Acoustical performance of the grand hall of the ataturk cultural center

Abstract

Abstract This study considers the ways and to what extent the Grand Hall of the Ataturk Cultural Center in Istanbul, Turkey, fulfills the acoustical performance demands that are placed upon it. Turkey's cultural activities are most densely concentrated in Istanbul and this hall is crucial in that it meets the city 's needs for a venue capable of accommodating large-scale performances and their audiences. The Grand Hall is symmetrical around the centreline and has two balconies located above the main floor. The basic shape resembles the horse-shoe plan common to opera houses but the circularity that is typical of such plans is not apparent here. Room acoustical criteria are normally divided into three categories depending on whether they are derived from geometrical theory, statistical theory, or wave theory. In this study, the Grand Hall is considered in light of only the first two categories; the third was eschewed inasmuch as the dimensions and shape of the hall are such as to make such an analysis unnecessary. A review of the literature failed to turn up examples of halls of this type being subjected to such an analysis.