Page 35 - Winter 2011

Fig. 3. 22 May 1929 letter from Associated Architects of Los Angeles.
This was the start of Knudsen’s association with the Bowl, which continued for almost fifty years, during which time he served as consultant, member, and President of the Hollywood Bowl Association. His final commission with the Bowl was in 1972.
One very interesting item about the documents, espe- cially some of the letters, is that Dr. Knudsen appears to have been an inveterate “noodler”—that is, he used any paper on hand to sketch or make notes as needed. On one from the Hollywood Bowl Association, dated 22 June 1929 in which they invite him to visit, (the latest shell renovation was just about done), there is a rough ray diagram and transverse sec- tion sketch covering the letterhead. (See Fig. 2)
On the back of another letter, from 22 May 1929, which accompanied a $25.00 check for his services in regards to the 1929 shell project, he has calculated the volume of the earth in cubic feet; there is a note “Transmission Thru Wall and Floor Structures, Bur Stds. Jour. Res. Mar, 1929 RFP #48 Chrysler + Snyder"; a notation “OX 5601 Rodeo Drive at Santa Monica Kennedy Pritchard” with a volume and an absorption calculation; a notation for an “Open Buy” for two stocks; and another, reading, “Pardoes Monday 7:00 Santa Monica.” (See Figs. 3, 4)
What does this tell us about him? He was busy, interest- ed in many things, and was relentless.
Although venues for classical music were important to Dr. Knudsen, popular music venues were also part of his
portfolio. A 25 September 1958 letter from Harry James includes a “note to tell you how magnificent the acoustics are here in the Flamingo lounge...thanks to you, acoustically the lounge is one of the finest rooms that we’ve ever played in.”
Knudsen’s work on spaces for performance includes the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion at the Music Center–Performance Arts Center of Los Angeles County, the Mormon Tabernacle, Grady Gammage Auditorium, the Coconut Grove in the (now demolished) Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, the Seattle Opera House, the War Memorial Opera House in San Francisco, the Carmel Bach Festival Shell, and more than four score more.
There were also some acoustical consulting projects on facilities that are not usually considered performance spaces. These include the Los Angeles Criminal Courts building, various and sundry academic buildings for UCLA, University of Southern California (USC), UC Berkeley, UC Santa Cruz, the University of Montana, Akron University, and many sacred worship spaces.
Motion pictures
Talking motion pictures had their start in 1927 and thereafter all the studios were building new sound stages or upgrading their silent stages for the production of “talkies.” Dr. Knudsen helped many of the studios with their sound stages as well as the cinemas, which were owned by the stu- dios at the time. Among his clients, mainly during the period
Knudsen’s Attic 31