problem discerning pitch listening to music

[wcav]

I have had tinnitus for about 20 years ... it is the hissing variety, and it is constant. It started out very soft, but the volume has increased over time. It seems to have steadied at the current volume, which I am handling as well as possible.

About a year ago I started to have some difficulty listening to music, both live and recorded. From time to time it seems to lose - for lack of a better term - its tonal centre and sounds out of tune ... or without the note by note pitches that are accurate. This happens more with piano than with other instruments. The pitch seems all over the place; the relationships note to note sound wrong. My audiologist said it is "amusia". He also said it was related to the tinnitus.

Music plays a large role in my life, and this really distressing. I have found very little about this condition in my research.

Last week I got hearing aids, and I do not know yet if they will aid in this "pitch perception" problem.

I am curious if anyone else is experiencing this particular problem and what if anything they have been able to do about it.

I look forward to your replies.

WCAV

[ShakeelaBTA]

Hello and welcome to the British Tinnitus Association forum. Do feel free to ask any questions, I hope that you find this a helpful and supportive place to help you manage your tinnitus.

We have some resources that you might like to check out in addition to our home here:

tinnitus.org.uk (information and support details)

takeontinnitus.co.uk (free tinnitus management programme)

Helpline 0800 018 0527 (Monday-Friday 9am-5pm) (outside the UK you can call [phone])

Kind regards

Shakeela

[wcav in reply to ShakeelaBTA]

Thanks for your reply, Shakeela. I have consulted the sites you mentioned and there is no reference on any of them to amusia or the musical pitch discrimination problem I am experiencing. I will check back periodically.

Good wishes.

W

[ShakeelaBTA in reply to wcav]

Dear wcav

amusia is more related to hearing and hearing loss than Tinnitus.

We are not medically trained at the BTA and I wouldn't be able to give you any other information about this.

kind regards

Shakeela