Video

Thank you for your wonderfully clear and easily understood explanation. You are a treasure..

Please reserve for March 24

There may be an additional element in comparing old halls to new. The great Decca recording engineer Kenneth Wilkinson has written that the use of just brick, wood and old horsehair plaster contributes a lot to the great acoustics of old halls, whereas in modern halls made of concrete and modern plaster and wood, good acoustics are hard to achieve. Hence Decca (whose recording style includes much more of the acoustic signature of the hall than most other labels) extensively used Kingsway London, Sofiensaal and Musikverein in Vienna, Concertgebouw, and Walthamstow and Watford in London, Snape Maltings etc. Wilkinson never recorded in modern concrete halls unless unavoidable. Sadly, Kingway and Sofiensaal which had probably the greatest recording acoustics in the world are gone. I’ve been in some old brick wood and horsehair plaster halls with quite steep rakes and large balconies and some fanning that have great, visceral acoustics, so the materials have a significant impact. And the Berlin Philharmonie is the only concrete modern hall I’ve heard that has reasonable acoustics, although it isn’t great compared to old halls. Modern computerised design modelling offers a lot of new possibilities though. The Sydney Opera House Concert Hall was poor for its first 50 years (ok for pianissimo, but fortissimo was confused and incoherent and lacking punch) but the recent renovations by German engineers have completely transformed it. Interestingly, they lowered the stage and tiered it, and added more reflective dimpled wooden walls and height adjustable wooden reflective panels in the large space above the orchestra. It’s now probably as good as a large 3000 seater modern hall can be, with great sight lines right to the back of the orchestra, as well as fine sound. The smaller size of some older halls also contributes to differences.

I've been to halls with flat or relatively flat floors. Hate them. I want to SEE the symphony as well as hear it. So far I love the Disney hall in Los Angeles. But only the hall itself. Not the rest of the building. The rest of it is the worst important architecture I've ever experienced.

Great talk!

Acoustic properties of a room tend to be detectable in recordings that use quality equipment, of course. It's surprising when producers of various concerts made available for public listening aren't more conscious of that fact.

The best sound i ever whisnessed was in: Theater Heerlen in the room "LImburgzaal" I had goosebumbs from the live power

Amsterdam, Vienna, Boston, Dallas all have these qualities.

Well , , , having a good conductor is advised. Instead of having sections of instruments, (that are numerous), perhaps could be better distributed amongst the entire orchestra seating. And having good disk jockeys in radio stations would help out so that the audience could already be thinking 'music' as they enter the hall. Sure would be nice for there to be sonatas, trios, quartets, etc., octets ALREADY performing AS the doors open so that the audience can know that they're in a different environment (other than the noisy world outside) as they take their seats . . . only to cease their performance when 'the evening's performance' is called to order by the 1st chair . . . and then the "tap, tap, tap of the conductor's baton" on the stand holding the "evening's score".

So, a tube amp over a transistor amp?

What software was used for the lateral reflections and shadowing at 14:55?

i would love to see the new model proposal for the ideal concert hall! thank you for the video, it is amazing!

Thanks for helping me with my set up!

Thanks Jason!

Great tips!

Marshall? What about vintage Fender?

I would do anything this guy says. GENIUS