A Comparative Study of Four Concert Halls in Istanbul: Correlation of Subjective Evaluation with Objective Acoustic Parameters

Abstract

In the studies of room acoustics, the parameters that are taken into consideration while evaluating the acoustic performance of a hall are examined in two sections: objective acoustic parameters which can be measured and calculated and, subjective acoustic parameters which define the impacts of a hall's acoustical qualities over the audiences. During the first half of the century, the reverberation time was considered to be the most important objective acoustic parameter which defined the acoustic quality of a hall. But, the later studies indicated that this parameter wasn't sufficient alone to define a subjective evaluation. Consequently, studies have been made to define the subjective influence on people from the acoustic performance of a hall. In this study, it has been attempted to define the statistical correlation between the subjective evaluation of the acoustic characteristics of the four concert halls, which was done by the members of orchestra together with the ordinary concert-goers, and their objective acoustic parameters are explained. The detailed objective acoustic parameters are presented for measurements in four concert halls in Istanbul. The halls are used by many different performances, from concerts to ballet or opera. The measured octave band quantities are RT, EDT, G,C80 and D50.