Music

Designers use algorithm to build first "acoustically perfect" concert hall

by Luke Ottenhof

Photo by Iwan Baan.

Germans take their engineering pretty seriously – they literally have engineers making sure their cars sound good. So naturally they’d be the ones to construct an entire concert hall aimed at being the first ever acoustically perfect venue on earth. Sound studies experts, eat your hearts out.

Elbphilharmonie, the dubious, $843 million concert hall in Hamburg, Germany, was designed by Swiss architects (two words that, when combined, clearly denote unmatched superiority just based on how they sound to North American ears). They worked with renowned acoustician Yasuhisa Toyota and One to One studio founder Benjamin Koren to design the space.

10,000 uniquely engineered panels line the walls of the hall, with the intention of creating perfectly balanced sound in every pocket of the building. An algorithm that Koren created developed shapes for the panels, which are pocketed with divots that absorb and disperse sound waves for optimal reverb throughout the hall.

As the field of sound studies develops, so too does the possibility of designing more and more acoustically sound (HA!) structures. Plus, besides being a supposedly flawless sonic environment, it also kinda looks like an alternate gathering spot for the Galactic Senate. Check out more photos of the building via Wired here.

[H/T Consequence Of Sound]