LAWS & REGULATIONS

THE BASIC ISSUE

Hearing health is important for everyone. It is critical for music professionals. 
One particular type of hearing loss is often permanent: hearing loss due to noise exposure. 
The hearing system can be injured not only by a loud blast or explosion but also by prolonged exposure to high decibel levels of sound.
Music of any type and source at high volume that exceeds daily exposure levels and time periods is dangerous. Over time, noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) can be the result. 
Preventative measures need to be taken by individual musicians and by institutions where musicians study and work.
Preventative measures include but are not limited to information, applications of information in decision-making and culture building, and acoustically appropriate performance and rehearsal spaces.

BASIC FACTS: MUSIC, NOISE AND LOUDNESS LEVELS

Music is not noise, at least not to musicians.
Do not be confused or offended by terms. Remember the fundamental point.
A sound that is too loud, or too loud for too long, is dangerous to hearing health, no matter what kind of sound it is or whether the sound is called noise, music or something else. 
Music itself is not the issue. Loudness and its duration are the issues, for music and for all other sound sources.

MAJOR VARIABLES AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS

Four major variables are:

• Sound-level variation: In some musical situations, decibel levels are essentially constant. However, in most, decibel levels rise and fall. A rock concert may constantly expose performers and audiences to dangerously high noise levels. A classical string quartet performance is usually characterized by fluctuations between soft and loud, with relatively few moments at peak volume.

• Settings: Rehearsals and performances may take place in spaces that are right-sized and shaped for the size and volume levels of the individual performer or ensemble. Other spaces may be too small, thus concentrating noise levels. Some have proper acoustical treatment for their musical purposes. Others may not. Some settings feature electronic amplification; others do not. Placement of individual musicians in ensembles is also a factor in sound-level exposure. 

• Distance: The distances between individual musicians and between performers and audience members influence a person's sound-level exposure. The closer a person to the source of music or source of amplification, the greater the sound level. 

• Length of Exposure: The amount of loud sound varies by type of music, by composition, style and setting, and by artistic and personal choice. Length of exposure is critical in calculating whether over exposure is occurring and hearing loss is a consideration. 

WHAT MUSIC PROFESSIONALS NEED TO KNOW

• Understand and share with others the risks inherent in excessive high-decibel sound exposure, including the risk of permanent hearing loss.

• Recognize that music can be a sound source capable of causing noise-induced hearing loss.

• Maintain familiarity and currency with health and safety codes and with standards and procedures related to noise exposure.

• Make practical assessments of sound levels.

• Apply hearing health knowledge in specific musical contexts, such as performance, production, education, competition, and listening. 

Students need to gain this knowledge and skills during the course of their studies and preferably as soon as possible. 

INSTITUTIONAL AND INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY

The basics regarding the relationship between music and noise to hearing health are simple. For institutions, several responsibilities are obvious:

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• Information about this relationship needs to be provided as broadly as possible to the musically involved of all ages.

• Individuals and organizations that teach and perform music need to pursue their work in ways that support hearing health. 

• Rehearsal, performance, and acoustical considerations need to support hearing health objectives.

• Regulations and codes need to play appropriate guiding roles in institutional decisions.