Can Computer Representations of Music Enhance Enjoyment for Individuals Who Are Hard of Hearing?

Abstract

Music is an art form present in all cultures and a shared experience. People who are Deaf, Deafened, or Hard of Hearing (D/HOH) do not have full access to the music of the larger hearing cultures in which they live. As a consequence, access to this shared experience and the cultural knowledge it contains is lost. As a result of an increasingly aging global population the number of D/HOH people is growing creating a consumer need for improved access to music information. Challenging the notion that music is only something that can be heard, this paper reviews the state of the art for supporting D/HOH music consumers and describes a study conducted with HOH music consumers to determine how best to support their needs. Results show that HOH people have several difficulties accessing music. © 2012 Springer-Verlag.