LOS ANGELES (Kyodo) Being hard of hearing does not mean you cannot enjoy a good concert. Or at least that's the idea being pushed by Pioneer Electronics Inc.'s new listening technology for the deaf and hearing-impaired.
The technology made its U.S. debut recently in Los Angeles at a concert featuring music by the Asia America Symphony Association and Japanese jazz pianist and composer Keiko Matsui.
The Listening Through The Body technology, as it is called by Pioneer, uses a transmitter in a specially designed seat cushion and small pillowlike device to convert live musical sounds into vibrations that let hearing-impaired people experience music.