Deaf man hears Mozart for first time with new hearing aid

28 August 2012, 10:30

A deaf young filmmaker has heard music for the first time in his life, including Mozart's Requiem.

California filmmaker Austin Chapman has heard music for the first time in his life, thanks to a pair of state-of-the-art hearing aids that have defeated his profound deafness. Chapman reportedly had tears streaming down his face when he heard Mozart's Requiem for the first time.

The hearing aids, manufactured by Phonak, have allowed the previously deaf Chapman (who could previously only just make out very low-frequency rumblings) to hear for the first time. Some friends played him the Lacrimosa from Mozart's Requiem while they were driving and Chapman began to cry.

Kyle Sinnott, a friend of Chapman, was there: "It was quite an experience. He was nodding his head and moving his fingers. He cried at one point, and the same goes for everybody in the car."

When Chapman posted online asking what he should listen to next, he received over 14,000 suggestions. Chapman commented: "I'm waiting until I have a really good sound system." He plans to buy every Beatles album first of all, but in the meantime has been listening to Pink Floyd and Devo records.

Chapman's short films have won several awards since 2010, and he currently runs the website artofthestory.com.