track the real-world volume levels your ears are encountering from day-to-day. You will want to make some changes if the meter consistently detects volumes louder than 85 dB.
Ear protection is important
Using ear protection is the number one most effective way to safeguard your hearing. Many musicians are reluctant to use ear protection because they’re concerned it will impact the quality of sound they hear, in addition to muting the volume. But depending on what kind of hearing protection you use, that may not always be accurate.
- Ear plugs made specifically for musicians: Most individuals are most likely familiar with disposable ear plugs. They don’t always fit comfortably, but they do reliably block a lot of sound. They’re not difficult to find, don’t cost much, and can be disposed of easily. For musicians, they aren’t an ideal solution. But earplugs made just for musicians are also available for a little more money. A special material and modern engineering are used to help these earplugs fit snuggly in the ear and decrease external noise by around 20% while preserving the audio clarity. This option is perfect for musicians who require a light to moderate level of protection (and who don’t have a lot of money to invest in earplugs, or are likely to lose them).
- Electronic earplugs: Electronic earplugs function in basically the same way as high-quality, non-electronic earplugs. The earplug itself will block out the majority of the sound. What you hear will instead be piped in by the earplug itself. For people who work in very noisy environments and need better control of the volume, these earplugs are ideal.
- In-ear monitors: Electronics are a major part of modern music. A device, known as an in-ear-monitor, is placed in your ear and sends signals in electronically. It’s like a specialized little speaker for your ear, and the majority of monitors can block out sound from the outside environment (thanks to a fairly tight fit and special design). This means you can hear exactly how you sound, at a volume you control. For musicians who electronically amplify their instruments these in-ear-monitors are the perfect answer.
Safeguard your ears, and protect your career
It’s never too late to take steps to protect your ears, but it’s definitely a good plan to begin sooner rather than later. With options available at just about every price point, there are simple ways for everybody to safeguard their hearing and their future. Don’t forget that you’re investing in your career by using hearing protection for musicians. By doing so, you will be able to enjoy making music for as long as you want to.
Contact us so we can help you get started.
