Hearing Aids and Voicing

[Danny Moore]

NBarr18195@aol.com wrote:

  when the job was finished, it was apparent that she could now hear
  notes a full octave higher than before even though the pitch was now
  higher. The only
  explaination I have for this is that the additional tension on the
  soundboard
  gave increased amplitude. Any other explanation for this would be
  welcomed
  and appreciated.

Norman,
I strongly suspect the cause of her sudden ability to hear higher
pitches was the increase in upper partials.  A 65 cent pitch raise would
increase the overall scale tension by 20 to 30%.  This additional
tension should excite the upper partials and increase the definition of
them.  I wouldn't think the slight increase in amplitude would be enough
for her to hear.

She may be suffering from what I nicknamed "drummer's ear."  Long term
percussionists, especially "kit" drummers suffer selective hearing
loss.  Most notably in the 4000 to 6000 Hz range.  This is the range
where a crash symbol sounds its shimmering brilliance.  Unfortunately,
it's also the range that, if not present, makes vocals sound muddy and
garbled.  Try mixing monitors for a vocalist whose primary instrument is
drum kit.

It sounds like she couldn't hear the fundamental, perhaps as a result of
this selective hearing loss, but when you brought in the upper harmonics
in that register, she was able to hear them.

Hope this is some food for thought.  Hearing damage is difficult to
diagnose and manafests itself differently in each person.  Just another
reason to pay close attention to the hearing protection discussion
that's currently going on.

Danny Moore