Protecting the hearing of professional orchestral musicians: an industry-­focused investigation

Abstract

Professional orchestral musicians are exposed to sound levels capable of damaging their hearing during rehearsals, performances and private practice. As hearing is integral to these musicians’ ability to practice their art form, hearing conservation is a key concern for these individuals and their employers. Standard workplace hearing conservation approaches, however, can be highly damaging to the very music the orchestras create, and novel approaches must be developed in order to protect hearing and satisfy workplace health and safety considerations on the one hand, while protecting the integrity and commercial viability of the art form on the other. The investigations contained within this dissertation describe existing hearing conservation approaches and attitudes in Australia’s orchestras; further detail risks to musicians; describe and assess emerging approaches in the field; and investigate the effectiveness of an existing hearing conservation program in use in an orchestra. While Australia’s orchestras and their musicians appear more pro-active in this area than many of their international colleagues, musicians still have great difficulty with existing technology. Results presented here will enable audiologists, musicians and their managers to more fully understand risks inherent in the profession and provide tools to develop more effective hearing conservation approaches for this population.