Sound demos

The CAHRISMA Project

Ørsted-DTU, Acoustic Technology participate in the CAHRISMA project (Conservation of the Acoustical Heritage by the Revival and Identification of the Sinan's Mosques Acoustics).

The CAHRISMA project is an European Commission Fifth Framework INCO – MED Programme. This programme is directed towards cooperation between EU-countries and the Mediterranean countries. One of five priorities within the programme is: 'Preserving and using cultural heritage'. CAHRISMA is one of six research projects running under this headline.

The main focus within the project is to innovate the concept of Hybrid Architectural Heritage being a new way of identification that covers acoustic as well as visual features, the idea being that for spaces having acoustic importance, the architectural heritage concept, considered in conservation and restoration projects, should be upgraded to cover acoustical as well as visual aspects.

The four project members from AT in Hagia Sophia in Istanbul 9 October 2000. From left; Jens Holger Rindel, Anders Christian Gade, Claus Lynge and Christoffer Weitze.

Our part in the project involves room acoustic measurements and simulations - the main objective being to be able to predict how the acoustics was and is and gets after restorations. We have made measurements in three Mosques and three Byzantine Churches, namely the Sokullu, Selimiye, Süleymaniye, Ss. Sergius and Bacchus, Saint Irene and Hagia Sophia.

Currently we (in particular Christoffer) are making geometrical models for room acoustics simulations with the Room Acoustic Program. Unlike the geometries we are used to model (concert hall, work rooms etc.), these rooms are dominated by curved surfaces (in particular domes) so this is a challenge in terms of building the models as well as obtaining reliable results.

We have added a few sound samples with some simulations from a Byzantine church and from a mosque to this homepage, see below.

Listen to in-situ recordings compared to simulated auralizations

First set of simulations involves the Süleymaniye mosque, Istanbul which was built 1551-57 by the architect Sinan. Its maximum height is around 48 metres, the volume approximately 100000 m³ and the reverberation time is around 8 seconds at 500 Hz.

Second set of simulations involves the Ss. Sergius and Bacchus church which was built in 527-36. Today its a mosque called Little Hagia Sophia. Its around 20 metres high, has a volume around 15000 m³ and a reverberation time around 5 seconds at 500 Hz.

Project partners and links to their CAHRISMA pages

	Yildiz Technical University, Turkey.
	UNIFE, Italy.
	INRETS, France.
	Technical University of Denmark (its here).
	University of Malta.
	University of Geneva MIRALab, Geneva, Switzerland
	EPFL-LIG, Lausanne, Switzerland

Miscellaneous collected links

http://www.byzantium1200.org/
http://www.princeton.edu/~asce/const_95/const.html
http://www.GreatBuildings.com/buildings/Hagia_Sophia.html