Working in music is a noisy job in a noisy world
Help Musicians offers access to clinical specialists and top-quality hearing protection.
A life in music is exciting and rewarding. It’s a job where making noise is essential, but letting it damage your hearing isn’t. It’s a noisy job in a noisy world.
Some of the risks to a musician’s hearing are obvious – performing live and rehearsals can become dangerously loud; but they aren’t the only times during the day where there’s risks.
Just being in a noisy town can pose dangers, whilst journeys on public transport have been proven to be some of the loudest moments of a normal day.
We want everyone working in music to know about these risks, and the simple steps we can take to help avoid irreversible noise induced hearing loss.
Different ways to protect your hearing
Hearing protection helps to reduce the level of sound entering the ear. We recommend that when musicians are playing, rehearsing or performing, they should be using appropriate ear plugs.
Everyone has likely used foam ear plugs before but these aren’t designed for musicians. They are designed for industrial activity and to cut out as much noise as possible.
The off-the-shelf ear plugs shaped like a Christmas tree were created with musicians in mind. These are a good temporary solution as they allow a more natural sound quality for the musicians who use them. The problem is that one size doesn’t fit all, so they can move around and not offer the appropriate protection.
The best option is custom-made musicians’ plugs, which create a more stable seal in the ear canal, so that all sound is diverted via specialist filters designed to provide a flat response across frequencies, so musicians experience reduced volume but don’t lose the fidelity of sound.
If you work in music, it’s important that you monitor the sound level of the environment you are working in.
It’s worth using a smartphone app to track how loud your environments is. Many apps will tell you whether the sound level is dangerous and some will tell you how long you are safe to be in a certain environment.
There is another way of checking whether the sound levels are safe where you are : if you have to shout to be heard from two metres away, the chances are there is a noise issue in the environment you are in. This is called the“shout test” and is also mentioned by the Health and Safety Executive.
It’s worth following the 85 dB rule. Exposure to sound levels above 85 dB should be limited to 8 hours, and for every 3 dB increase, the safe exposure time is halved.
Your ears need time to rest, so taking breaks from loud environments is essential for protecting your hearing. In the same way that you wouldn’t go to the gym and do the same exercises 7 days straight, you also need time away from musical environments.
This is especially important after long periods of exposure to loud sounds. Many people will be familiar with the feeling of ears ringing after spending time at a gig or a club — this is your ears telling you that the environment you were in was too loud.
Spend time in quiet environments to allow your ears to recover from loud sessions like these.
Regular hearing tests are one of the most vital ways to look after your long-term hearing heath.
We recommend having testing them every 1 – 2 years, even if you have no concerns. Having a baseline hearing test early in your career is important so you can track changes over time and, if a problem develops, you can make comparisons to how your hearing was in previous years.
If there is a problem, don’t wait and assume the situation will improve on its own. Take control of the situation and speak to an expert.
Research has shown that journeys on public transport can be among the loudest moments of a normal day. If you are listening to music on your commute, there can be a tendency to turn the volume up to unsafe levels.
Noise cancelling headphones reduce the need for high volume levels due to the fact they insulate exterior sounds.
There are a range of options available nowadays across all price ranges so it may be worth investing in a pair.
Help Musicians’ aim is to make hearing protection an affordable and essential part of a musician’s toolkit. By taking simple steps you can reduce the risk of this noise damaging your hearing and the knock-on effects that come with it.
For more information about the support we may be able to offer you (whether that is an audiological assessment or custom-made hearing protection), please visit our Protect your hearing page.
It’s not just the volume levels but the duration, and the duration is cumulative. It’s not like at midnight everything resets for the next day. Musicians have to take into account not just their musical exposure but what happens over the week. Day-to-day sounds, like being on a tube for example, can have an effect on a musician’s exposure.
Partners
Musicians’ Hearing Services specialise in all aspects of hearing to enhance your listening pleasure and communication in everyday life.
They have been serving the entertainment industry for 25 years, so whether you want advice or impressions for in-ear monitors and musicians hearing protection, or hearing tests and advice on tinnitus or hearing loss call 020 7486 1053.
Musicians’ Union is a Trade Union representing over 30,000 professional musicians of all genres of music who work across the whole of the music industry.
The MU is a respected organisation who works to champion the causes of musicians as well as offering invaluable advice, support and guidance for individuals. For musicians, it is all about the music. For the MU, it’s all about the musician.
The ISM Members Fund, the sister charity of the Independent Society of Musicians (ISM), has provided help and support to members or former members of the ISM and their dependents since 1917. Members can access a range of mental, physical and financial services through the Fund to benefit their health and wellbeing. This includes counselling services, physiotherapy and financial support.
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Tinnitus, ear plugs and hearing loss — how can musicians protect their hearing?
Senior Clinical Audiologist Fiona Butterworth explains why hearing health is important for musicians
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Protect your hearing
Audiological assessments and custom-made hearing protection for musicians