Date:         Wed, 30 Nov 2005 20:26:56 -0600
Reply-To:     Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List
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From:         phillip holmes <[log in to unmask]>
Subject:      Re: LP storage &c.
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Here's something I remember reading:

Are Bagpipers in Worse Health?

A survey by Piper and Drummer magazine finds that half of all bagpipe 
players suffer from hearing loss and repetitive strain injuries, but a chief 
defender of the instrument says that health problems for pipers are just "a 
load of bunk."

According to the survey, one in 10 players said his passion for bagpipes led 
to the dissolution of his marriage, and 84 percent said they knew pipers who 
had become alcoholics, according to a BBC report

But Robert Wallace, principal of the College of Piping in Glasgow, said 
health woes are no more common in pipers than anyone else.

"The playing of pipes is not in any way detrimental to health," he told the 
BBC . If a piper were to suffer hearing loss, nearby drums are more likely 
to be the source, said another piper and acoustic expert.

Moreover, Wallace said, pipers drink no more or less than others. "You 
cannot play the bagpipes drunk," he insisted.

http://www.hon.ch/News/HSN/514840.html

>> that most players have hearing damage.
>
> I'd like to see the data, actually. It's louder to the listener than
> the player. The sound comes out the chanter and shoots straight out,
> not up to the player. But you're right, it'll take the paint off the
> wall at 200 yards. They didn't call the Highland regiments "The Ladies
> from Hell" for nothing. :-)
>
> Cheers,
> Lani Spahr (Mr)