Sound mitigation expert hired to use "smart sound" at SnowGlobe

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Chad Donnelly, the CEO of the SnowGlobe Music Festival, was in South Lake Tahoe last week to show his new sound mitigation expert the venue at the Community Playfields on Al Tahoe Blvd. He also met with Mayor Pro Tem Tom Davis and three members of the No Globe Alliance, a citizen-formed group against the noise generated by the three-day outdoor festival, and Al Frangione of Lake Tahoe Community College.

Donnelly and the No Globe group have had conversations about the mitigation of noise since the 2017 event, and now the meeting. The group has been outspoken about the noise during South Lake Tahoe City Council and other public meetings, gathering support from nearby neighborhoods. Scott Ramirez, John Spinola, Rich Fisher of No Globe joined Davis, Donnelly and Marcus Ross, owner of Crestfactor in Las Vegas, in the September 9 tour of the event venue.

"We'll look for mechanical solutions before electrical ones," said Ross. "We'll take energy away from where you don't want it to go. We'll point the energy in the right direction."

Ross will head back to Las Vegas with measurements and photos and look for the best deployment of his plan.

"It will be a paradigm shift with smart sound, not just loud sound," said Ross.

Ross and a team were in Boston in August, alleviating sound in neighborhoods surrounding Boston Calling, a three-day festival that featured Eminem, The Killers, Jack White, Queens of the Stone Age, Paramore, and St. Vincent. What is rated as one of the top-ten music festivals in the country, almost didn’t happen this year after numerous complaints from Cambridge residents.

"They heard an immediate drop in sound," Ross said of the neighbors. He said the complaint line received 50 percent fewer calls this year, and some of those were actually compliments on the improvements on sound.

Sound will be pointed at the concert goers at the 200,000 square foot venue so they will get maximized sound while surrounding neighborhoods will get minimized sound. The "beam steering" using directivity control is the same type of technology used in the new Lisa Maloff University Center classrooms where the cameras follow the teacher 's voice.

The solution won't matter if there is snow or lack of snow during the December 29-31 concert, issues over past events. Ross said the system will work even better with snow on the ground, but it won't be bad if there is none.

Donnelly said he is committed to making less of an impact on neighborhoods and is investing "six figures" on Ross and the sound mitigation.

Ross will be on site during SnowGlobe with new monitoring devices that will allow him to address any issues immediately.

"SnowGlobe has acted above and beyond," said Ramirez after their meeting. He blames the City and TRPA for not following their defined noise measurement protocols in allowing the situation to get as far as it has.

SnowGlobe is in the final year of their current contract. Early bird and advanced VIP tickets are sold out for this year's festival, leaving some advanced general admission tickets still available (http://snowglobemusicfestival.com/).