"Sacred Sound and the Reflective Cornice" © BREPOLS PUBLISHERS THIS DOCUMENT MAY BE PRINTED FOR PRIVATE USE ONLY. IT MAY NOT BE DISTRIBUTED WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE PUBLISHER (original) (raw)
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Byzantine Churches in Albania: How Geometry and Architectural Composition Influence the Acoustics
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The Byzantine churches built between the 7th and the 15th centuries represent an architectural typology that has been developed along with other architectural styles. The evolution of the interior organization, to be composed of only a single nave for the oldest architecture and then developed with additional lateral naves, is one of the multiple aspects that characterizes this building type, studied mainly from an architectural perspective. The variety of roof morphology, being flat, double slope, vaulted or domed, contributes to determining the overall acoustics. This paper deals with the analysis of the acoustic characteristics related to five Byzantine churches located in Albania, specifically in Berat and Cete. A comparison of the impulse response (IR) measured inside each church was given by analyzing the most appropriate acoustic parameters and in line with ISO 3382. The acoustic surveys were undertaken with a minimal furniture and without any audience. The results highlight ...
Acoustic Vessels as an Expression of Medieval Music Tradition in Serbian Sacred Architecture
Muzikologija/Musicology 22, 2017
Archaeoacoustics is a multidisciplinary field of research focused on the history of the relatedness of the field of sound and architecture. The architectural history of Europe, from Antiquity to the modern period, is abundant in the findings of vessels, which are considered to have an acoustic purpose. This paper addresses these acoustic vessels embedded in the massive walls of sacred architecture in medieval Serbia (15 churches). We considered the wide context of current archaeoacoustic research, in order to argue that this practice can be regarded as an expression of a certain medieval musical tradition.
This paper offers a close reading of the passages in the Historia Ekkle-siastike kai Mystike Theoria, a liturgical commentary attributed to Germanos I, patriarch of Constantinople (d. 730), that pertain to the church building. The His-toria's interpretation is highly symbolic, steeped in scripture and dependent on earlier and contemporary theological thought. On occasion, the text sheds light on actual architectural developments, as in the case of the skeuophylakion. On the whole, however, the discussion of architecture is rather vague. I argue that the Historia is part of a long exegetical tradition on the liturgy that disregards the functional aspects of church buildings, a disconnect enabled by the adaptability of Byzantine liturgical rites.