Auditory Health

AUDITORY HEALTH

For musicians, auditory health is critical. Prolonged exposure to sound through lessons, rehearsals, and performances can have lasting impact upon one’s auditory health. Through active protection, musicians can enjoy a lifetime of healthy hearing.  

The Audiology Clinic at BGSU offers the following questions to serve as a self-test regarding your auditory health. If you answer yes to more than two questions, BGSU’s Audiology Clinic recommends you have your hearing tested by a certified audiologist. If you have questions or are interested in setting up an evaluation, contact the BGSU Speech and Hearing Clinic at (419) 372-2515.

· Do you have a problem hearing over the telephone?
· Do you hear better on one ear than the other when you are on the telephone?
· Do you have trouble following the conversation with two or more people are talking at the same time?
· Do people complain that you turn the TV volume up too high?
· Do you have to strain to understand conversation?
· Do you have trouble hearing in a noisy background?
· Do you have trouble hearing in restaurants?
· Do you have dizziness, pain, or ringing in your ears?
· Do you find yourself asking people to repeat themselves? Do family members or co-workers remark about your missing what has been said?
· Do many people you talk to seem to mumble (or not speak clearly)?
· Do you misunderstand what others are saying and respond inappropriately?
· Do you have trouble understanding the speech of women and children?
· Do people get annoyed because you misunderstand what they say?

Through the Audiology Clinic at BGSU, CMA students, faculty, and staff can purchase affordable musicians’ earplugs for $15.00 a pair. These earplugs have a filter that creates a flat frequency response, which allows sound to be equally reduced across frequencies. Custom-made musicians’ earplugs are also available for $150 a pair. For more information on the Audiology Clinic, click here.

Standard hearing protection devices (no flat frequency response) are available at no cost to the CMA community. They can be found in room 2159 at the Moore Musical Arts Center. These SHPDs offer an economical option for events such as fireworks displays, rock concerts, and yard work.