You're listening to Radiotopia Presents from PRX's Radiotopia.

And we will start with the tones.

I try and have my hearing tested regularly.

The higher pitches don't work as well in an adult ear canal because the sides are more rigid.

I think of it as dealing with an occupational hazard.

I started my career as dealing with an occupational hazard.

I started my career as a musician behind the drums,

and drums are loud.

So are amps, which want to be heard over the drums,

and monitors, which need to be louder than the amps.

It's a vicious circle of volume on stage,

as Deep Purple's Ian Gillen put it on their live album made in Japan.

Yeah, can you have everything louder than everything else?

Can I have everything louder than everything else?

But these days, we're all at risk of hearing loss, regardless of occupation.

We're carrying many amps around with us in our smartphones and sticking tiny monitors in our ears.

It's like everyone's on stage all day long.

The World Health Organization issued a report this year warning that 1.1 billion young people

are now at risk of hearing loss from personal audio devices and what they called unsafe listening

practices.

You can have a seat when you're ready.

Thank you.

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