C hapter 3 the Design Context
84
down to optimizing the hall for specific music types or using a
series of suboptimal solutions that allow a wider variety of music
to be played within it, albeit not in an optimized way. On a more
general level, this same broad problem of design optimization with
respect to various performance measures runs through most
complex design problems and is not an easy one to address. We
will return to this problem in Chapter 5.
These realizations make the overall design problem more acutely
difficult, and the problem of there being no single solution that
optimizes all performance needs necessarily requires that design
goals and objectives be clarified. For many settings, a preferred
aspiration might be to have a hall that works well for as many
musical venues as possible, albeit not necessarily ever optimized
for any one. Implications vis-à-vis specific design issues, such as
material choice, ensue. Choices must be made.
A further assumption made in the overall design scenario we initially presented is quite simply that the discussion immediately
assumed only natural acoustical music; no consideration was made
of electronic assists in either amplification of direct sound or in its
distribution through speakers located throughout the performance
setting—an unthinkable assumption to many current musicians
but natural to others. The impact on music of developments in
electronics needs no comment here; it is all around us. This impact
has been extended to concert halls. Why should the all-important
reverberation time depend solely on geometrical and material characteristics? In this day and age, the reverberation time can be electronically altered and controlled through a careful orchestration of
speakers and responsive manipulation and control systems. Many
music settings of this type no longer even have any internal shaping
designed to promote natural acoustics, and material implications
follow. These interesting developments pose even further challenges to the designer. Electronic advocates would argue that electronic assists offer improved performance in general, and surely
much current music is designed specifically to be played in “electronic” halls but would sound poor in even the best of the 19
th
century concert halls. Others would simply offer a pitying smile at
assertions that equivalent quality exists. These interesting matters
might not be solely the province of the architect and acoustical
engineer to determine, but their resolution surely has an impact on
the final nature of the building and the materials selected. Just as
surely, these designers can play a fundamental role in helping
the electronic vs. nonelectronic decision process by playing out
design implications and providing performance simulations. The
84
down to optimizing the hall for specific music types or using a
series of suboptimal solutions that allow a wider variety of music
to be played within it, albeit not in an optimized way. On a more
general level, this same broad problem of design optimization with
respect to various performance measures runs through most
complex design problems and is not an easy one to address. We
will return to this problem in Chapter 5.
These realizations make the overall design problem more acutely
difficult, and the problem of there being no single solution that
optimizes all performance needs necessarily requires that design
goals and objectives be clarified. For many settings, a preferred
aspiration might be to have a hall that works well for as many
musical venues as possible, albeit not necessarily ever optimized
for any one. Implications vis-à-vis specific design issues, such as
material choice, ensue. Choices must be made.
A further assumption made in the overall design scenario we initially presented is quite simply that the discussion immediately
assumed only natural acoustical music; no consideration was made
of electronic assists in either amplification of direct sound or in its
distribution through speakers located throughout the performance
setting—an unthinkable assumption to many current musicians
but natural to others. The impact on music of developments in
electronics needs no comment here; it is all around us. This impact
has been extended to concert halls. Why should the all-important
reverberation time depend solely on geometrical and material characteristics? In this day and age, the reverberation time can be electronically altered and controlled through a careful orchestration of
speakers and responsive manipulation and control systems. Many
music settings of this type no longer even have any internal shaping
designed to promote natural acoustics, and material implications
follow. These interesting developments pose even further challenges to the designer. Electronic advocates would argue that electronic assists offer improved performance in general, and surely
much current music is designed specifically to be played in “electronic” halls but would sound poor in even the best of the 19
th
century concert halls. Others would simply offer a pitying smile at
assertions that equivalent quality exists. These interesting matters
might not be solely the province of the architect and acoustical
engineer to determine, but their resolution surely has an impact on
the final nature of the building and the materials selected. Just as
surely, these designers can play a fundamental role in helping
the electronic vs. nonelectronic decision process by playing out
design implications and providing performance simulations. The