Abstract
April 15, 2005 the new concert hall for symphonic music, Casa da Música in Porto, Portugal,
has been inaugurated. The architectural concept of a transparent shoebox-shaped hall in
combination with program requirements challenged the acoustics in many ways. By just
pressing a button the acoustics of the hall is changed from excellent for symphonic music to
adequate for amplified productions. All kind of technical provisions have been introduced in the
design: lighting bridges, movable canopy, acoustic curtains, a moving bridge etc. In fact we
believe a new type of multifunctional halls has been built. Will this be the future and, if so, what
are the consequences for the field of acoustics?
The main auditorium, with a capacity of 1250 seats, has a transparent vertically movable and
cantilever canopy. Canopy positions have been studied to optimize the support on the stage
with respect to the playing ensemble.
QRD diffusers have been applied to create a diffuse and equally distributed sound field.
Because of architectural issues the standard 734 diffusers have been modified. Instead of the 0-
deep well in the sequence 0–1–4–2–2–4–1, a 7–deep well is used. This modification proved to
have an impact on the acoustic performance of the diffusers, thus the acoustics of the hall.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | Proceedings of the 19th International Congress on Acoustics (ICA 2007), 2-7 September 2007, Madrid, Spain |
Editors | xx ICA Madrid 2007 |
Place of Publication | Madrid |
Publisher | ICA Madrid 2007 |
Publication status | Published - 2007 |
Event | conference; 19th International Congress on Acoustics Madrid (ICA Madrid 2007); 2007-09-02; 2007-09-07 - Duration: 2 Sep 2007 → 7 Sep 2007 |
Conference
Conference | conference; 19th International Congress on Acoustics Madrid (ICA Madrid 2007); 2007-09-02; 2007-09-07 |
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Period | 2/09/07 → 7/09/07 |
Other | 19th International Congress on Acoustics Madrid (ICA Madrid 2007) |