Klarinet Archive - Posting 000546.txt from 1997/08

From: Roger Shilcock <roger.shilcock@-----.uk>
Subj: Re: FALSE ALARM!!!
Date: Thu, 14 Aug 1997 16:50:47 -0400

(Sorry to repeat the original, but short of time).
Amateur orchestras may well be more dangerous to the hearing than pro
bands - amateur and occasionally-pro trumpeters are particularly likely
to play at least f and usually ff -> fff all the time. Also, if other
rehearsal rooms are like ours, some spots on the walls are abnormally
reflective of sound.
Roger Shilcock

On Thu, 14 Aug 1997, Andrew Scholberg wrote:

> Date: Thu, 14 Aug 1997 08:40:35 -0500
> From: Andrew Scholberg <ascholbe@-----.com>
> Reply-To: klarinet@-----.us
> To: klarinet <klarinet@-----.us>
> Subject: Re: FALSE ALARM!!!
>
>
>
> ----------
> > From: Andrew Grenci <agrenci@-----.net>
> > To: klarinet@-----.us
> > Subject: Re: FALSE ALARM!!!
> > Date: Wednesday, August 13, 1997 10:02 PM
> >
> > Andy Scholberg writes:
> >
> > > I'm shocked to hear that only 60 percent of hard-rock
> "musicians" are
> > >going deaf. I would have guessed 95 to 100 percent.
> > > But the conclusion is fallacious and illogical; it doesn't
> follow
> > >from the
> > >premises. If 60 percent of hard-rockers are going deaf, does that
> > >necessarily mean that 60 percent of professional orchestral musicians
> will
> > >need hearing aids? No. Do I worry about damaging my hearing when I hear
> a
> > >symphonic work by Mozart? No. If someone puts the bite on me to
> chaperone a
> > >teenage dance, do I worry about my hearing? YES! (That happened last
> year,
> > >and it was a miserable experience, but I protected myself with ear
> plugs.)
> > > Hard rock and gangsta rap isn't music. It's racket. It's
> abrasive,
> > >strident, and grotesque. The volume is routinely cranked up well beyond
> the
> > >sound of a jumbo jet at takeoff. I feel sorry for people who make it a
> > >normal part of their environment. Besides the damage to hearing, think
> of
> > >the damage to the soul. The "lyrics" are beyond disgusting.
> > > If anyone is looking for an alternative to hard rock, let me
> suggest
> > >Gregorian chant.
> > > I'm not afraid to use my ears like a man. I listen to Mahler and
> Wagner
> > >without ear plugs, including the magnificent fortissimo brass choirs.
> These
> > >great composers marked certain sections FF for a reason: they want us to
> > >*hear* the sound of fortissimo. How can we hear it if we stuff our ears
> > >with cotton?
> > > Rock "music," like the sound of a powerful lawn mower, is noise,
> > >and it's
> > >wise to protect your hearing from it.
> > >
> > >Andy Scholberg
> > >ascholbe@-----.com
> >
> > While I agree with some of Andy Scholberg's sentiments (i.e. one would
> > generally not need earplugs when performing Mozart, and certain types of
> > pop music are tremendously louder than classical), I think he is missing
> > the point. I have not seen anyone on this list recommend earplugs for a
> > member of an audience at a symphonic concert. What is recommended is
> > earplugs for performers who are on stage and in the vicinity of
> dangerously
> > loud instruments. The decibel level of a trumpet at a distance of a
> couple
> > feet can reach 120 decibels. Dittos for tympani. This is not healthy.
> > Decibel levels decrease drastically as distance from the sound source
> > increases. A distance of even 10 feet makes a huge difference. The
> > unfortunately truth is that orchestral clarinetists often have chairs
> right
> > in front of the trumpets, and beside the percussion.
> >
> > AG
> >
> > Andrew Grenci
> > New London, CT
> > agrenci@-----.net
> >
> >
>
> Point well taken. Having played in orchestras, I know what you're saying.
> But I think there's little to worry about unless the loud instruments are
> blaring at fortissimo for a solid 90 minutes. I've never played an
> orchestral program in which that was a problem.
>
> Teenage dances and rock concerts are extremely hazardous because the noise
> constantly blares at dangerous levels without relief. It is the constant
> pounding, the unrelenting assault on the ears that is so dangerous.
>
> Andy Scholberg
> ascholbe@-----.com
>

   
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