Rehearsal Sound Exposure and Choir Singers' Hearing: A Pilot Field Study.

Exposure to high- and moderate-intensity sound is inevitable for professional singers during their working day, the majority of which is spent in rehearsal, preparing for a performance. The impact of self-produced sound exposure on singers' hearing within the rehearsal setting has not been examined. OBJECTIVES This original pilot field study investigates the feasibility of data collection and hypothesis testing of singers' hearing within the rehearsal environment. METHODS 18 professional choir singers are examined for hearing threshold changes following routine rehearsal sound exposure. Pure Tone Audiometry is measured before, immediately after, and approximately 24 hours after rehearsal. RESULTS This study does not identify definitive Temporary Threshold Shift in this population under these conditions. That said, mean temporary threshold shift was found 3.61 dB higher than the recovery threshold shift in the right ear at 3000 Hz (P = 0.06), and this may be important to look at for future studies. CONCLUSIONS Methodological challenges of this field study include dynamic experimental conditions intrinsic to the rehearsal process, environmental and musical influence on Pure Tone Audiometry results and estimation of sound intensity exposure.