Life in the Pit

In response to Ethan and Greg Near’s discussion about earplugs on Day 2, the earplugs the SF opera bought for us are custom-fit to the individual’s ear.

The people from H.E.A.R. made molds of the ear, and sent them to Westone for fabrication of the plugs. There are three filters available – 9db, 15 db, and 25db. The 9 db filter is the most practical for orchestral playing, I have found. The magnification of one’s own sound is apparently called “occlusion”, which is supposed to be greatly diminished with these Westone plugs. As a string player, though, I can’t comment on whether this is true. Perhaps there are some wind or brass players out there who have tried these plugs?

Anyway, check out the HEAR website:
http://www.hearrecords.com/shop/index.shtml
This link will take you to the description of the earplugs.