Historical Acoustics: Relationships between People and Sound over Time

236 Pages·2020·7.442 MB·English

by  Francesco Aletta (editor), Jian Kang (editor)

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Historical Acoustics
Relationships between People
and Sound over Time
Edited by
Francesco Aletta and Jian Kang
Printed Edition of the Special Issue Published in Acoustics
www.mdpi.com/journal/acoustics
Historical Acoustics

Historical Acoustics
Relationships between People and Sound
over Time
SpecialIssueEditors
FrancescoAletta
JianKang
MDPI•Basel•Beijing•Wuhan•Barcelona•Belgrade•Manchester•Tokyo•Cluj•Tianjin
Special Issue Editors
Francesco Aletta JianKang
University College London UniversityCollegeLondon
UK UK
EditorialOffice
MDPI
St.Alban-Anlage66
4052Basel,Switzerland
This is a reprint of articles from the Special Issue published online in the open access journal
Acoustics(ISSN2624-599X)(availableat:https://www.mdpi.com/journal/acoustics/special_issues/
historical_acoustics).
Forcitationpurposes,citeeacharticleindependentlyasindicatedonthearticlepageonlineandas
indicatedbelow:
LastName, A.A.; LastName, B.B.; LastName, C.C.ArticleTitle. JournalNameYear, ArticleNumber,
PageRange.
ISBN978-3-03928-526-6(Pbk)
ISBN978-3-03928-527-3(PDF)
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(cid:2)c 2020bytheauthors. ArticlesinthisbookareOpenAccessanddistributedundertheCreative
Commons Attribution (CC BY) license, which allows users to download, copy and build upon
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Contents
AbouttheSpecialIssueEditors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
FrancescoAlettaandJianKang
HistoricalAcoustics:RelationshipsbetweenPeopleandSoundoverTime
Reprintedfrom:Acoustics2020,2,128–130,doi:10.3390/acoustics2010009 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Zu¨hreSu¨ Gu¨l
AcousticalImpactofArchitectonicsandMaterialFeaturesintheLifespanofTwoMonumental
SacredStructures
Reprintedfrom:Acoustics2019,1,493–516,doi:10.3390/acoustics1030028 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
AliciaAlonso,RafaelSuárezandJuanJ.Sendra
TheAcousticsoftheChoirinSpanishCathedrals
Reprintedfrom:Acoustics2019,1,35–46,doi:10.3390/acoustics1010004 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
ZoranaĐorđevic´,DraganNovkovic´andUrosˇAndric´
ArchaeoacousticExaminationofLazaricaChurch
Reprintedfrom:Acoustics2019,1,423–438,doi:10.3390/acoustics1020024 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
LidiaÁlvarez-Morales,MarianaLopezandÁngelÁlvarez-Corbacho
TheAcousticEnvironmentofYorkMinster’sChapterHouse
Reprintedfrom:Acoustics2020,2,13–36,doi:10.3390/acoustics2010003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
RupertTill
SoundArchaeology:AStudyoftheAcousticsofThreeWorldHeritageSites,SpanishPrehistoric
PaintedCaves,Stonehenge,andPaphosTheatre
Reprintedfrom:Acoustics2019,1,661–692,doi:10.3390/acoustics1030039 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
NikosBarkas
TheContributionoftheStageDesigntotheAcousticsofAncientGreekTheatres
Reprintedfrom:Acoustics2019,1,337–353,doi:10.3390/acoustics1010018 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
BraxtonBoren
AcousticSimulationofJuliusCaesar’sBattlefieldSpeeches
Reprintedfrom:Acoustics2019,1,3–13,doi:10.3390/acoustics1010002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
DavidE.WittandKristyE.Primeau
PerformanceSpace,PoliticalTheater,andAudibilityinDowntownChaco
Reprintedfrom:Acoustics2019,1,78–91,doi:10.3390/acoustics1010007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
DarioD’OrazioandSofiaNannini
TowardsItalianOperaHouses:AReviewofAcousticDesigninPre-SabineScholars
Reprintedfrom:Acoustics2019,1,252–280,doi:10.3390/acoustics1010015 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
DarioD’Orazio,AnnaRovigattiandMassimoGarai
TheProsceniumofOperaHousesasaDisappearedIntangibleHeritage:AVirtual
Reconstructionofthe1840sOriginalDesignoftheAlighieriTheatreinRavenna
Reprintedfrom:Acoustics2019,1,694–710,doi:10.3390/acoustics1030041 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
PamelaJordan
HistoricApproachestoSonicEncounterattheBerlinWallMemorial
Reprintedfrom:Acoustics2019,1,517–537,doi:10.3390/acoustics1030029 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
v

About the Special Issue Editors
Francesco Aletta, AFHEA, is a Research Associate at the Institute for Environmental Design and
Engineering,TheBartlett,UniversityCollegeLondonfrom2018. HewasaPost-DoctoralResearch
Fellow at the Department of Information Technology of Ghent University from 2016 to 2018, and
Research Associate at the School of Architecture of the University of Sheffield, working on the
soundscapesofbothindoorandoutdoorspaces. HehasbeenVisitingLectureratBirminghamCity
UniversityandVisitingProfessoratboththePolytechnicInstituteofTurinandtheUniversityofRoma
Tre.Hisworkonsoundscapedescriptorsandpredictivemodelshasinformedpolicydocumentsand
internationalstandards. HeistheSecretaryoftheTechnicalCommitteeforNoiseoftheEuropean
Acoustics Association. He serves on the Editorial Board of several peer-reviewed international
journalsinthefieldsofbuildingandenvironmentalacoustics,environmentalpsychology,andurban
studies.FrancescoAlettahasworkedinsoundscapestudiesfor10years,authoring70+publications.
He is the recipient of several research awards and grants for research equipment. He serves as
reviewer for 50+ journals and works as referee for research projects for the Italian Ministry for
ResearchandUniversity.
Jian Kang, Professor, FREng, FIOA, FASA, FIIAV, CEng, holds Chair in Acoustics at the Institute
for Environmental Design and Engineering, The Bartlett, University College London, from 2018.
He has been Professor of Acoustics (now Visiting Professor) at the School of Architecture of the
University of Sheffield since 2003, and previously worked at the University of Cambridge, the
FraunhoferInstituteofBuildingPhysicsinGermany,andTsinghuaUniversityinChina. Hechairs
the Technical Committee for Noise of the European Acoustics Association, and EU COST Action
onSoundscapeofEuropeanCitiesandLandscapes. HewasawardedtheIOATyndallMedal2008,
thePeterLordAward2014, theNASLifetimeAchievementAward2014, andCIBSENapierShaw
BronzeMedal2013. HeisFellowoftheRoyalAcademyofEngineering. JianKanghasworkedin
environmentalandarchitecturalacousticsfor30+years,with70+researchprojects,800+publications,
90+ engineering/consultancy projects, and 20+ patents. His work on acoustic theories, design
guidance,andproductshasbroughtaboutmajorimprovementstothenoisecontrolinunderground
stations/tunnelsandsoundscapedesigninurbanareas.HeisarecipientoftheprestigiousAdvanced
ERCGrantAward,andcurrentlyworkinginternationallyondevelopingSoundscapeIndices.
vii

acoustics
Editorial
Historical Acoustics: Relationships between People
and Sound over Time
FrancescoAletta* andJianKang*
UCLInstituteforEnvironmentalDesignandEngineering,TheBartlett,UniversityCollegeLondon(UCL),
CentralHouse,14UpperWoburnPlace,WC1H0NNLondon,UK
* Correspondence:[email protected](F.A.);[email protected](J.K.);Tel.:[phone](J.K.)
Received:18February2020;Accepted:20February2020;Published:23February2020
TheSpecialIssue“HistoricalAcoustics:RelationshipsbetweenPeopleandSoundoverTime”wasthe
inauguralcollectionoftherecentlyestablishedjournal“Acoustics(MDPI)”,soitfeltappropriateto
giveitafocustohistory,placesandeventsofhistoricalrelevance,seekingtoexploretheoriginsof
acoustics,andexaminingtherelationshipsthathaveevolvedoverthecenturiesbetweenpeopleand
auditoryphenomena.Soundshave,indeed,accompaniedhumancivilizationssincethebeginningof
time,helpingthemtomakesenseoftheworldandtoshapetheircultures.Whiletheestablishmentof
“acoustics”asthescienceofthe“production,transmissionandeffectsofsound”inourcontemporary
understandingcouldbelocatedapproximatelytwo-hundredyearsago,scientificacousticalstudies
datebacktothe6thcenturyBCE,withtheancientGreekphilosophers,andweredevelopedlateronby
Romanarchitectsandengineers. Infact,theinteresthumancommunitieshaveexpressedtowards
acousticalphenomenagoesbackmuchfurtherthanthat,regardingwhichrecentresearchoutcomes
fromtheemergingfieldofarchaeoacoustics(investigatingtheauditoryandacousticenvironmentof
prehistoricsitesandmonuments)havebeenveryfruitful.Societiesandcultureshavebeenmoreor
lessawareoftheimportanceof“sound”andthescienceunderpinningit,andacousticshavealways
playedacentralroleforourlivesandevolution.
Submissionswereinvitedforresearchdealingwith,forinstance,acousticcharacterizationof
prehistoricalandhistoricalspacesandbuildings,acousticsofworshipspaces(e.g.,temples,mosques,
churches,etc.)andancienttheatres,auralizationofsoundscapesofthepast,soundscapeofheritage
sitesandsoundasculturalheritage, andliteraturereviewsaboutacoustictreaties. Considering
therelativelybroadspectrumthatanarbitrarydefinitionsuchas“historicalacoustics”couldcover,
thecontributionsgatheredinthisSpecialIssueseemtoclusteraroundafewmainthemes.
Theacousticsofhistoricalworshipbuildingswasathemecommontoseveralcontributions.Sü
Gül[1]investigatedtheacousticenvironmentsoftheHagiaSophiaandtheSüleymaniyemosqueby
carryingoutmeasurementsofroomacousticsparametersandcomparingtheresultswithprevious
measurement datasets retrieved from the literature. The work included acoustical simulations
to compare unoccupied and occupied conditions and to inform the discussion of the original
materials.OthercontributionsrelatedtothethemeofworshipspacesdealtwithChristianchurches.
Alonsoetal.[2]analysedtheacousticevolutionofthechoirsofseveralSpanishcathedralsbymeans
ofbothon-sitemeasurementsandsimulationmodels,whichconfirmedthatroomacousticsconditions
typicallyprovidesuitableintelligibilityofsungtext. Đorđevic´etal.[3]studiedthesoundfieldof
theOrthodoxmedievalchurchofLazarica(Serbia);also,inthiscase,roomacousticsmeasurements
were used to calibrate a computer model and perform an acoustic simulation of the church to
investigatetheeffectsofthespaceoccupancy,thecentraldomeandthepresenceoftheiconostasis
onanumberofreverberation-andspeech-relatedparameters.Álvarez-Moralesetal.[4]studiedthe
GothicYorkMinstercathedral;theauthorsusedmeasuredandsimulatedroomimpulseresponses
tobetterunderstandhowitsarchitecturalfeaturescontributetoitshighlyreverberantacousticfield
Acoustics2020,2,128–130;doi:10.3390/acoustics2010009 1 www.mdpi.com/journal/acoustics