Influence of sound reinforcement systems on the acoustical quality of catholic churches

• Grant number: 12/11570-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: September 01, 2012
• End date: February 28, 2014
• Field of knowledge: Applied Social Sciences - Architecture and Town Planning - Architecture and Urbanism Technology
• Principal Investigator: Stelamaris Rolla Bertoli
• Grantee: Iara Batista da Cunha
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia Civil, Arquitetura e Urbanismo (FEC). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

In the liturgical practices of Catholic Church, speech and music are the main activities, thus the acoustics of churches is essential. Sound reinforcement systems (SRS) are used as support to solve some common problems in these spaces, as the difficulty of human speech reach at large distances, or the interference of urban noises in the room. However, regarding worship acoustics, few researches consider the use of SRS. The main purpose of this research is to investigate the influence that these sound systems have on the sound field of these rooms. For this, it will be carried out measurements of the acoustic objective parameters reverberation time (RT), early decay time (EDT), clarity (C80) and definition (D50), taken in octave bands between 63 Hz and 4 kHz, and speech transmission index (STI), in three catholic churches of different volumes, located in Campinas/SP. The measurements will be taken by the impulse response method using Dirac Room Acoustics software, by Bruel&Kjaer, considering the SRS on. The results will be compared to existing data of these parameters measured in the same churches, with the SRS off. It is expected to identify some favorable or unfavorable aspects about the use of these systems in the evaluated churches, intended to alert professionals about their role in these environments sound perception.

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

CUNHA, Iara Batista da. Influence of sound reinforcement systems on the acoustical quality of catholic churches. 2014. Master's Dissertation - Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Faculdade de Engenharia Civil, Arquitetura e Urbanismo Campinas, SP.