Madam, - I can readily sympathise with Seán Mac Connell and his Rathfarnham neighbours who experienced quasi-siege conditions during the July concerts at Marlay Park (August Days, August 21st).
But of far greater concern to me (no doubt to Mr Mac Connell too) are the long-term harmful effects threatening the masses of happy punters who gather at the epicentre of such sound-quakes. These thousands of young people are unaware of (or unworried by) the fact that the real price of their exciting night out is the risk of irreversible hearing damage, as well as tinnitus, which may only show up when it is already too late.
Although fans may feel they are exercising the right to run their own lives, the responsibility for putting them at risk lies largely with those who create the circumstances and the authorities who fail to exert appropriate control.
In July 1994 you published a report which quoted the opinion of the British Tinnitus Association that "discos and headphones should carry their own health warnings, just as tobacco does". And a well known Irish consultant commented that sound levels in discotheques should be regulated by law. Eleven years later we find an article in your Health Supplement of July 19th reporting that music fans are now being urged to use ear-plugs at loud concerts and stay away from the stage area were "the sound levels can reach over 110 decibels". (The tinnitus safety level, I have read, is about 80 decibels.)
Is this the best we can offer? The long saga of the Army deafness claims should have heightened public awareness of the realities of noise-induced deafness and the fact that so much that is not tragically incurable was once preventable. There is a pressing need to make pop music ear- friendly.
Who better to lead such a reform than the presenters themselves - the performers, producers and promoters with the co-operation of agents and licensees? For one thing, they have control of the decibel levels. And consistent, responsible advice from pop stars is less likely to be ignored by fans than government health warnings.
Are any pop musicians voicing such concerns for the welfare of their followers? For all one hears, it would be easy to conclude that they don't really care, that they just cry all the way to the bank. Yet pop stars have given a powerful and passionate lead in world poverty issues. Here, then, is a problem in their own backyard which they can solve without dependence on potentates and governments. For openers, a few action suggestions:
1. Conscientiously and consistently caution your followers about looking after their hearing.
2. Endorse any Government health warning.
3. As soon as possible, make free ear protectors available to your patrons. - Yours, etc,
FRED O'CALLAGHAN, Deansgrange, Co Dublin.