Seeking Concert Hall Acoustics

Violin acoustics and concert hall acoustics are significantly different. Violins evolved three centuries ago, and since then every violin builder and owner has demanded an instrument that duplicates the physical properties and sound of that early period. Concert halls have evolved differently; architects have desired to make each a unique visual statement - certainly not a copy. Faced with this situation, acousticians have attempted to find a set of measurable characteristics that, if duplicated in halls of different appearances, will result in sounds that musicians and owners will find excellent, or at least satisfactory. This article recollects my efforts to isolate these characteristics - from the sequence of events that led to an understanding of how audiences in concert halls absorb sound, to finding acoustical measures needed for design and augmentation of concert hall acoustics.