I just know this is the place to obtain an informed answer to an
obscure question.

For someone with tinnitus, how loud is a Fairport Convention concert
likely to be? I see they are variously described as 'folk' and 'folk
rock'. I believe the safe level is 85 dB, but 88 dB or 90 dB may be
okay for short periods.

I am more interested in acoustic levels than comments on the musical
or artistic merits of Fairport Convention :-)

On Wednesday, 14 September 2022 at 22:07:19 UTC+1, Scott wrote:
> I just know this is the place to obtain an informed answer to an
> obscure question.
>
> For someone with tinnitus, how loud is a Fairport Convention concert
> likely to be? I see they are variously described as 'folk' and 'folk
> rock'. I believe the safe level is 85 dB, but 88 dB or 90 dB may be
> okay for short periods.
>
> I am more interested in acoustic levels than comments on the musical
> or artistic merits of Fairport Convention :-)

FC are a folk band, but levels are likely to be high.

Don't stand too close to large speakers and take a leaf out of her late Majesty the Queen's book and take some earplugs to attenuate the volume?

HM famously wore them during her golden and diamond jubilee pop concerts at the palace.

In message <e9g4ihtnngc2b5jh5raenqk4knq45ifrno@4ax.com>, Scott
<newsgroups@gefion.myzen.co.uk> writes
>I just know this is the place to obtain an informed answer to an
>obscure question.
>
>For someone with tinnitus, how loud is a Fairport Convention concert
>likely to be? I see they are variously described as 'folk' and 'folk
>rock'. I believe the safe level is 85 dB, but 88 dB or 90 dB may be
>okay for short periods.
>
>I am more interested in acoustic levels than comments on the musical
>or artistic merits of Fairport Convention :-)

Are Fairport Convention still going? It's years since I heard anything
about them. Since they always used to change their line-up on a regular
basis, I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised.

I'd expect them to be loud, as they became much more folk-rock than
"pure" folk. I find on the rare occasions that I go to gigs that even
acts that I wouldn't expect to be loud are often ear-splittingly so. A
year or so ago I went to a Squeeze concert. Their strengths are fine
melodies and excellent lyrics, and they are far from a heavy rock act,
but they were so loud that I couldn't hear the words and the whole
experience was rather a trial. A KT Tunstall concert was similar.
--
John Hall
"Home is heaven and orgies are vile,
But you *need* an orgy, once in a while."
Ogden Nash (1902-1971)

On Thu, 15 Sep 2022 02:09:06 -0700 (PDT), "R. Mark Clayton"
<notyalckram@gmail.com> wrote:

>On Wednesday, 14 September 2022 at 22:07:19 UTC+1, Scott wrote:
>> I just know this is the place to obtain an informed answer to an
>> obscure question.
>>
>> For someone with tinnitus, how loud is a Fairport Convention concert
>> likely to be? I see they are variously described as 'folk' and 'folk
>> rock'. I believe the safe level is 85 dB, but 88 dB or 90 dB may be
>> okay for short periods.
>>
>> I am more interested in acoustic levels than comments on the musical
>> or artistic merits of Fairport Convention :-)
>
>FC are a folk band, but levels are likely to be high.
>
>Don't stand too close to large speakers and take a leaf out of her late Majesty the Queen's book and take some earplugs to attenuate the volume?
>
>HM famously wore them during her golden and diamond jubilee pop concerts at the palace.

Would you say likely to exceed 85 dB?

Often depends on the venue and how near you are to their amp stacks.
Hard to say really.
I think many of us have the problem as w get older. I hear it as a whistle,
but it started as rumbles after being struck by lightning a couple of times
in the 80s, When you are that close to such a sound source, it does not take
very much exposure to do some damage to the hairs. Luckily I'm not going
deaf, but it does impact spacial awareness and ability to tune in to other
conversations in an echoing place.
As I say loud music does not seem to make things worse, but tress does.
Brian

--

--:
This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...
briang1@blueyonder.co.uk
Blind user, so no pictures please
Note this Signature is meaningless.!
"Scott" <newsgroups@gefion.myzen.co.uk> wrote in message
news:e9g4ihtnngc2b5jh5raenqk4knq45ifrno@4ax.com...
>I just know this is the place to obtain an informed answer to an
> obscure question.
>
> For someone with tinnitus, how loud is a Fairport Convention concert
> likely to be? I see they are variously described as 'folk' and 'folk
> rock'. I believe the safe level is 85 dB, but 88 dB or 90 dB may be
> okay for short periods.
>
> I am more interested in acoustic levels than comments on the musical
> or artistic merits of Fairport Convention :-)

On Thu, 15 Sep 2022 16:32:06 +0100, "Brian Gaff"
<brian1gaff@gmail.com> wrote:

>Often depends on the venue and how near you are to their amp stacks.
> Hard to say really.
> I think many of us have the problem as w get older. I hear it as a whistle,
>but it started as rumbles after being struck by lightning a couple of times
>in the 80s, When you are that close to such a sound source, it does not take
>very much exposure to do some damage to the hairs. Luckily I'm not going
>deaf, but it does impact spacial awareness and ability to tune in to other
>conversations in an echoing place.
> As I say loud music does not seem to make things worse, but tress does.
> Brian

Thanks. I'm planning to decline (I'm not that keen on folk music
anyway). Just to improve my evidence base, do you think the volume is
likely to exceed 85dB?

On Thu, 15 Sep 2022 16:39:46 +0100, Scott <newsgroups@gefion.myzen.co.uk>
wrote:

> do you think the volume is likely to exceed 85dB?

Relative to what?

On 16/09/2022 01:25, Paul Ratcliffe wrote:
> On Thu, 15 Sep 2022 16:39:46 +0100, Scott <newsgroups@gefion.myzen.co.uk>
> wrote:
>
>> do you think the volume is likely to exceed 85dB?
>
> Relative to what?

Alexander Graham Bell sitting silently at his desk?

--
mailto : news {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

Blimey, what a question. Hard to say, if the venue is big even the audience
can be that loud, particularly if you have a lot of whistlers not just
clappers.
I'd not describe them as pure folk, but actually can be from simple
acoustic to full rock and often you are at the mercy of the sound man I
suppose.
I've not seen them more recently since the fiddle player died, but I do
not recall it being over loud.
Brian

--

--:
This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...
briang1@blueyonder.co.uk
Blind user, so no pictures please
Note this Signature is meaningless.!
"Scott" <newsgroups@gefion.myzen.co.uk> wrote in message
news:imh6ihl2d76m91ihpucik6gk5r2g68qilp@4ax.com...
> On Thu, 15 Sep 2022 16:32:06 +0100, "Brian Gaff"
> <brian1gaff@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>>Often depends on the venue and how near you are to their amp stacks.
>> Hard to say really.
>> I think many of us have the problem as w get older. I hear it as a
>> whistle,
>>but it started as rumbles after being struck by lightning a couple of
>>times
>>in the 80s, When you are that close to such a sound source, it does not
>>take
>>very much exposure to do some damage to the hairs. Luckily I'm not going
>>deaf, but it does impact spacial awareness and ability to tune in to
>>other
>>conversations in an echoing place.
>> As I say loud music does not seem to make things worse, but tress does.
>> Brian
>
> Thanks. I'm planning to decline (I'm not that keen on folk music
> anyway). Just to improve my evidence base, do you think the volume is
> likely to exceed 85dB?

In article <e9g4ihtnngc2b5jh5raenqk4knq45ifrno@4ax.com>,
Scott <newsgroups@gefion.myzen.co.uk> wrote:
> I just know this is the place to obtain an informed answer to an
> obscure question.

> For someone with tinnitus, how loud is a Fairport Convention concert
> likely to be? I see they are variously described as 'folk' and 'folk
> rock'. I believe the safe level is 85 dB, but 88 dB or 90 dB may be
> okay for short periods.

> I am more interested in acoustic levels than comments on the musical
> or artistic merits of Fairport Convention :-)

If you don't get an answer here you could try uk.rec.audio

I don't know the answer, but suspect that even 85dBA for very long could be
a problem. Duration of exposure probably also matters. And it probably also
varies from one person to another. So hard to say for sure.

Jim

--
Please use the address on the audiomisc page if you wish to email me.
Electronics https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/~www_pa/Scots_Guide/intro/electron.htm
biog http://jcgl.orpheusweb.co.uk/history/ups_and_downs.html
Audio Misc http://www.audiomisc.co.uk/index.html

On Fri, 16 Sep 2022 08:29:22 +0100, "Brian Gaff"
<brian1gaff@gmail.com> wrote:

>Blimey, what a question. Hard to say, if the venue is big even the audience
>can be that loud, particularly if you have a lot of whistlers not just
>clappers.
> I'd not describe them as pure folk, but actually can be from simple
>acoustic to full rock and often you are at the mercy of the sound man I
>suppose.
> I've not seen them more recently since the fiddle player died, but I do
>not recall it being over loud.
> Brian

Thanks, everyone.

I have decided not to go as I suspect I would not enjoy it if I had
concerns about audio levels. My tinnitus has got a bit worse lately
so I will just go for the risk averse approach.,

"Brian Gaff" <brian1gaff@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:tg18kn$3krhn$1@dont-email.me...
> Blimey, what a question. Hard to say, if the venue is big even the
> audience can be that loud, particularly if you have a lot of whistlers not
> just clappers.
> I'd not describe them as pure folk, but actually can be from simple
> acoustic to full rock and often you are at the mercy of the sound man I
> suppose.
> I've not seen them more recently since the fiddle player died, but I do
> not recall it being over loud.

I saw Dave Swarbrick (the fiddle player that died) at the Nettlebed folk
club a few days after one of the national newspapers published an obituary
for him several years prematurely. He was on oxygen: Martin Carthy carried
Swarb's oxygen tank onto the stage with Swarb tethered to it by "umbilical
cord", and Swarb said something like "I may look as if I'm at death's door,
but I'm not dead yet". I remember there was an announcement beforehand that
there would be no smoking allowed that night, because of the oxygen, which
dates it as being before the no-smoking-indoors rules came into effect.

Swarb may have been small and hunched later in life, but he could still
really make that violin sing. I wonder if he and Peter Knight of Steeleye
Span ever staged a "duelling banjos" or "Devil came down to Georgia" type of
contest?

On 16/09/2022 21:38, NY wrote:
>
> I saw Dave Swarbrick (the fiddle player that died) at the Nettlebed folk
> club a few days after one of the national newspapers published an
> obituary for him several years prematurely.

IIRC, the false rumour was that he had died while on stage at a venue in
Coventry. Later he remarked: "It's not the first time I've died in
Coventry!"

--

Fake news kills!

I may be contacted via the contact address given on my website:
www.macfh.co.uk

On Thu, 15 Sep 2022 10:23:28 +0100, Jim Lesurf <noise@audiomisc.co.uk>
wrote:

>In article <e9g4ihtnngc2b5jh5raenqk4knq45ifrno@4ax.com>,
> Scott <newsgroups@gefion.myzen.co.uk> wrote:
>> I just know this is the place to obtain an informed answer to an
>> obscure question.
>
>> For someone with tinnitus, how loud is a Fairport Convention concert
>> likely to be? I see they are variously described as 'folk' and 'folk
>> rock'. I believe the safe level is 85 dB, but 88 dB or 90 dB may be
>> okay for short periods.
>
>> I am more interested in acoustic levels than comments on the musical
>> or artistic merits of Fairport Convention :-)
>
>If you don't get an answer here you could try uk.rec.audio
>
>I don't know the answer, but suspect that even 85dBA for very long could be
>a problem. Duration of exposure probably also matters. And it probably also
>varies from one person to another. So hard to say for sure.
>
I was unaware of uk.rec.audio but will go there if I have any future
questions on the topic.

What I read seemed to suggest that 85dB is considered okay over an 8
hour working day and a bit more than that is okay for shorter periods
on a less frequent basis. There is mention somewhere of a warning
needed on the tickets if 96dB is exceeded.

For my part, as I have tinnitus (not serious at the moment), I am
sufficiently risk-averse to decline the opportunity. The last concert
I went to was too loud (Albert Hammond, whom I did not expect to be
particularly noisy).

In article <9vodihpibmpbklim3t3ud0v8p9v4vdbuvu@4ax.com>, Scott
<newsgroups@gefion.myzen.co.uk> wrote:

> What I read seemed to suggest that 85dB is considered okay over an 8
> hour working day and a bit more than that is okay for shorter periods on
> a less frequent basis. There is mention somewhere of a warning needed
> on the tickets if 96dB is exceeded.

It will probably be OK for someone whose hearing isn't already 'fragile'.
But aiui tinnitus means existing damage which may mean more prone to being
damaged. So I'd be a bit careful. Problem is that the nature of the audio
also matters - e.g. how peaky the sound is, and its frequency response.

> For my part, as I have tinnitus (not serious at the moment), I am
> sufficiently risk-averse to decline the opportunity. The last concert I
> went to was too loud (Albert Hammond, whom I did not expect to be
> particularly noisy).

You can get 'musicians' ear-plugs IIUC that reduce the level without
altering the sound quality too much. They may help as a 'volume control'.
Never tried them, though. I just play stuff at home at modest levels. The
last 'pop/rock' concerts I went to were back in the days when punk was a
novelty. :-)

Jim

--
Please use the address on the audiomisc page if you wish to email me.
Electronics https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/~www_pa/Scots_Guide/intro/electron.htm
biog http://jcgl.orpheusweb.co.uk/history/ups_and_downs.html
Audio Misc http://www.audiomisc.co.uk/index.html

On 18/09/2022 13:16, Jim Lesurf wrote:
>
> The last 'pop/rock' concerts I went to were back in the days when punk was a
> novelty.:-)

.... and a very good reason not to go to any more!

--

Fake news kills!

I may be contacted via the contact address given on my website:
www.macfh.co.uk

In article <tg7m2l$l2tb$2@dont-email.me>, Java Jive
<java@evij.com.invalid> wrote:
> On 18/09/2022 13:16, Jim Lesurf wrote:
> >
> > The last 'pop/rock' concerts I went to were back in the days when punk
> > was a novelty.:-)

> ... and a very good reason not to go to any more!

IIRC it was a 'punk' group from Holland. They got booed off the stage as
the audience was more interested in the band that followed them! But I left
early a the sound was far too loud and distorted for me.

Jim

--
Please use the address on the audiomisc page if you wish to email me.
Electronics https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/~www_pa/Scots_Guide/intro/electron.htm
biog http://jcgl.orpheusweb.co.uk/history/ups_and_downs.html
Audio Misc http://www.audiomisc.co.uk/index.html

In message <5a2a4bb422noise@audiomisc.co.uk>, Jim Lesurf
<noise@audiomisc.co.uk> writes
>In article <tg7m2l$l2tb$2@dont-email.me>, Java Jive
><java@evij.com.invalid> wrote:
>> On 18/09/2022 13:16, Jim Lesurf wrote:
>> >
>> > The last 'pop/rock' concerts I went to were back in the days when punk
>> > was a novelty.:-)
>
>> ... and a very good reason not to go to any more!
>
>IIRC it was a 'punk' group from Holland. They got booed off the stage as
>the audience was more interested in the band that followed them! But I left
>early a the sound was far too loud and distorted for me.
>
>Jim
>

Just been to a Loudon Wainwright III concert at the RFH. Both he and his
preceding support act - a girl folk-pop singer - were unaccompanied and
I think all their instruments (he played guitar, piano and banjo; she
just guitar) were acoustic. The sound level was blessedly moderate.
What's more, I could make out almost all of his lyrics (though not
hers), a real rarity and which makes me think that my hearing may not be
as bad as I had thought.
--
John Hall
"Home is heaven and orgies are vile,
But you *need* an orgy, once in a while."
Ogden Nash (1902-1971)