Acoustics upstaged: Challenging conundrums at the Starlight Bowl

Since its debut in 1935, the 3600-seat Starlight Bowl in San Diego’s renowned Balboa Park has been increasingly impacted by environmental noise, principally from aircraft landing at nearby Lindbergh Field. Traditionally, performers would temporarily “freeze” on cue from the director as a jet approached, then resume as though nothing had happened. Although amusing initially, audiences soon were just annoyed. MCH was retained to identify and rank prospective mitigation measures as the principal tenant was losing audience. In addition to collecting the usual ambient and fly-by noise level data, MCH examined the efficacy of partial and full enclosure options, and associated implications on audio system planning and operation. Ultimately, the myriad of acoustical/audio noise-mitigating options developed could not be reconciled with the historic venue’s name, as the visual impact alone, of large jets flying within 600 ft would forever be up-staging any on-stage performance. We will report on our process, observ...