Rubidoux High School

In particular, the school needed a consulting team with solid experience in variable acoustics systems, as they wanted to account for the various uses of the concert hall, including performances by choirs, bands, and orchestras. Absorption needed to be retracted for the higher reverberation times required for orchestra performances and deployed — either wholely or in part — for other music forms such as bands, which benefit from lower reverberation times.

Our experienced team of acoustics experts:

• Considered the volume, shaping, and proportions of the stage and auditorium when recommending types and locations of finish materials.
• Worked closely with the architectural team to achieve good architectural-acoustical results.

Our team employed custom-designed variable acoustical treatments — absorptive materials moved on motors via a simple control panel (image 2) — including:

• Retractable drapery at the catwalk level and across the rear wall (image 3).
• Acoustical banners on side walls deployed from an ‘acoustical shelf’ (image 4).
• Hinged panels on the stage that can be set to either absorptive or acoustically diffusive mode depending on the performance type (image 5).

In terms of sound isolation and building systems sound and vibration control, our acoutics experts:

• Measured environmental noise levels due to exterior noise sources and provided acoustical recommendations for the construction of the building envelope.
• Recommended the interior construction systems necessary to provide adequate sound isolation and advised on the detailing required to make the recommended construction systems perform well acoustically.
• Recommended acoustical criteria for noise generated by HVAC systems and provided recommendations for noise and vibration control for HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and elevator systems.

Our final testing post-construction demonstrated that the hall’s acoustical aspirations were met, with a superior level of sound quality rarely found in a high school facility. As well, the building could easily be transformed from a reverberant orchestral hall environment to a condition highly suitable for band, percussion, and amplified instruments and voices.

Not only does Rubidoux High School’s new concert space sound great, it has award-winning visual aesthetics to match. To date, it has won the Leroy F. Greene Design & Planning Award of Honor, which recognizes excellence in school facilities design, as well as the Honor Award from the Concrete Masonry Association of California and Nevada.