Austin Chapman was born profoundly deaf. Hearing aids helped some, but music – its full range of pitches and tones – remained indecipherable. […]
But earlier this month, that changed when Chapman got new hearing aids […]
Being able to hear the music for the first time ever was unreal.
When Mozart’s Lacrimosa came on, I was blown away by the beauty of it. At one point of the song, it sounded like angels singing and I suddenly realized that this was the first time I was able to appreciate music. Tears rolled down my face and I tried to hide it. But when I looked over I saw that there wasn’t a dry eye in the car.
As we go about our lives, it’s important to remember the things we take for granted.
Following that experience, Chapman did what any smart Internet-connected 23-year-old* with a question for a crowd would do: He turned to Reddit, asking, “I can hear music for the first time ever, what should I listen to?”
In general, his preferences tends toward what he terms as “melodic or soothing.” In particular, the Icelandic band Sigur Rós has become his favorite. “Every song [of theirs] haunts me and I’m not even 20 percent done listening to everything by them.” He’s also liked Radiohead, Pink Floyd, Rolling Stones, Queen, and some occasional dubstep too. Dubstep has really benefited from the new hearing aids, Chapman says. Before them, “I could feel the bass, but because I couldn’t hear the higher tones it was like listening to half of the song so I never really dug it. Now … being able to hear and understand almost the full spectrum of sound has given me a whole different view on bass. To put it simply, I’m head over heels in love with bass”
With so much more to listen to, Chapman says that, “ironically enough, I’m turning my hearing aids off more often than before.” There are too many annoying sounds.
“Silence is still my favorite sound,” he writes. “When I turn my aids off my thoughts become more clear and it’s absolutely peaceful.”
Amen to that.