In the United States alone, there are 36 million Americans with some type of hearing loss or deafness and 80% of those affected have damage that is permanent. In deaf culture, deafness is seen more as a unique way to experience life than a disability, but for musicians—unless you’re the second coming of Beethoven—losing the use of your ears puts quite the damper on the ol’ career.

The Lowdown on Decibels

As tough as it is to swallow, turning amps and speakers down to 90 decibels (dBs) or lower is essential to maintain and preserve healthy hearing, reports Hearnet.com. Decibels are used to measure intensity or volume on a logarithmic scale, so for every increase of 10, it goes up tenfold. In other words, 20 dB are ten times louder than 10 dB, but 30 dB are 100 times louder than 10, making 40 decibels a whopping 1000 times louder than 10 dB!

There are four different degrees of hearing loss — mild, moderate, severe and profound.

• Mild hearing loss (25-40 dB of loss) means you may have difficulty following a conversation if the person speaking is more than six feet away or if there’s background noise.
• People with moderate loss (40-70 dB) have a hard time following a conversation more than three feet away, and they have to wear a hearing aid if there’s background noise.
• Severe hearing loss (70-90 dB) means you can’t hear someone’s voice if they’re shouting at you from just one foot away.

Once you’ve hit profound hearing loss, (91dB or more) you can only hear super loud noises like a nearby gunshot or jet plane, and you’d have to wear hearing aids to hear the telephone ring. For those with profound hearing loss, normal conversations are difficult to understand, even with hearing aids.

How Loud is Too Loud?

Noise Chart

The softest sound humans can hear is 0 dB. A normal conversation ranges between 60-70 dB. Since 90 dB is the threshold for comfortable listening, it may seem rather loud, but the average rock concert hits about 110–120 dB, sometimes reaching as high as 140 dB. A definite danger zone for your precious ears!

What happens once you go beyond 90 dB? Specialists at H.E.A.R. (Hearnet.com) say after 90 dB, every increase of 5 dB in volume will cut your safe exposure time in half. UNM audiologist and saxophone player, Jose Correa, echoes this, “At louder levels you’re allowed a shorter dose of time without damage, while at higher levels you can only listen to music for a very short time without causing permanent damage.” Correa adds, “At lower levels, you can listen to music for a longer period of time without causing permanent damage.”

This means that you can essentially spend an entire 8-hour workday with the volume at 90 dB (maximum), but if you pump up the volume to 95 dB, you can only listen for 4 hours without damaging your hearing. At 100 dB, 2 hours is the limit, and once you hit 120 dB—the level at which a lot of musicians practice—you’re only allowed seven and–a–half minutes of exposure. After that, experts maintain you’re doing damage.

Of course, daily exposure to environmental noises can exceed 90 dB; however, these brief encounters don’t require ear protection. The chances of sustaining hearing damage grows exponentially when people begin to increase the volume of portable devices to drown out external noises. Most people are not aware of their behavior when it comes to managing exposure times.

An Argument for Earplugs

Musicians Filtered Earplugs by ListenHear

So what does this mean for musicians? If you’re playing with a drum kit, guitar, and bass amps in a tiny rehearsal space, it’s more than likely you’re creating in excess of 120 dB of noise, so wear your earplugs! Correa insists on wearing plugs, “Anytime you’re playing beyond 90 dB, you should wear earplugs,” he says.

Many musicians don’t follow this advice because they believe plugs cut out all noise levels, even the essential ones. In fact, some musicians say it’s frustrating when one band member is wearing plugs and the rest are not.

Albuquerque-based musician, Jupiter John, refuses to compromise, “I wouldn’t wear earplugs. The bass player in my band Scratch wears special plugs that were made for her and she can’t hear my guitar half the time.” He explains, “Plugs bring the volume of everything down and it’s hard to hear when you’re wearing them because they cut out the highs [frequency noises], so it’s hard to hear the cymbals and the guitars.”

PM800S Stage Monitors by ListenHear

Correa disagrees. He says that regardless of what instrument you play, as long as you’re a musician, it’s definitely worth it. “Earplugs are a little bit of a test to get used to, but once you get over that initial hump, you can adjust to them—I wear them every time I practice.”

But how is a music lover supposed to adjust to wearing and using earplugs? “It sounds sort of hollow [to play with earplugs], but the more you use them, the more the sound starts to stabilize,” says Correa.

Like Your Mama Said—Always Use Protection

There are earplugs designed specifically for musicians, which average about $160 a set. Most of these devices can be found at audiologists’ offices or on the internet. Among the most popular brands are ListenHear, and Westone, which is the brand Correa himself uses.

All musicians are at risk for hearing damage, but some are more in the line of fire than others. Correa concurs, “Everyone [who plays] is at risk—but the drummers, being near their snare and cymbals—are most at risk.”

Translation—don’t waste another minute. Invest in some earplugs and save your ears. Even a pair of 20-buck ER earplugs or the cheapie, industrial, foam kind can do the trick. Dancesafe chapters working with H.E.A.R. give foam earplugs out for free, so no excuses about not being able to afford them because you spent all your money on 12-dollar beers at Sasquatch.

Musicians, do yourself a favor. Whether you’re rehearsing with your buddies, out playing a show, or at your favorite club, forget the cotton balls and rolled up tissue, and invest in some plugs. Even if you’re listening from the audience, and especially if you’re standing anywhere close to the stage or speakers, you’re taking a risk. If they bother you, hang in there. You’ll get used to ’em.

And ten years from now, you’ll be glad you did!

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Forget the Swine Flu. Hearing loss in the music industry has reached epidemic proportions and no musician or music fan is immune. Sonic Weekly takes a look at the growing problem and shares some tips on how musicians can protect their most valuable instruments.

Do your ears ring for days after you’ve played a gig? Find yourself straining to hear your band mates on stage, or turning up the volume on your stereo or amp way beyond what you used to only a few years ago? If so, you’re not alone. This form of hearing loss, most commonly known as tinnitus or “ringing in the ears” affects as many as 75% of musicians.

Here Comes the Science

Tinnitus is associated with sensorineural hearing loss or damage to the hearing nerve in the inner ear. Of the three major types of hearing loss—sensorineural, conductive and central—sensorineural accounts for 90% of all deafness.

Tinnitus can be caused by repeated exposure to very loud noise—and that includes everything from your buddy’s insanely loud gig last week to band practice. But tinnitus can also be caused by a buildup of earwax. In that case, you’re lucky. Simple removal of your inner ear goop by a medical professional can make all the difference.

Noise Chart

Why is it so important to monitor our ears? Because most of the time, we don’t even notice when damage is being done. “If you’re in an environment where you have to shout to be heard, that’s a concern,” says LA-based audiologist, Dr. Doug Anderson. When you’re exposed to loud noise for extended periods, damage can become permanent surprisingly quickly. Whether you’re a heavy metal drummer or a concert violinist, your instruments probably tend to get cranked way too loud, and the sounds that are most damaging to your ears occur in those high frequencies.

Yup, even classical musicians are at risk. Hard rock and heavy metal get the bad rep as dangerous culprits because of the emphasis on loud guitars and drums, but in actuality, violins and violas can be worse. These instruments are played so closely to one isolated ear—usually the left—that any resulting hearing loss can be much worse in that particular ear.

Drummers frequently suffer because of the pounding volume and the high frequency, high-decibel noise coming from their timpani and bass drum rolls. And what’s worse is the fact that it affects both the left and right ear. “I literally have to put the speaker monitors next to my head because I can’t hear myself playing,” says Kronik, a drummer from Albuquerque, New Mexico. “Sometimes I’ve even had to have the bassist turn towards me at a gig, because it’s impossible to hear him otherwise.”

Being out in front of the drum kit isn’t much better, however. One hard rock frontman we spoke to says he often has trouble distinguishing low tones coming out of the amplifier. “When I’m playing I’m not worried about what they’re hearing out there [in the audience] ‘cause when I’m up here it’s so loud!”

Maybe Don’t Feel the Vibrations

Feeling the beat!

Avid concertgoers love cramming themselves up against the stage so they can see and hear the action right up close. But that enthusiasm can have consequences—namely three or four days of temporary hearing loss as a result of standing too close to the stage’s left or right speakers.

This type of temporary deafness is called sudden hearing loss (SHL), and yes, you experience it after a screamo show when even your spine feels pulverized by noise. But sudden hearing loss can also be caused by going to a violin or piano recital if you get too close to the speakers. In fact, Dr. Anderson warns, “If you’re sitting in an orchestra near the trombone and/or horn section, it can be deadly for your ears.”

Earbuds: Deep Down, You Knew They Were No Good

Never leave the house without your iPod? It’s addictive, and like most addictive substances, it makes users pay the price. “iPods can damage your hearing,” says Dr. Anderson. In fact, iPod users stand to have the worst type of hearing damage to their ears because of the amount of noise going directly into the inner ear from the use of earbuds. Circumaural headphones, which sit outside the ear, cause less damage, but have steadily faded in popularity over the past few decades.

How To Save Your Ears

Dr. Anderson gives this advice to musicians that spend their lives up on stage, “You should wear special noise reduction plugs that reduce sound evenly. Audiologists’ offices and labs have specially-made [earplugs] for musicians, so you can just walk in there and ask for musicians’ plugs and they’ll know exactly what you’re talking about.”

More advice? “When you’re up on stage, be conscientious of the fact that loudspeakers produce both high and low frequencies and standing beside the speaker, instead of in front of it, is a good way to protect your ears. Again, it’s always best to stand behind or to the side of the speaker,” says Dr. Anderson.

How To Love Your Ears

PM800S Stage Monitors by ListenHear

Preventive measures can also be taken to avoid or reduce damage that may have already been done to your eardrums. Since our small protective ear muscles contract when we hum or sing, some experts say humming just before and while you’re playing your instrument is a great way to naturally provide a bit of extra protection. (Who would’ve thought, right?)

Other strategies can also be used to reduce any chance of noise injury from instruments. Where drums are concerned, plexiglass baffles can be used. They act as a protective chamber surrounding a drum and are helpful for noise-reduction where a high-hat cymbal is being used heavily.

For musicians on stage, Dr. Anderson recommends using ear monitors to block out loud sound levels. Ear monitors, which resemble hearing aids, are electronic devices that can protect hearing while allowing musicians to hear what they’re playing. Acoustic monitors also block sound coming from fellow band mates while allowing the musician to hear his own instrument.

The Great Earplug Debate

For musicians, earplugs can have both positive and negative results, “Ear plugs are good because you’re more conscious of singing on key and you’re more conscious of your vocal tone,” says Andy Reyes, a Colorado-based vocalist, “But there’s a negative aspect because you don’t know what the audience is hearing.”

Musicians Filtered Earplugs by ListenHear

Despite doctors’ warnings, most musicians prefer not to use earplugs because of how little you can hear while wearing them. Reyes explains why, “When you’re singing with earplugs on, it’s harder to tell what the band sounds like. A lot of times people will wear just one earplug when they’re practicing, so they can hear better.” But he admits, “I wouldn’t wear them at a gig.”

Younger musicians may be less inclined to use earplugs because they don’t exactly fit the rockstar profile. But take it from the veterans, it’s even less rockstar to lose your hearing. No one wants to end up 40 years old and nearly deaf, like Pete Townsend of The Who.

Take note—rolling up toilet or snot tissue provides absolutely no protection for your ears. If you really want to protect yourself, whether you’re playing or just listening to live music, you need to break down and wear ear protection.

Whether you’re a musician playing a gig, or an avid concertgoer or clubber, rock those earplugs, and stand at least 10 feet away from the speakers when you take in your next show. Ten years from now, when your friends are half-deaf and you’re still hearing your favorite noises perfectly, you’ll be glad you did.

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Though Oates has worked with filmmakers in the US and Europe, including Finnish filmmaker Samuli Jomppanean, and German filmmaker Joachim Jung, Oates’ notoriety hasn’t made him arrogant. A self-taught composer, he’s financed his production company entirely on his own, by working ordinary jobs and with the help of student loans. And with his recent string of successes, it’s clear this young man’s talent knows no boundaries.

SW: How long have you been composing music?

I started composing when I was in High School, and I’d been playing instruments like trombone, and stuff like that. I didn’t like being a performer that much ‘cause I get nervous around people, and I’m especially self conscious that everyone’s watching you, and you’ve got these lights on you, and you’re like, ‘Oh, what am I gonna do!’ So composing was more attractive to me because I’m more of a guy who likes to kinda sit with myself and think things through. I mean, I started composing when I was in High School, and I’ve just been doing it ever since.

SW: How exactly did you get started?

It’s a very difficult thing to be successful as a composer. While studying at Oklahoma State University, I had changed my major from Music Composition to Computer Science. Then I decided, okay, Computer Science is fun and all, but I’m writing this [music] stuff anyway. I’m enjoying writing music, and I’m gonna try and do that as much as I can. I don’t care what people say, ‘It’s difficult… whatever, it’s hard.’ It doesn’t matter. So I moved out here to New Mexico, switched my major back to Music Composition, and I started acquiring more professional recording equipment—microphones, you know really nice speakers—so I could record people, could produce complete scores of orchestras that they needed. I purchased a different series of samplers, all kinds of software, in order to produce professional quality music—that was exactly what they told us to produce. And all this started about two, maybe three years ago. Then a friend of mine told me to check out the Duke City Shootout, which is a nationwide film competition that happens once a year here in Albuquerque. That’s where I started getting awards for the music. People really liked what I was doing, and I started getting recognition.

SW: Tell me about the first film for which you composed the musical score.

The first movie that I ever wrote music for was called Stalingrad 1943, and this was a short film. I had met this guy on the Internet, named Samuli Jomppanean, and he was from Finland and he said, you know, we’re making movies, and your music is really good, maybe you can write something for one of our movies. I had no idea what was going on ‘cause it was all in a different language; even the subtitles were in a different language. It’s about World War II, about a soldier who’s in the war and all the horrible things in the war that were done to his family. It was shot in black and white and it was very sad and melancholy.

SW: Tell me about the sound effects work that you’ve done for films? Is that something you’ve enjoyed doing?

Well, not so much. I get kind of roped into [doing Foley sound] because I have all the recording equipment, so I’ve been doing the sound mixing and the Foley stuff for movies, but really what I want to do is the music. The reason I sort of allowed myself to do the sound was because the better the sound is, the better the film is, and as a result, the higher the possibility my name will get out there. It’s tedious; it’s not like composing. Foley’s not bad, but doing the sound makes it so much more tedious; just making sure the meters aren’t peaking is pretty meticulous. Foley’s creative; it’s like, ‘How can you make it sound like a guy’s getting punched?’ [I ask myself] ‘How hard do you want him to get punched? And when they put the metal pipe to his head, do you want his head to crack?’ It’s a lot of fun.

SW: Who are your favorite music composers?

Well, there’s a bunch of them. I can’t deny the brilliant works of the famous John Williams. There’s also James Horner, who I like a lot. Clint Mansell is really good. He did Requiem for a Dream. James Newton Howard… there’s a huge list. In my influences, there are not just film composers but musicians in general. You can go into classical musicians—avant garde musicians, and pop—I mean, even Britney Spears has had an influence on me. A lot of people don’t give her enough credit. She’s a cliché pop-icon, but she’s worked really, really hard to get where she is now. She’s very dedicated.

SW: You won awards for Lady Liberty, and Under My Skin, has that success gotten you more recognition?

Yeah, definitely, but I think what’s helped me more than the awards is the networking I do with the people I’ve met. When they did the Duke City Shootout, that’s when I got two awards for films that I did. I met so many different people—John Lore and Armando Kirwin, two editors I work with—and they’ve networked me to even more people, and it’s just great. Networking is proportional ‘cause if you meet one person, you’re gonna meet three more people, and out of those three people, you’re gonna meet three more, from each of them. I was thinking about this the other day; I could tie almost all of the films I’ve worked on so far, to two people.

SW: What advice would you give to other up-and-coming composers?

The most advice I would give is, like in Charlie Brown, what was it that Lucy said to him? ‘The more you fail, the more you learn’, and Charlie Brown said, ‘Well I must be the smartest kid in the whole world,’ ‘cause he fails all the time. But that’s so true, you just have to keep going. Be critical about whatever it is that you’re doing. You have to write everyday. Network. Go to parties. Part of it—the whole industry—is not just being able to write music, but a huge chunk of it is networking, meeting people, talking to people, getting interviewed. Go to film festivals, meet directors, make CDs. Go to different directors’ conferences. One thing I did last weekend is I went to a film festival in Santa Fe. That was good because there were lots of composers trying to network with the directors, and the directors were coming to meet the composers. All of them look [and listen] to your music and you can talk to them that way, otherwise you’re gonna be one of many fish [in the pond.] Ultimately, you’ve got to make yourself stand out.

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So what’s in it for musicians?  Using an open mic as “practice” before getting up on a real stage can be a very rewarding experience both for the performer and the audience.  Of course, there is one hurdle to overcome—stage fright.  And whether you’re a novice or a pro, fighting your nerves can be a challenge.  “The stage fright is always there,” says professional harmonica player Marvin Jaramillo.  “I’ve been playing for 45 years and it never goes away; I shake and tremble every time I play because I don’t want people to watch me—I want them to hear me, but I don’t want them to watch me directly and that’s what makes me nervous.”  Robert Nunez, an acoustic guitar player, who enjoy playing at Albuquerque area open mics echoes that sentiment, “As long as the majority of people stay, and not more than one or two people get up and leave, it [doesn’t] make you feel nervous.”

On the other hand, some musicians embrace open mics because they don’t suffer from stage fright as much. “It gives me a rush to see the people in the audience so I really don’t get very nervous” says James Haynes, veteran open-miker, guitarist and frontman of the Albuquerque-based band, Jimmy’sMadJupiter.

Whether you’re hitting the stage for the first time or the one-hundredth, playing an open mic is an ego boost. “You get your 15 minutes of fame [and] it boosts your self confidence”, says Nunez.  “It gives you a chance to get out there, meet some people, play what you feel and also feel important,” adds Jaramillo.

The ego boost is one thing, but if you’re talking “exposure,” being able to go somewhere outside your friend’s garage or your own living room to perform and use equipment that’s already set up for you is an added bonus.  “I honestly believe that a lot of people [who] come to open mics are there to play through an amp, or a PA… just to get a chance to hear themselves.  A lot of these people don’t have this equipment at home,” says Jaramillo.

And you can’t discount the element of practice. You have to be on your game in order to get a good reaction from the audience.  “It’s important to practice well so the sound is appealing and not flubbed,” says Nunez.  Practice can also be a vehicle for improving stage presence.  “I like it when my stage presence is good, ‘cause it’s easier to capture the audience,” says Jupiter John, who currently plays bass for several Albuquerque bands including Jimmy’sMadJupiter and The Roger Lewis Blues Band.

Mistakes come with the territory.  But fortunately, at most open mic nights the audience is pretty forgiving. “Remember it’s an open mic so you’re gonna mess up—I mess up all the time, so it’s not a perfect thing,” advises Jaramillo, “You just get up there and have fun!” Jimmy’sMadJupiter frontman, Haynes, echoes that sentiment—he’s been testing new material at open mics for 12 years, “To be able to have a place where you can actually play before you actually, you know, [play and] might have a name for yourself or before you can have a gig—it’s a great opportunity to play on stage in front of people.”

Open mics also offer the opportunity to experience music that may only be heard once, because every time a musician plays a song, it can sound different, and the feeling it expresses can be unique each time the song is performed.  Occasionally, a musician will hit the stage and play with someone they’ve never met before and together, they make magic, “I’ve played with several musicians some that have inspired me and some that have really taken me to places musically that I’d never been before, and it’s sad because it’s only for a moment and then that sound is gone, and you just have it in your heart to remember,” says harmonica player, Marvin Jaramillo, “But you can never do it again until you meet that person again.”  He shares more of his philosophy, “Music is a one time thing, [that’s why you] give it the best feeling you have and play with your heart.”

The majority of the time the music you’ll hear at an open mic is not recorded so if you’re part of the audience, you really have to appreciate what you hear right when you’re listening to it.  Guitarist, Rex Mundi explains, “In my opinion, some of the best music never gets recorded.  People think that the best musicians get contracts but that’s not necessarily true.  The best music ever made might have been recorded once, but you never heard it because it wasn’t distributed.  A lot of stuff you hear on the radio, that’s just manufactured music—I don’t listen to it, that’s just me, but it’s not like an open mic.”  Mundi frequents a University of New Mexico area open mic at a restaurant called The Brickyard Pizza, “You’d be surprised at the degree of talent these places can offer.  A lot of professional musicians come in here—[in fact] on one night, it wasn’t too busy, there were regular open mic’ers jamming and these guys who play for the [New Mexico] Symphony were having a party here, so they got out their bugle horns and did some Blues or something, and I mean it was wonderful!  Here are guys who usually play Chamber music and they got to do this here,” boasts Mundi, “in a casual atmosphere and it was such a great time!”

Going to an open mic is an experience all its own—not only will it give you the chance to play on stage and get some well-deserved exposure; if you’re a first timer, it can also give you a chance to set up a gig with fellow musicians.   Or if you’re a pro, you can enjoy performing like you normally do, but in a more intimate setting, and perhaps in front of a more forgiving crowd.

For the audience, it’s a place where you’re pretty much guaranteed a good time because of the range of music you’ll hear, “[There are] a lot of good people coming in and playing, and they might not be accomplished, but they play with their hearts.  That’s what music is all about.” Rex Mundi adds one final thought on his favorite small-time open mic night, ”A lot of these guys in here, they’re potentially gonna be BIG… you just never know.”

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