Sound exposure during outdoor music festivals

Area of Science:

• Audiology
• Environmental Health
• Public Health

Background:

• Concert and music festivals often involve high sound pressure levels, necessitating regulations to prevent hearing loss.
• While guidelines exist in many countries, data on actual sound dose received by festival attendees is limited.
• Norway has a national guideline for sound exposure at concerts and festivals, with local authorities responsible for enforcement.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare sound exposure levels at two Norwegian music festivals, one regulated and one unregulated.
• To assess compliance with the Norwegian sound exposure guideline and World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations.
• To determine if front-of-house sound measurements can predict participant sound exposure.

Main Methods:

• Noise dose meters were used to monitor the sound exposure of four participants at each of two Norwegian music festivals.
• Sound exposure data was collected during concert performances.
• Measurements were compared against the Norwegian guideline and WHO recommendations.

Main Results:

• The unregulated festival exhibited higher sound levels compared to the regulated festival.
• Sound levels at the unregulated festival exceeded both Norwegian national and WHO recommendations.
• Front-of-house sound measurements were found to be reliable predictors of participant sound exposure.

Conclusions:

• Unregulated music festivals can lead to sound exposure levels exceeding recommended limits, posing a risk to hearing health.
• The Norwegian guideline and WHO recommendations serve as important benchmarks for managing sound exposure at festivals.
• Front-of-house measurements offer a practical method for estimating and managing attendee sound dose, aiding regulatory compliance.