About Save NOLA Sounds Initiative

MEET THE NOMAF SAVE SOUNDS COORDINATORS

Christophe Jackson:  Co-Director of the Save New Orleans Sound Initiative

SafeSounds@nomaf.org

Co-Director of the Save New Orleans Sound Initiative, Christophe E. Jackson Ph.D. has earned bachelors and masters in Biology and Piano Performance and completed an interdisciplinary PhD in Performance Arts Medicine through the Biology department at the University of Alabama at Birmingham where he worked across the disciplines of biology, physiology, physics, engineering, and music. Jackson was awarded funding from the prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) and Ford Foundation to conduct seminal research to compare the voice fatigue of trained and untrained singers. His research focused on the translation of scientific investigation into clinical application for specialized care to performing artists as well as the design of portable acoustic devices to dampen ambient noise.

In addition Jackson is a “musician at heart” who maintains an active classical and jazz performance life. Growing up in the heart of Montgomery, Alabama, Christophe Jackson made his first public piano concert at the age of eight at the First United Methodist Church’s Nellie Burge Community Center, and never stopped playing thanks to the support of his grandmother and the congregation.

Outside of performances and research, Jackson actively seeks opportunities to increase awareness and educate musicians about performance health. He has established state-of-the-art voice laboratories, developed acoustic environments to dampen noise, established voice screening for incoming voice students, and facilitated visits for music students, during which he taught other musicians about preventative health and wellness for performing artists.

Currently, Jackson is working with researchers from Wichita State University and Tulane University to establish a center for music, science, and technology. Its purpose would be to conduct interdisciplinary studies on music cognition and neuroscience, performance arts medicine, technology, and the performing arts. The center would be a hub for other Universities to establish collaborations, which would promote, scholarship, innovation, and culture found only in New Orleans.

Jackson intends to enroll in medical school to become a clinical research surgeon specializing in the care of musician’s hearing and voice. His training in music, scientific research and medicine will facilitate integration and translation across these disciplines. He feels that active involvement in music making is vital to the empathy and understanding needed to improve musicians’ health.

Read more about Christophe Jackson | from BMetro, 7/01/2012

Related links:
Alabama State Council on the Arts ( January 29, 2011) Performing Arts Program Manager Yvette Jones-Smedley interviews
The Science of Song

Stacey Morigeau, (Co-Chair of Initiative)

504-415-3514 | programs@nomaf.org

Stacey Morigeau is a lifetime live music supporter and a graduate from the University of Montana with a BA in Drama.  Stacey is currently in her second year as the Programs Coordinator for the New Orleans Musicians Assistance Foundation.  In addition to the work she does to sustain healthy life styles among New Orleans musicians through NOMAF, Stacey assists local bands by selling merchandise.  Periodically she also serves as a stage manager and has been a volunteer at WWOZ (90.7) for the past 6 years.

Felice Guimont – RN (Nurse Care Manager)
Save New Orleans Sounds Coordinator
felicern@neworleansmusiciansclinic.org
Felice Guimont RN, is a native New Orleanian,  nurse, poet, singer/songwriter, who has dedicated her life to healing pursuits in conjunction with the arts. She currently is the Nurse Care Manager for the New Orleans Musicians Clinic. Being a performer herself,  Felice knows firsthand the impact of practicing safe sounds.  Seeing so many of her musical peers permanently affected from prolonged exposure to higher than neccessary sound levels, inspired her advocacy towards changing this correctable problem. She encourages dialogue between other artists on this subject, and more proactive efforts towards a healthier well being. She performs with her band “The Overtakers” at various venues and festivals.

Drew Price – Researcher
Drew Price is a Doctor of Audiology student currently attending Rush University in Chicago, Illinois.  She graduated from Louisiana State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Sciences and Disorders, and is a Chicago liaison for the New Orleans Safe Sounds initiative. She is also a lifetime music lover and has a passion for hearing conservation within the arts. Price’s research will focus on what precautions music programs are taking to protect the hearing of their students, as well as finding out to what degree these programs consider noise-induced hearing loss to be an occupational threat to themselves and their students.