an octave higher than middle C

Allen, Emma and I attended Cochlear America's HOPE Notes workshop with special guest speaker Richard Reed last night. I learned about Richard several years ago when we resided on Kodiak Island shortly after Matt received his first CI. Turns out, I worked with Richard's friend, who brought me up to speed with Richard's new approach to music, a way that made it more hopeful for CI recipients to ditch the old, conventional wisdom of having simply a speech processor, to a new idea of having a SOUND processor.


Fast forward one major move for the Vorholts to Texas and a bilateral implant for Matt. There we were, listening to basic music theory, which Allen and Emma are well-versed, and learning why Matt prefers CDs to radio and what activation day may have sounded like for him.


CIs have 22 electrodes that are expected to replace thousands of tiny hair cells to reproduce music and it's common elements: pitch, dynamics, rhythm and timbre. The CI's microphone captures the sound and it's processor turns the sound waves into digital signals which are then sent to the auditory nerve and interpreted in the brain. In order to train your brain to understand the strange CI sounds, Richard says you need to train your ear. Ear training + brain training must occur during your active practice of listening to music, something we hearing folks take for granted.


Richard explained how difficult it was to lose his hearing - not just words from his loved ones, but also his favorite songs that could make him feel better. How many times have we been sad and turned on a little DMB, Jack Johnson, anything that will soothe our mind? How scary to NOT have that option!


And I was propelled back to a time when I watched a small toddler lose all hearing. A small toddler who fell into a deep depression because he couldn't hear his music, or the dog barking, things that made him happy and laugh. This image reminded me of why I pushed (OK, at time,s I scratched and clawed my way through the nay sayers and red tape) for Matt to get a CI. Matt's adventure can be found here: Second CI AND VIDEO.


As a musician, Richard was excited about his new electronic ear and returning to the love of music. He described his post-activation day first keyboard sounds as overwhelming, but after much practice, realized the further apart notes are, the easier they were to hear. He says adding visual and tactile to a music lesson changes the auditory experience and suggested letting children learn an instrument, even if they're not good at it. A fixed pitch percussion-type instrument is best because it doesn't need to be tuned often. 


Matt is a non-stop drummer, just like his oldest brother. If there is an item to be beat on, he will do it. Being exposed to so many instruments, too, in Casa Circus Vorholt has no doubt helped this child progress faster than the average CI kiddo.


Richard says making music reduces stress. I know this to be true, because Allen can come home from an over-scheduled day and find peace in banging out his frustrations on his drum set. Emma leans to me and says, "Mom, you should try learning to play an instrument."


As to why Matt prefers CDs instead of the radio when in the car, Richard explains that Matt knows what song is next on the CD. His brain expects familiar rhythms, melodies, etc. when his favorite band is playing. The radio doesn't provide knowns, it's full of unknowns and harder to process as quickly.


To round out his presentation, Richard gave the audience an uplifting sneak peek at HOPE Notes, a program designed to improve music perception and appreciation using old favorites, like Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. Ironically, this is the song we used to help bring Matt back into the hearing world on his activation day.


Richard also says that CI recipients may find they prefer an octave higher or lower than middle C and quickly played examples on his keyboard. Allen, ever the result of many years of drum lessons and self-taught experience, whispers, "Matt's higher." 


Of course he is. I wouldn't expect Matt to be anywhere below middle C. He fully lives his life higher than anyone's expectations, probably even his own.