Abstract
Personal noise exposures of classical musicians in the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, Centennial Concert Hall, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, were conducted to determine compliance with provincial standards. In Manitoba, a hearing conservation program is required where the equivalent sound exposure level (Lex 8-hour) exceeds 80 dB A-weighted sound pressure level [dB(A)]. In excess of 85 and 90 dB(A), standards require hearing protection and engineering or work practice controls. Approximately 10 percent of the musicians wore conventional or custom-molded earplugs. Dosimetry readings were taken in the rehearsal room, main stage, and orchestra pit during rehearsals and dress rehearsals. Quest model M-8B and Larson Davis model 700 dosimeters were used and the Canadian Standards Association procedure was applied. The mean Lex 8-hour for the rehearsal room surveys were 88 and 90 dB(A), for the pit were 85 and 86 dB(A), and for the main stage were 82, 84, and 88 dB(A). Instantaneous peak exposures were recorded in excess of 140 dB(A). Individual noise exposure data indicated that the musicians' Lex 8-hour decreased with distance from the woodwind and brass sections. Neither the playing environments (stage, pit, rehearsal room) nor the musical repertoire resulted in an appreciable difference in the mean Lex 8-hour exposure in a fully complemented orchestra. Noise exposures for musicians of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra were in excess of all three Manitoba standards.