Vapor Trails: Air Quality Issues for Musicians

June 1, 2025

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When we think of pollution, we think of outdoor air pollution. But most of our exposure to pollutants occurs indoors. For example, air fresheners can emit or cause the formation of numerous substances associated with harmful effects. Claims like “green” and “all natural” on packaging do not have legal or regulatory meaning.

A primary source of indoor air pollutants is fragranced products. Perfumes, hair spray, and laundry detergent release the same number of chemical vapors as petroleum from vehicles. Each spritz of perfume contains volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

Scents can trigger a litany of allergy symptoms for those with fragrance sensitivity: itchy and watery eyes, congestion, coughing, and wheezing. Imagine a musician sitting a mere seven feet from the front row awash in perfume or cologne. Audience members are usually asked to turn off their cell phones before a concert, so why can’t we ask them to refrain from wearing strong-scented products?

Perfume, cleaning products, smoke, and air pollutants can cause chemical sensitivities. The onslaught of environmental agents contributes to respiratory issues (and possible asthma attacks), sneezing, nausea, headaches, and eczema. And because so many ingredients included in perfume are not disclosed to the buyer, there are some well-founded concerns over the chemical reactions perfume can trigger in your body.

People who cannot tolerate even small concentrations of chemicals have multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS), called idiopathic environmental intolerance (IEI), a mysterious phenomenon that’s largely invisible and hard to pin down. It presents as a cluster of symptoms that almost always occur together. There are potentially dozens of causes, from allergies to autoimmune disorders.

When It’s an Underlying Problem

A heightened sensitivity to smells is called hyperosmia, and may be the result of a particular health condition, the onset of pregnancy and hormonal changes, autoimmune disorders, Lyme disease, and some neurological conditions. Scientists speculate that there may be a genetic link. In most cases, doctors can only rely on the patient’s report of what they are experiencing. Because scent travels from the olfactory system into the throat, inhaling strong scents creates a taste in your throat that may cause nausea. The increased sense of smell may also make flavors more intense.

Indoor Air Quality

More concert spaces have been paying closer attention to air quality post-COVID. A benefit, of course, is that better ventilation can remove excess moisture and microbes, eliminate smells, and reduce volatile organic chemicals.

Some concert halls have addressed airflow quality. The Four Season Centre in Toronto employs an indoor air security system for extensive testing of circulated air. DNA sequencing provided a high-resolution view of bio-aerosol movement. Results show that the center’s state-of-the-art ventilation systems support above average air quality and sanitization.

Other venues are fine-tuning their HVAC systems. Air handling systems at Symphony Hall in Boston have been upgraded to provide enhanced ventilation and filtration, including filtration with MERV13 or higher rated recirculated air systems and bringing in outdoor air at increased rates of ventilation.

Bradley Symphony Center, home to Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, is equipped with a state-of-the-art HVAC plasma air bipolar ionization system to deactivate virus particles and improve indoor air quality. The system greatly reduces dust, mold, allergens, and viruses.

Walt Disney Concert Hall, where Los Angeles Philharmonic performs, and the entire campus at the Music Center, has improved air circulation and filtration across all spaces. It is the first performing arts center to earn the UL Verified Healthy Buildings Mark for indoor air quality.

Results of recent scientific research point to new directions for reducing the effects of fragranced consumer products on air quality and health. While researchers are still studying the impact of these types of chemical combinations, there are some people who may be at higher risk of adverse reactions, and there are some precautions you can take to lessen the impact.

Creating Fragrant-Free Workplaces

Despite all the proactive measures, many patrons continue to wear strong fragrances in the close confines of the concert hall.

Some orchestras have language in their collective bargaining agreements that prohibit the use of perfume, cologne, aftershave, and products that contain fragrance. Others, like Cape Symphony in Massachusetts, ask patrons to be fragrance-free, noting on its website, “Perfumes, colognes, and other strongly scented products can affect attendees with chemical sensitivities, allergies, asthma, headaches/migraines, or other chronic health conditions.”

Stanford Symphonic Chorus has a strict fragrance-free policy also outlined on its website. Some orchestras and venues have begun adding notifications about scents to the programs and to their call center on-hold recording. Other venues post notices at the box office and in theater restrooms.

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