 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: theorangecat
Date: 2016-01-08 08:13
I have been getting into many disputes with my parents lately about how loud my clarinet playing is. They insist that I wear earplugs while practicing, and when I complain that hearing loss is minimal and the plugs are really uncomfortable they launch into this speech about how it's all for my own good and how they have already given in so much by allowing me to not wear them at private lessons and how they've sacrificed for my band activities and whatever. My teacher has agreed that wearing earplugs messes up my sound and that it beats the point of playing -- and that's that. What he doesn't know is that they are so crazy about this idea they are willing to take me off the instrument and his lessons. So I have this take-it-or-leave-it deal.
So what are some brands of earplugs that preserve as tone quality as possible so that I won't sound spitty and hollow after 30 mins of practicing?
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2016-01-08 08:48
Bottom line, none. There are "musicians' earplugs." They are tailor molded to your ear canal and come with three (I think) inserts for different level of protection. They are very expensive.
For me, no matter how "mild" the decibel reduction is, you hear more of the sound through your jaw (skull) and that' just weird.
It's not your sound you or your parents should worry about, it is the sustained decibel level in a band room full of trumpet players and percussion. Sooner or later this DOES take a toll on your hearing. The tiny hairs in your inner ear are lost with this exposure to prolonged loud sounds ......... and they don't come back.
Still I have decided a long time ago that I will accept the consequences. You on the other hand may need to bite the bullet as long as you're under age, living with your parents and dependent on them for food and reeds.
...............Paul Aviles
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2016-01-08 16:19
Wow - they are absurd!!!!
Band, yes it is very loud, but not private Clarinet practice....
It's their house, so you have to deal with their phobias, but they are being absurd as I see it.
Maybe one of them has tinnitus, and is excessively trying to protect you from it.
Bigger by far is not using personal earplugs at a loud volume at all. And stay away from live Pop/Rock, etc Concerts unless you are using earplugs.
But private practice????
Give him a break folks!!!!
http://www.SkypeClarinetLessons.com
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Author: GeorgeL ★2017
Date: 2016-01-08 17:32
If you need ear plugs for your practice at home, you are playing too loud. If you need them because your parents say to use them ....
Walgreens, WalMart, CVS, and probably Lowes and Home Depot (hammering is also very noisy), sell packages of inexpensive foam ear plugs - you roll one between your fingers, put it in your ear, and it expands. The package lists the decibel level of sound attenuation when a plug is installed correctly; there is less attenuation if it is not pushed completely into your ear. Use one (in each ear) until it gets too gross, then replace it.
I currently use the molded musicians ear plugs (15 db attenuation) for band practices and hearing aids for normal listening; the result of attending 20+ years of community band practice without ear protection.
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Author: bill28099
Date: 2016-01-08 22:08
In my practice room the playing levels tend to be 88 to 100 db while doing scales and exercises. If you look at the OSHA standards they say 90db for 8 hours a day is OK but you should limit 100 db to less then 2 hours a day. I know when I've taken the db meter to concert band the level reach 115 db many times during a rehearsal. OSHA says 115db for less than 15 minutes a day. In my opinion you should neither practice nor go to band without ear plugs. Take it from someone who has pretty much lost all their hearing over their lifetime.
I'm with your parents, wear ear plugs as much as you can.
The other thing that people don't realize is even if they are hard of hearing in noisy environments you should still wear ear plugs. Whether you can hear the sound or not it is still damaging your ears.
A great teacher gives you answers to questions
you don't even know you should ask.
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2016-01-08 22:13
It's all about what range you are playing in.
Try to get 100 db on a low note. As you go higher (register key) the db level increases.
Also depends on the room you play in.
And if you are near the Trumpets, absolutely put plugs in.
The more db dampening the better.
Range officer plugs even!
http://www.SkypeClarinetLessons.com
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2016-01-08 23:57
Some very good posts written above. Unless you are using a mic hooked up to an amplifier there's no way you will do damage to your ears.
I used plugs in the Air Force rock band, when playing the sax, but everyone was hooked up to monitor speakers, even the dang drummers! I wasn't the only one that used ear plugs, but most of the players went without them. No hearing loss. I've been test a few times because of having gone through 3 sinus surgeries.
Go to Radio Shack, although I don't really like the place, or go online and search for an inexpensive decibel readers, whatever they call them. Not very expensive.
I just googled Amazon and they are under $20 - free shipping. Hard to beat and this will bring peace of mind to you and your parents. It's good to be careful.
Oh, I play in an orchestra and many professional orchestras have been tested. Studies show that orchestras can reach around 130. Off hand I don't know of any orchestra members with hearing issues, but maybe some orchestra players can pop in and give their opinions.
Good luck with your searching and I'm sure you will be fine.
Designer of - Vintage 1940 Cicero Mouthpieces and the La Vecchia mouthpieces
Yamaha Artist 2015
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Author: Ursa
Date: 2016-01-09 00:01
I've had really good luck with earplugs designed for shooting sports. Gander Mountain has a plethora of options; most other firearms retailers would, too.
The ones I use look like Walkman-type headphones. Much easier than fumbling around with foam earplugs--you can easily open up an ear when the band's not playing to converse and hear what the conductor is saying.
I have hearing loss and some occasionally nasty tinnitus from being struck by lightning. The tinnitus drives me up the wall. Don't risk it.
Post Edited (2016-01-09 00:12)
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Author: WhitePlainsDave
Date: 2016-01-09 01:08
Individual un-microphone clarinet practice does not comport scientifically with hearing loss.
Yes--hearing loss is a big thing. And in the next decade it will be huge as people of the Sony Walkman generation (pre CD, pre MP3, etc.) with personal music devices, which became headphone/earphone based, rather than speakers (not that speakers can't or haven't done their share of damage) make their way into the geriatric population, where age itself is enough to negatively affect hearing.
In the meantime, like people suggested, get the drugstore ear plugs as psychological first aid for your neurotic parents. Play in a carpeted room if possible, where sound is absorbed, to appease your parents perception that the sound is loud.
This is not in any way to imply that earplugs are a bad thing in the right context, like loud concerts, or when positioned in front of the trumpets in a larger musical setting. And by the way, it's not simply a product of decibels which are simply a logarithmic measure of sound energy, but the frequency of that sound too.
Does anyone know anyone who went deaf simply because they played clarinet?
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2016-01-09 01:40
WhitePlainsDave wrote:
> Does anyone know anyone who went deaf simply because they
> played clarinet?
What a silly strawman!
Bill28099 actually did something - he measured instead of guessed:
>In my practice room the playing levels tend to be 88 to 100 db while doing scales
>and exercises. If you look at the OSHA standards they say 90db for 8 hours a day
>is OK but you should limit 100 db to less then 2 hours a day.
So Bill is getting near if not actually exceeding an OSHA threshold.
I know for a fact that 85-95db for 8hr/day for 8 years will do irreparable damage - have that damage, not from playing clarinet, but from being near machinery that emitted a constant 480Hz note at 85-95db (depending on generator draw). We were issued uncomfortable hearing protection and didn't use it.
What the hell is the problem with someone wearing good hearing protection while playing? It can't hurt. The good stuff - what he asked for - isn't cheap (it's fitted) but it's musically effective.
John Moses - I remember you have some good ones you wear in the pit on Broadway. What are those?
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Author: elmo lewis
Date: 2016-01-09 03:25
Here's how to keep your parents happy. Get any cheap plugs but don't jam them all the way into your ears, just place them as lightly as possible without blocking the ear hole. You should be able to hear normally and your parents will think you are protected.
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Author: Matt74
Date: 2016-01-09 07:16
I've never heard of anyone suffering hearing loss from the clarinet. Piccolo or drums, violin, yes. Sitting in front of the trumpets definitely. Like the other guys said playing in band is much more likely to cause problems than playing at home. There are about a thousand other things waaayyyy louder in everyday life...
Amplified music, power tools, movie theaters, lawn mowers, subway trains, sports events, gym class, airplanes, vacuum cleaners, blenders, espresso machines' steamers, some restaurants, walking along a city street. And, unless you have a Cadillac or something, the noise inside a moving car. There's lots of other stuff too at lower levels that are on all the time like TV, fans on all sorts if stuff, forced air HVAC vents, and refrigerators. Video games. Buzzers and alarms on everything. We live in a world infinitely louder than it was 100 years ago. Have you ever been in an old country house where there's none of that stuff? I'm convinced that most headphones or earbuds are bad for you, even at low volume. They make my ears hurt, at any rate.
I got these for when I go to the movies. They are a lot cheaper than musicians plugs, inexpensive. They have a little hole that reduces the volume coming in. The sound quality is not the same as without them, but they are a huge improvement over the foam ones.
http://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Research-ETY-Plugs-Protection-Earplugs/dp/B0044DEESS
There are other brands too. I would be more worried about the effects of putting things in your ears all the time from wax build up and infections, than exposure to the clarinet. I can see that a lifetime of playing might take a toll, but not compared to all that other stuff.
- Matthew Simington
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Author: Philip Caron
Date: 2016-01-09 09:48
As Mark says, working near industrial machinery for years can damage hearing if protection is not worn. The OSHA reg is a little high. I've worked in a factory my whole life, and for much of that time wore hearing protection (and eye protection, but that's another topic.)
Practices vary; I've been to plants where employees and visitors were required to insert foam ear plugs as they entered the factory floor; there were dispensers at every entrance. They had to dispose of the plugs when they left. Why throw them away? - to avoid infections from reused or dirty plugs. Other facilities didn't seem to care, it was up to the employees to take care of themselves.
Playing with a loud group? Wear ear plugs. Going to a bar band concert? Wear ear plugs. Fireworks? Ear plugs. Loud party? Ear plugs. Wash them if you plan to reuse.
But just practicing?? I tried ear plugs. It felt like I couldn't tell what kind of sound I was getting. Does practice sound reaching the external ear reach dangerous levels? Bill said up to 100db!! I'd switch practice rooms in that case.
I don't know how to measure the decibels of bone conduction from playing a wind instrument. Or how the danger of bone conduction sound levels compares that of to external levels. May be worth looking into . . .
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Author: bill28099
Date: 2016-01-09 10:06
You want ear infections, wear hearing aids all day long. Besides that they make your ears itch like crazy.
A great teacher gives you answers to questions
you don't even know you should ask.
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Author: WhitePlainsDave
Date: 2016-01-09 17:50
While we all have different opinions, a "straw man's" a point of discussion that seeks to refute an argument/discussion not, or other than that already proposed.
My asking a rhetorical question regarding who (no one) has lost hearing due to simply playing clarinet in a practice room is in direct response to the OP's parent's concern
"They insist that I wear earplugs while practicing"
Maybe I didn't make that connection clear enough.
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