Figure 1: Ancient Theatre at Greece

In 20 BC, Romanian architects wrote about architectural acoustics. He compared sound waves to be similar to water waves but in a three-dimensional manner where, if a sound is disrupted because of obstructions, it will flow back or break off the waves. He described that the ascending seating in ancient roman theatres was to avoid disruption of sound. Also, copper pots would be placed on upper tiers so that sound quality is maintained. Later in the 1800s, Scientists like Galileo discovered all the laws of vibrating strings. Various experiments were conducted on speed and sound. Later, in the late 1600s Newton discovered the relationship for wave velocity.

4.2 History of Acoustics in Architecture

Architectural acoustics can be of a room or a building or any space in general. It can help with good speech communication in various spaces. Good acoustics can make a space more effective by making a comfortable area for the users. Acoustic discomfort can cause a lot of harm. Greeks: Ancient Greek and Roman architecture are known for open-air theatres. They located the audience as close as possible to the elevated stage by shaping the steeply banked seating area in a semi-circle which naturally resulted in reason-ably good hearing. Later the Romans built large slanting roofs above which proved to be efficient sound reflectors. The Greeks, perhaps due to their democratic form of government, built some of the earliest outdoor Figure 1: Ancient Theatre at Greece amphitheaters. The seating plan was in the shape of a segment of a circle, slightly more than 180◦, often on the side of a hill

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