Lately I have noticed my ears are more easily irritated by high frequencies. I started to notice this just before Christmas when I tried out my brand-new violin. When I took it to the music shop, I was advised to try Thomastik Dominant strings, as they are said to have a mellower tone. I bought the Dominants and replaced the upper 2 strings on my violin. After I did that I was not as irritated by the sound of those high A and E strings and felt fine playing along with my Aunt's church choir during their caroling sessions.
However, the sound of those two high strings began to hurt again just before New Year's Eve. Fortunately, I brought my earplugs to the all night jam session in which I participated, as the processed sounds of electric violins and amplified lap steel guitar put out plenty of high frequencies that were threatening to my ears.
Last night, even the high string of my kemancheh produced the nasty sensation in my ear that usually attends a high-frequency assault. Also, I tested the high notes of my cheap digital piano and they too irritated me. Fortunately, the viola proved to not be irritating at all to my ears.
So what to do?
The very first thing I started to do today was take a vacation from listening to music via headphones. No more iTunes, no more iPod. We are periodically warned of the dangers to our ears imposed by headphone-delivered music. I've certainly done more than my fair share. After about a few days, I'm going to see if there is any improvement in the response of my ears to my violin or kemancheh. If there isn't any, I'll have to sell them both - there is no point in torturing myself.
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