What is the best musical instrument for my child who is hard of hearing?
By Marshall Chasin, AuD (Previously published in Hearing Review) This is a common question that I am asked and without further hesitation (since I have kept you waiting long enough), the answer is not as complex as you may think it is. And the answer is… the clarinet. I should point out that I…
Read More
Live Music vs. Recorded Music
By Marshall Chasin, AuD The following post was first published in Back to Basics in The Hearing Review and appears here by permission of that publication. Some municipal jurisdictions are considering allowing only recorded music to be played in outdoor restaurant facilities. Live music would be banned, as it may contribute to municipal noise pollution. Presumably the…
Read MoreWhat do spondees, math (and music) have in common?
By Marshall Chasin This post, which was originally published in the April 2014 Hearing Review, is republished here with the permission of Hearing Review. It is almost as if music has something in common with everything- psychology, physiology, acoustics, engineering, most areas of the arts, and now the lowly spondee. Recently I have been reading a…
Read MoreLoudness and Intensity
By Marshall Chasin The following post originally appeared in the March 2014 issue of The Hearing Review and is published here by permission of that journal. Actually, we should be discussing “loudness and sound level” and not “loudness and intensity.” Intensity is a rarely used concept in our field because both the amplitude (sound level) and the…
Read MoreWhat is “Soft”, “Medium”, and “Loud” for Speech and Music?
By Marshall Chasin, AuD This post was originally published in the February 2014 issue of The Hearing Review and appears here with the permission of that publication. Modern hearing aid technology has the capability to be responsive to varying levels of inputs. A hearing aid will generate significant amplification for soft level inputs, less amplification…
Read More