The Science Behind the Sound at the Gorge Amphitheatre
While the music of Washington artists resonates around the world, there may be no better place in the world to hear live music resonate than a remote outpost smack dab between Seattle and Spokane. Overlooking the Columbia River basin in George, Washington, the Gorge Amphitheatre continually gets recognition as one of the best outdoor music venues on the planet. Once a modest space, opened by Vince and Carol Bryan in 1986 to draw folks to their adjoining Champs de Brionne winery, it has since blossomed into a hot spot for superstar summer concerts and blowout weekend festivals. No venue comes close to matching the Gorge’s pristine natural beauty, and despite being a wide, open-air space, it’s consistently one of the best-sounding outdoor venues around. How is that even possible?
To get the lowdown on the venue’s sonic quirks, we talked to team members at Carlson Audio Systems, the Seattle audio equipment specialists who’ve worked the Gorge for shows ranging from Brandi Carlile and the Dave Matthews Band to the Watershed and Sasquatch! (#RIP) festivals.
Sound Mapping
Asymmetry
An aerial view of the Gorge makes it clear that the lawn at the top of the hill actually isn’t squared to the stage—the southeast lawn is farther from the stage than the southwest. This puts everything at odd angles and distances that the sound crew must compensate for by adding more speakers.
Dialed In
The technology in line array speakers has greatly advanced in the digital era. The sound teams can use software to map out hot spots and quiet spots, allowing them to test out design systems from the comfort of a Seattle office and then having only to fine-tune smaller specifics once at the Gorge.
The Speed of Sound
Because the Gorge is so vast, adjustments must be made to keep things sounding right farther from the stage. Carlson employs delay systems. Microphones measure specific testing tones to calculate what delay in the speed of sound is needed to use on additional speakers to sync with the stage action. The result is seamless.
On Site
20-Foot Ramp
One of the trickiest elements for sound engineering teams at the Gorge is its unique setup for loading in gear. The load-in area behind the stage is at a much lower elevation than the stage itself, so everything must be painstakingly hauled up a 20-foot ramp.
The Changeover
Artists have their own sound engineers. Carlson’s Jesse Turner says it’s a mark of pride when tweaks are minimal: “you hand over the keys to a PA to an engineer, if he spends an hour working on getting it to sound the way he wants it to versus if he spends 15 minutes.”
Controlled Noise
Image: laviddichterman/flickr CC
Festival Setup
For anyone who’s attended a festival at the Gorge with multiple stages, it’s always a marvel how little sound bleed there seems to be with various acts playing at the same time. According to Carlson director of personnel Morgan Hodge, the sheer elevation change from the main stage to the top of the hill protects the sound from clashing together—it almost blows over the top, like how wind might travel.
Isolation
It may seem overly obvious, but the remoteness of the Gorge has its sonic benefits. There’s basically no nearby noise pollution, and the openness of the space prevents any harsh slapback echo effects. Plus, sound engineers can crank up the volume because there’s nobody around to complain. “You can be pretty much as loud as you want to be,” says Turner.
