Health problems of orchestral musicians from a life-span perspective

Abstract

The profession of orchestral musician is often linked to musculoskeletal problems, hearing disorders, and struggles with stage fright. However, data on the prevalence of physical problems are very divergent because of different research methods and sampling procedures. It is to be expected that physical problems generally increase with age, but the literature on medical issues that affect musicians contains very few studies on this aspect. In light of this, the data produced by a cross-sectional study of 2,536 musicians from 133 professional symphony orchestras in Germany were analyzed with regard to a number of health aspects. The data from 894 female (36%) and 1,607 male (64%) professional orchestral musicians aged between 20 and 69 (M ¼ 45.5, SD ¼ 9.52) were used to study physical problems, their duration and intensity, and psychological difficulties (such as pressure to perform in the orchestra and stage fright) in conjunction with variables such as age, gender, instrument family, position in the orchestra, and category of orchestra. The various health problems were also examined in relation to health behaviors, including preventative actions taken (nutrition, sleep, etc.). The results showed that more than one in two (55%) of the orchestral musicians who took part in the survey were suffering at the time from physical problems that affected their playing. The prevalence increased significantly with advancing age, and string players and harpists had an above-average frequency of experiencing physical problems. Interestingly, there was no significant correlation between the severity of problems and different health behaviors (including preventative action). Around half (49%) of the orchestral musicians said they felt the pressure to perform was intensifying, something that they partly attributed to an increase in artistic demands. The findings are discussed with reference to existing empirical results, potential methods of prevention and treatment, social aspects, and health-care policies.

Help Musicians UK hearing survey: Musicians’ hearing and hearing protection

“…The survey results showed an increased prevalence of hearing loss with age in this sample of professional musicians, replicating the finding by Gembris et al (2018). This is likely explained by the incidence of presbycusis (age-related hearing loss) in general populations which affects 1 in 3 people over 65 years old (AoHL, 2011).…”

“…In the present sample, 40% self-reported as having experienced a hearing loss with a further 19% reporting that they were 'not sure'; although the present study had a slightly higher proportion of popular musicians, the samples were otherwise demographically similar. This prevalence figure is higher than in Gembris et al (2018) who found an incidence of 34% of hearing problems reported by professional orchestral musicians, which may in part be due to the presence of popular/band (amplified) musicians in the current sample. It should be acknowledged that, without audiometric data, self-report data on hearing loss is subject to bias.…”

“…However, another audiometric sample of 162 orchestral music students revealed a notch in the left ear at 6kHz regardless of instrument played suggesting that environmental factors may not explain all lateral threshold variance (Backus & Williamon 2009). This is supported by self-report data revealing no significant differences in the likelihood of diagnosed hearing disorders according to instrument group or ensemble size (Gembris et al, 2018).…”

“…However, an unanticipated finding was that 47% of the sample reported experiencing hearing problems (HMUK, 2014). A more recent study by Gembris, Heye and Seifert (2018) exploring health problems of orchestral musicians found that 34% (of N=2,536) reported some type of hearing disorder (e.g. hearing loss, tinnitus), and worryingly, around 20% of musicians under 30 years old had already been diagnosed with a hearing disorder.…”

Pain Across Artists' Lifespan

“…In support of this notion, a health and ageing paper just published from a large musician population in Germany revealed that when many more musicians >55 years remain in professional orchestras, they do report higher injury rates than their younger colleagues (Gembris and Heye, 2018). 6 It is unclear why the attrition rate is higher in some countries than others as musicians age, possibly in relation to insurance or other factors, but there is clearly still room for further research to focus on what may contribute to positive ageing in symphony orchestras. (Brodsky, 2011).…”