Talking Ears

NHCA 2025 Student Scholarship Panel

Welcome to the last episode of Season 3 of Talking Ears! This also happens to be the final installment of the eight part NHCA 2025 Conference spotlight series. What a ride we've had this year and we are excited to share what we've been working on for Season 4!
This episode features a round table conversation captured at the NHCA 2025 Conference with two audiology graduate Student Scholarship Award recipients: Hannah Miller (Idaho State University) and Blake Voss (University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point). They each presented remarkable research posters surveying contrasting intersections between the worlds of music and hearing. Juan and Frank were happy to find time during the busy conference schedule to delve into the personal and academic factors that led them to focused on each of their specific target populations for their research.
Music heard in this episode was written and recorded by Juan Vasquez and produced by Frank Wartinger. To hear the full tracks, visit the new Original Music Of Talking Ears album. If you like the show (or the music) and want to support us, you may choose to donate through bandcamp. It would probably go towards funding some coffee so we can keep awake so we can make more of this show and music.
As we enter Season 4, we would love to hear more of your feedback on the show. If you've listened (and read) this far, YOU are our target audience of dedicated listeners, and you can help shape the future sound of Talking Ears. We invite you to share your questions, your requests, your responses, or your praise/critics. We'll take it all! After all - we are all ears, so to speak.

Benj Kanters - Intersection of Music, Audio and Audiology

This is the sixth and final installment of the 2025 NHCA Updates in Music Audiology Workshop recap. In this episode, we'll listen to Benj Kanters' lecture "Tools For Teaching Awareness From the Intersection of Music, Audio and Audiology". Whether you call it the caboose, anchor, closer, wrap-up, coda, or ultimate, Benj's talk was the last of a long day of lectures and panel discussions circling the larger topic of Music Audiology, and we could not have imagined a better way to close out the workshop.
Note that the content has been edited slightly for the audio-only format, and these lecture recordings are not eligible for CEUs. If you want the full educational experience, we invite you to seek out the National Hearing Conservation Association and our annual conferences.
Benj Kanters (BS/MM Northwestern University) is associate professor emeritus of audio, Columbia College Chicago, where he was on the faculty of the Audio Arts and Acoustics department from 1993 to 2022. He directed the Audio Design and Production major, teaching audio physics and recording/production at all levels of the curriculum. After studying hearing physiology as part of his master’s degree at Northwestern, he developed the course Studies in Hearing in 2002, teaching physiology, disorders and conservation as a department core Requirement. Prior to Columbia, Benj spent twenty years in the Chicago music scene. He was partner and sound engineer at the concert-club Amazingrace, and later partner and chief managing engineer of Studiomedia Recording in Evanston. In 2007, he founded Heartomorrow and The Hearing Conservation Workshop, visiting universities and professional organizations to teach his unique flavor of hearing awareness to students and professionals in audio, music and the hearing sciences. To date, he has presented over 100 workshops in the US, Mexico and Europe and in recognition of his work received the Safe in Sound award in 2014.

Teleaudiology Panel Discussion - NHCA 2025

We assembled the largest gathering of Teleaudiology experts on the planet (world record eligible?) as part of the NHCA 2025 conference "Updates in Music Audiology" workshop. This episode is that panel discussion, lightly edited for the audio-only format.
Of course, Teleaudiology is not a new topic for Talking Ears listeners, as we have had all the panelists as guests in the past, and discussed Tuned and MusiCares in various episodes including a panel video. This episode serves as an update to the rapidly changing landscape of the field of virtual care for musicians, as well as a deep dive into the online hearing screener development and accessibility benefits of the delivery model.
The panelists were Heather Malyuk (Tuned, Soundcheck Audiology), Laura Sinnott (Sound Culture), Sharron Switzer (Sensaphonics), and Juan Vasquez (Talking Ears, Earmark). Frank Wartinger moderated the panel discussion.
Note: these conference lecture recordings are not eligible for CEUs. If you want the full educational experience, we invite you to seek out the National Hearing Conservation Association and our annual conferences.

Sound Discussion - Hearing Health for Musicians with Dr. Frank Wartinger and Dr. Juan Vasquez

This is a feed-drop episode where we get to share an episode of the Sound Discussion podcast. Juan Vasquez and Frank Wartinger had a great time as guests on their show, and I'm sure you'll enjoy the banter and conversation. If you like what you're hearing, make sure you subscribe to their show for more in-depth and light-hearted discussions of audio and recording topics. Here is the (overly flattering) episode description from the team at Sound Discussion:
This month on Sound Discussion, we’re diving deep into the essential topic of hearing health with two incredible experts in the field, Dr. Frank Wartinger and Dr. Juan Vasquez.
Dr. Wartinger, the founder of Earmark Hearing Conservation in Philadelphia, and Dr. Vasquez, a passionate audiologist based in Chicago, join us to share their wealth of knowledge on how to protect your hearing in the music industry.
As musicians, engineers, and music lovers, we often take our hearing for granted. In this episode, we explore the importance of hearing conservation and discuss practical strategies to maintain hearing health while performing or attending live events. From the dangers of high decibel levels to the types of hearing protection available, Frank and Juan break down what you need to know to keep your ears safe.
We also touch on common misconceptions about hearing loss, the significance of using in-ear monitors correctly, and the impact of modern technology on our auditory health. With insights from their podcast, Talking Ears, our guests provide valuable tips for musicians at every stage of their careers.
This episode is a must-listen for anyone involved in music, whether you're on stage, behind the mixing board, or enjoying a concert from the crowd. Join us for an engaging and enlightening conversation that could change the way you think about sound and hearing!

Juan Vasquez and Heather Malyuk - NHCA 2025 Workshop

The 5th installment of the NHCA Updates in Music Audiology Workshop recap is actually a double feature! Here we have friend of the show Heather Malyuk speaking about diplacusis and co-host Juan Vasquez speaking about clinical management of musician patients. Both lectures are informative, concise, and expertly delivered, so this is a real treat for those who want to learn some practical knowledge on the clinical applications of music audiology.
Note: the content has been edited slightly for the audio-only format. These lecture recordings are not eligible for CEUs. If you want the full educational experience, we invite you to seek out the National Hearing Conservation Association and our annual conferences.
Juan Vasquez is an audiologist based in Chicago, Illinois. Before pursuing a career in audiology he taught, recorded, and performed music with various ensembles and as a solo artist. In 2019, he earned a Doctor of Audiology degree from Pacific University and has had various experiences in ENT, Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense, private practice, research, and hospital settings. Currently, his clinical focus is centered around hearing loss prevention, particularly for musicians. Utilizing the telehealth services, Juan provides virtual consultations for hearing wellness, co-teach CAOHC courses, and co-produces the show Talking Ears, a podcast that focuses on music creators and their experiences with what is perhaps their most important instrument - their sense of hearing.
Heather Malyuk, owner of Soundcheck Audiology, is a musician and audiologist who hails from Northeast Ohio, but is known internationally as a clinician and public speaker in the field of music audiology. She received an undergraduate degree in Music History and Literature from the University of Akron and continued on to earn her Doctor of Audiology (AuD) degree from Kent State University. In 2020, she co-authored the clinical consensus document for Audiological Services for Music Industry Personnel through the American Academy of Audiology, she is a former Executive Council and Leadership Advisory Team member for the National Hearing Conservation Association, as well as a former co-chair of the College Music Society’s Committee on Musicians’ Health. She is passionate about new delivery models for audiologic care and is the Head of Audiology for Tuned, a groundbreaking virtual audiology clinic. In addition to her clinical and educational work, Heather developed and manages the first-ever hearing wellness video curriculum for the music industry, is a sought-after consultant and author, and is a research team member with various groups around the United States.

Brian Fligor - Tinnitus evaluation and management

In the fourth installment of the NHCA Updates in Music Audiology Workshop recap, we have music audiology expert and dear friend Dr. Brian Fligor. In this episode we'll listen in to his lecture on Tinnitus Evaluation and Management. The content has been edited slightly for the audio-only format. Note that these lecture recordings are not eligible for CEUs. If you want the full educational experience, we invite you to seek out the National Hearing Conservation Association and our annual conferences.
Brian Fligor is a board-certified pediatric audiologist and owner and staff audiologist at Tobias & Battite Hearing Wellness, a large private audiology practice in downtown Boston. His specific clinical and research interest is in evaluation and management of chronic bothersome tinnitus, hyperacusis and other auditory injuries due to high sound exposures. Dr. Fligor is adjunct faculty at Mass General Hospital Institute for Health Professions and at Drexel University GSO College of Audiology. Dr. Fligor's publications on hearing loss risk from music received considerable popular media attention, including being spoofed on the David Letterman Show in 2005. His publications on ototoxicity were incorporated into the JCIH Position Statement (2007) and helped shape a consensus international chemotherapy ototoxicity grading scale. He holds a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering and doctorate in Audiology from Boston University, and post-doctoral research fellowship from Harvard Medical School.

A Field Guide To Musicians' Tinnitus

In this episode, we flip the table and Juan interviews Frank about an article he co-authored for Seminars in Hearing Volume 45, Number 3 (2025). First, a thank you to guest series editor Marc Fagelson, PhD, for the invitation to write this article for Seminars in Hearing. Marc, Frank, and Juan have been collaborating for the last year on an exciting Music Audiology project with the American Tinnitus Association (ATA) and Texas Roadhouse to bring hearing and tinnitus awareness and care to musicians and crew music festivals. This work has been described in detail in the ATA’s Tinnitus Today Winter 2024 publication and we discussed it in detail on a panel episode of Talking Ears.
Second, this article would not have happened without the contributions and insights from these amazing collaborators:
Nancy Gould, M.Ed - Nancy is the Tinnitus Specialist with Tuned Care, and practices on telehealth and in North Carolina. She specializes in mindfulness stress reduction as well as tinnitus retraining. We first connected when she made dramatic differences in the care of many of my patients seen on the Tuned platform through the MusiCares program, so I knew she would have great insights into this article.
Melissa Rogel, LMFT - Melissa is a licensed individual and relationship therapist, runs the practice Cooperative Path in the Philadelphia area, and is the drummer of Philly-based indie rock band The Diaphone. She clearly understands the musicians’ perspective and brought to light the psychological concepts. Full disclosure: Frank has been playing keyboards and bass with The Diaphone since 2022, so we’re bandmates.
Thus the article: A Field Guide to Musicians’ Tinnitus outlines the differences in psychological presentation and care approaches when working with musicians who have significant tinnitus reactions, then follows a case that Nancy and Frank shared via teleaudiology. 
Music heard in this episode was written and recorded by Juan Vasquez and produced by Frank Wartinger. To hear the full tracks, visit the new Original Music Of Talking Ears album. If you like the show (or the music) and want to support us, you may choose to donate through bandcamp. It would go towards funding some coffee so we can keep awake so we can make more of this show (or music) you like so much!

Michael Santucci and Shannon Switzer - Safe Use of In Ear Monitors

Welcome to the third installment of the Updates in Music Audiology workshop recap from the NHCA 2025 conference. This week we will help Sensaphonics celebrate their 40 year anniversary by featuring the voices of founder Michael Santucci and hearing clinic director Shannon Switzer. Together, they shared a brief history of in ear monitors, common fit and use issues, and recommendations for their safe and effective use. Their presentations have been edited slightly for the audio-only format. 
Michael Santucci is a Doctor of Audiology and president of Sensaphonics, Inc., Chicago, IL. In 1985 he founded Sensaphonics which designs, develops and manufactures custom in‐ear products for the music industry as well as a variety of other hearing conservation applications. For over 40 years he has provided Audiological consultation and customized hearing protection strategies to both Chicago area musicians and many of today’s most prolific music performers from all genres of music. Today, Dr. Santucci continues his hearing conservation efforts, spearheading the development of innovative new products and technologies that have 3 patents for the 3DME IEM system and the dB Check Pro sound level analyzer. Both products are NAMM tech award finalists. Dr. Santucci is the Chair of the Music Induced Hearing Loss Task Force for the National Hearing Conservation Association. Dr. Santucci is also a member of the Audio Engineering Society (AES), where he is Chair of the Technical Committee on Hearing and Hearing Loss Prevention. In 2015 through this year, Dr. Santucci was invited by the World Health Organization to participate as an expert consultant as part of the WHO’s Listen Safe Initiative in Geneva SZ and is a core member and coordinator for MLS. Sensaphonics is the first winner of the Safe in Sound award presented by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the NHCA for achievements in technology, was the first winner of the prestigious Larry Mauldin award for pioneering new ideas for hearing loss prevention and was twice presented the Governor’s Award and once presented a Fellowship Award from the Audio Engineering Association and has been awarded Honors of the Academy with the 2023 Samuel Lybarger award from the American Academy of Audiology.
Shannon Switzer, Au.D. is the Director of the Sensaphonics Musicians’ Hearing Clinic in Chicago and is a featured audiologist in the MusiCares x Tuned teleaudiology partnership. As a lifelong clarinetist herself, she became fascinated with hearing conservation for musicians while earning her Doctorate of Audiology at Northwestern University. She primarily provides direct patient care to over 1000 music industry professionals annually through a variety of channels; the Sensaphonics clinic, mobile visits at music venues in Chicago, onsite clinical residencies with orchestras around the country, and teleaudiology visits with musicians around the world. Dr. Switzer is passionate about promoting hearing health through public education. She lectures at conferences, gives interviews to various music media, and trains audiologists in music audiology best practices. She has recently joined the WHO’s Make Listening Safe committee for safe listening in music venues and organizes high-profile musicians to promote World Hearing Day on their social media. She is an avid concert-goer and can’t help but chat about hearing protection in the crowd, even when she’s “off the clock”.