Acoustic alchemy turns leaden surfaces into musical gold

The history and stories to be found in heritage buildings have long provided inspiration for musicians and performers alike. However, modern standards of acoustics and technical systems demand that these spaces are upgraded. Such was the case at St Peter’s.

In the first phase of the project Sound Space Design (SSD) led a collaborative process to test the feasibility of converting the church to a permanent rehearsal venue with space to accommodate the largest ensembles of over 100 musicians and to include an audio monitoring room, acoustically isolated from the main space for professional quality recording.

SSD worked with The Hallé on a number of preliminary uses to test various options for the acoustics and orchestra layouts. One project was particularly exciting, for a television recording for BBC 4’s documentary programme Symphony (pictured). The Hallé wanted to improve the clarity of sound, both for the orchestra ensemble playing and for the quality of the recording. The solution was to provide sound reflecting surfaces close to the orchestra, below the high nave ceiling of the church, and to reduce the reverberation of the space to an appropriate level.

Any acoustics treatment had to be non-invasive, with no material effect on the building fabric, so SSD and Anne Minors Performance Consultants (AMPC) designed and built a series of sound reflecting ‘SoundSails’. Constructed of specially chosen and tested fabric, the SoundSails went on to become a key part of the acoustic solution and architectural statement for St Peter’s. SSD guided the architects to use the existing qualities of the church for acoustical benefit, for instance the retention of the raw brickwork inside to provide acoustical warmth.

With a city centre location and an increasing number of apartment buildings springing up around the site, noise intrusion was a concern. Secondary glazing was installed, along with acoustically treated passive ventilation ducts. Together those elements silence the sound of traffic from outside so that every delicate note is heard clearly with no disruptions.

Lots more interesting projects at www.soundspacedesign.co.uk & www.ampcstudio.com