Amplifying Performance: How Musicians Can Protect and Preserve Their Hearing

How Would You Treat Musicians With Hearing Loss - Featuring: Dr. Matt Webster

Your ears are your most valuable instrument. For musicians, hearing loss isn't just inconvenient—it threatens careers and artistic expression. Dr. Matt Webster dives deep into the specialized world of hearing care for performers, where standard solutions often fall short.

We begin by exploring prevention strategies that preserve musicians' remaining hearing. Unlike ordinary foam earplugs, custom musicians' earplugs with specialized filters maintain sound clarity while reducing volume. These passive devices allow performers to monitor themselves naturally while preventing further damage—protection without compromising artistry.

For musicians already experiencing hearing loss, treatment approaches differ significantly from standard care. Dr. Webster explains how audiologists use specialized high-frequency testing particularly relevant to musical perception, and how hearing aid selection focuses on qualities musicians prioritize: lower latency for real-time monitoring and reduced compression settings that preserve musical dynamics. Particularly fascinating is how singers benefit from properly fitted hearing aids that help maintain pitch accuracy during performances.

The conversation addresses the fundamental challenge in treating musicians: hearing aids are designed primarily for speech comprehension (an objective outcome) while music appreciation is subjective and requires different processing parameters. That's why audiologists often create separate programs that minimize signal processing for musicians, preserving the natural characteristics of musical sound.

Whether you're a professional musician, a weekend performer, or simply someone who values music, this episode offers critical insights for protecting your hearing without compromising sound quality. Dr. Webster's final recommendation applies universally: invest in proper musicians' earplugs with appropriate filters—they'll allow you to enjoy musical experiences safely while preserving the emotional power of music.

Ready to protect your hearing or address existing concerns? Contact Total Hearing Care today at [phone] or visit TotalHearingCare.com to schedule a consultation with our specialized team. Your music—and your hearing—deserves nothing less.

To learn more about Total Hearing Care visit:
https://www.TotalHearingCare.com

Total Hearing Care
Multiple Locations Across the DFW Metroplex
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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to the Total Hearing Care Difference where we
help you experience lifethrough better hearing.
Hosted by the experts at TotalHearing Care, a leading private
audiology practice serving theDFW Metroplex, we're here to
provide guidance on hearing loss, tinnitus and the latest
advancements in audiology.
Transform your life throughbetter hearing let's get started

(00:21):
.
Transform your life throughbetter hearing let's get started
.

Speaker 2 (00:28):
Musicians depend on their hearing not just to enjoy
life, but to make a living.
In this episode, we explore howhearing care for performers
goes beyond standard solutions,balancing precision, protection
and performance.
Welcome back everyone.
I'm Sofia Yvette, co-host andproducer, here in the studio
today with Dr Matt Webster.

(00:50):
Dr Webster, how are you today?

Speaker 3 (00:52):
Great thanks.

Speaker 2 (00:54):
Great.
Now, this is such an importantconversation for the creative
community.
How would you treat musicianswith hearing loss?

Speaker 3 (01:11):
musicians with hearing loss.
Yeah, so two main things.
Number one is even beforetreating it, is maintaining the
hearing that you have currentlyor is preventing further hearing
loss?
So I'm a big advocate of custommusicians.
Earplugs is what they're called,and it's different from a
typical, like foam earplugbecause it has a special filter
in it that, instead of justmuffling the sound, it turns

(01:32):
down the volume.
It's not electronic or anything, it's just a little passive
filter that turns down thevolume to where you're able to
hear in a similar way, so youcan monitor yourself if you're
singing or playing music.
So it still sounds the same,just a bit quieter.
Those are a great way toprotect your hearing while not
dramatically drasticallyaffecting your own performance.

(01:55):
Of course, the next item, numbertwo, would be monitoring your
hearing with annual hearingtests and if there is a hearing
loss, of course you'd be lookingat a pair of hearing aids.
There are some uniqueconsiderations to consider for a
person with hearing loss who'sperforming or singing.

(02:17):
Generally, musicians willprefer hearing aids that have a
lower latency.
A lower input latency, whichmakes the input latency is the
time it takes for the hearingaid to record the sound, process
it and then put it back intoyour ear.
Musicians also generally preferlower compression, so those two

(02:37):
things together will give you amore natural sound quality.

Speaker 2 (02:44):
Now, what are the most common causes of hearing
loss in musicians you typicallysee?

Speaker 3 (02:50):
So common causes of hearing loss in musicians is
gonna be noise exposure fromwhatever playing concerts or
just exposure to loud music,either listening or playing
yourself.

Speaker 2 (03:03):
Now, how does treatment for musicians differ
from treatment for the generalpublic?

Speaker 3 (03:11):
A lot of times we'll do some what we call high
frequency testing, which is justwe're testing some extra
frequencies that areparticularly more relevant for
music.
Versus speech, there's a littlebit of a difference in
diagnostic testing.
It doesn't necessarilydramatically affect the
treatment of it, but it'ssomething that a lot of

(03:34):
musicians care to keep track of.
So that's one of the ways thatwe differentiate.
That and then otherconsiderations with the musician
again is going to be the typeof hearing aid that you're
getting one that's probablygoing to give you a more natural
, sound response.

Speaker 2 (03:50):
Now, what role do custom earplugs or in-ear
monitors play in both protectionand performance?

Speaker 3 (04:00):
Yeah, so they're critical for protecting your
ears when you're playing, andin-ear monitors are a great way
for monitoring the sound versusthe traditional wedge speaker
that you listen to at your feet,versus the traditional wedge
speaker that you listen to atyour feet.
That's going to allow you toblock out the noise in the venue
and just have the volume ofwhatever you're monitoring at a

(04:22):
more safe, appropriate level.
The key is just not turning itup too loud when you have the
in-ear monitors in.

Speaker 2 (04:33):
Now.
Can a musician continueperforming after being diagnosed
with hearing loss and, if so,how?

Speaker 3 (04:40):
Yeah, absolutely.
I find that it's mostlypersonal preference.
If you're going to use thehearing aids while you're
performing or if you're justgoing to set them aside for the
performance.
You get to a point where it'squite loud and the hearing aids
may or may not be helpful.
So it kind of depends on whatkind of music you're playing.
I know that a lot of singersreally like to have the hearing

(05:02):
aids in.
Maybe they turn them down justa little bit or they have a
special customized program ormode for performing.
But it helps singers inparticular make sure that
they're singing in tune and notgetting too crazy with what
they're putting out there.

Speaker 2 (05:18):
Now, how do you address a musician's concern
about sound distortion or lossof nuance when using hearing
aids?

Speaker 3 (05:30):
Hearing aids.
Their main function is to helpyou hear speech better.
Hearing aids are their mainfunction is to help you hear
speech better.
So generally they're not tryingto maintain the integrity of
music, they're trying tomanipulate the sound so that you
can understand what's beingsaid in a conversation.
So hearing music and hearingspeech are very different

(05:51):
acoustic goals.
With speech it's objective,it's did you or did you not
understand what was said,whereas music it's subjective.
We just want it to sound pretty.
With musicians, hearing aidsoften will create a separate
program that turns off a lot ofthe processing of the sound.
That would be helpful forspeech but maybe would

(06:11):
negatively affect yourexperience listening to music
speech but maybe wouldnegatively affect your
experience listening to music.

Speaker 2 (06:22):
Now, what kind of counseling or long-term hearing?

Speaker 3 (06:24):
management plans do you recommend for career
musicians?
So definitely, annual hearingtests are important.
You want to keep track ofwhat's going on with your ears.
That's going to be the biggestthing for you.
And then, if hearing aids arein the picture for you, then you
want to make sure that they'regetting thoroughly cleaned by a
professional, probably every sixmonths, just to make sure that
you're not having any loss ofsound quality with those hearing
aids.

Speaker 2 (06:45):
Any final words of wisdom for us today, Dr Webster?

Speaker 3 (06:50):
I'll just reiterate my biggest recommendation for
really anybody musicians andjust people who enjoy listening
to music is getting a pair ofmusicians earplugs with a filter
.
That makes things sound stillpretty but at a safe level.

Speaker 2 (07:05):
Wow Well, thanks again for letting me be a part
of this one, Dr Webster.
It was a great reminder of howhearing care truly supports not
just health, but passion andpurpose.
See you next time.

Speaker 1 (07:19):
Thank you for listening to the Total Hearing
Care Difference.
If you're in the DFW Metroplexand ready to take the next step
toward better hearing, call469-218-4853 to book an
appointment or visitTotalHearingCarecom, because
when you hear better, you livebetter.
See you next time.