Hear The Music

Jun. 27, 2017

Impulse noise and music exposure

Marshall Chasin
Dr. Richard Price has probably done more than any one researcher to delineate the potentially damaging aspects of impulse noise on our auditory system.  He did most of his work in the 1980s and 1990s at the U.S. Army Research Laboratory, but had continued to publish well after his military incarnation.  Of course the military is concerned about minimizing the
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Jun. 20, 2017

Speech is not music… and music is not speech.

Marshall Chasin
I am always surprised by how the various hearing aid manufacturers lump the two words “speech” and “music” together in one sentence…. “Hearing aid X can help with speech and music, and can help you jump higher and run faster….”.  Of course everyone knows that the last part is true and many of my hard of hearing clients can leap
Featured image for “Music therapy for sudden sensori-neural hearing loss…. but beware!”
Jun. 13, 2017

Music therapy for sudden sensori-neural hearing loss…. but beware!

Marshall Chasin
I recently saw a music producer whose ears are her life – and unfortunately she suffered a sudden partial sensori-neural hearing loss in one ear. We were lucky enough to have her seen by an otolaryngologist within hours and after an MRI, steroid injections were started. So far, this is not an unusual situation and course of action although, with a few
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Jun. 06, 2017

Are Polaroids needed all over again?

Marshall Chasin
I recall a time, not too long ago, when the only form of photographic evidence admissible in a court of law was a Polaroid shot.  This was a self-developing technique and as such could not be altered.  With the current form of photography and digital images, a 14 year old kid could alter it and even give me Justin Beiber’s hair.
Featured image for “The Influence of Technology on Music for People who are Hard of Hearing”
May. 30, 2017

The Influence of Technology on Music for People who are Hard of Hearing

Marshall Chasin
By Natalie Wilson Natalie Wilson is an avid music lover and guitar player who has dedicated her life to sharing what she knows on her blog. You’ll find a wide range of topics on her blog, including reviews, tutorials, and tips for musicians. Feel free to contact Natalie: [email protected].   Music is a universal art form that everyone can connect with. Despite the
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May. 23, 2017

Noise and the European Tree Frog

Marshall Chasin
I don’t know about you, but when I am stressed by loud noise, my vocal sac coloration decreases and I’m just not as attractive as I can be. I have tried everything in my makeup kit to improve things, but alas, background noise can be deadly. Thankfully I am not a European Tree Frog though. An interesting experiment  was carried
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May. 16, 2017

Using musicians and non-musicians in research

Marshall Chasin
I have long been concerned that perhaps the musician is not the best type of research subject when it comes to assessing how a particular hearing aid algorithm or circuit may represent amplified music.  Researchers, such as Dr. Nina Kraus, have spent their entire working careers trying to figure out what makes a musician tick.  And ultimately the strategies used,
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May. 09, 2017

Maybe a sledgehammer is what we need?

Marshall Chasin
I know that it is a great pastime for all of us to take a few moments and go through our old journals to see if we missed any important articles. Well, I ran in to this old article which I had marked for future reading and even had downloaded a pdf.  It was sitting in a file called READ THIS. Obviously
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May. 02, 2017

Sexism in the broadcast industry

Marshall Chasin
One of the larger embarrassments of the 1960s and 1970s, other than bell bottoms, was the systemic sexism in the broadcast industry. Using pseudoscience, women were told that they could not be broadcasters because the pitch of their voices was too high. Specifically, if the speaker’s fundamental frequency was high, as in a woman’s or child’s voice, then the harmonics were spaced
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Apr. 25, 2017

Things change

Marshall Chasin
I have been a clinical audiologist for about 35 years now and I am surprised when I look back just a few years and find that what I told my clients either was wrong, or merely simplistic, based on today’s knowledge. Front line clinicians always find this in their first couple of years of work- we are still trying to