Carl Rosenberg

Themes of thoughts and thoughtfulness

In preparing and compiling the background for the issue of Acoustics Today on Leo Beranek to commemorate his 100th birthday, there were some consistent themes of Leo’s work and contribution to colleagues and scholars with whom he worked. This was particularly evident in the many “side-bars” solicited from over three dozen friends and colleagues. The authors discuss these patterns and share insights on the manner in which Leo was most influential. There will be opportunities for audience participants to share their thoughts and birthday greetings with Leo.

Chris Jaffe: Youthful golden years

From 2009 until his demise—roughly 50 years after his entree into the acoustics field—Chris Jaffe was a valued partner in the Acentech Studio A team. We will share the manner in which his mentorship and guidance informed us and our profession. His self-deprecating humor could not disguise his intense knowledge, broad experience, willingness to help mentor junior staff, and engagement in new endeavors. He imbued his acoustics consulting “golden years” with youthful vigor, and he accomplished much: he finished his book, consulted on projects, shared back stories, enlivened our parties, introduced us to his friends and his manner of collaborating with them, and made an indelible imprint on both the content and style of our performing arts practice. Our presentation will share these experiences as life lessons for success and respect in our profession.

Growth in acoustics consulting at Bolt, Beranek and Newman with Ron and Warren.

Acoustics consulting was a growing field in technology support to the architectural world in the second half of the 20th century, spearheaded by Bolt Beranek and Newman and other new firms. As part of this growth, BBN embarked on a program of establishing branch offices around the country. Ron McKay and Warren Blazier were outstanding technical leaders in their respective fields and also vanguards of these developments, although both found fulfillment later in their careers away from BBN. This paper shares the growth and evolution of the profession through these two paragons of consulting leadership, and acknowledges the profound contributions of their early years to the reputation of the acoustics consulting world.

Following hallowed footsteps and new paths.

Robert Bradford Newman taught architectural acoustics for over 30 years at Harvard and M.I.T. and was a frequent lecturer at numerous other schools. He left an enduring legacy of engaging pedagogy, professionalism, diligence, and wit. He did this in a manner that is remembered still today by former students. This paper acknowledges ways that the legacy has been fostered in on‐going courses at M.I.T. (by the author who succeeded Newman at M.I.T.) and elsewhere. A broader view is also addressed with regard to the relationship of architectural acoustics education to developments in building technologies, new trends in engaging students in acoustics, and possible realignment of the process of making architects aware of their professional responsibilities to the aural environment.

Auditorium acoustics newsletters, edited by Russell Johnson.

From January 1968 to May 1970, Russell Johnson was the principal editor of an internal newsletter at BBN called Auditorium Acoustics. Review of the 43 extant issues presents an interesting perspective on topics of concern and interest to Johnson at that time and reflects on the public attitudes toward acoustics and concert hall design. This paper shares some of those perspectives.

Auralization as a tool for acoustical design of single family residences.

Acoustical requirements play an increasing role in residential building design. In an effort to understand these changes USG Corp., a manufacturer of building materials and developer of acoustical solutions for residential and commercial markets, engaged Acentech Inc. to develop aural demonstrations, or auralizations, of common acoustical issues in single family residences. Using computer modeling and audio processing techniques, a number of convincingly realistic simulations of familiar residential scenarios were developed. These auralizations allowed USG to better understand acoustical issues and recommend appropriate products and systems. This paper shares the experience of this project.

Programming remediation to a newly complete performing arts center

A large new performing arts building at a university included an 800‐seat recital hall, proscenium theater, black box theater, large instrumental rehearsal room, choral rehearsal room, and practice rooms. It was designed with attention to acoustics concerns throughout, but the final results left the owner with a myriad of problems. These problems included poor hearing conditions in the large performance space, intrusion of exterior environmental noise, excessive mechanical system noise and vibration, and inexplicable lack of separation between rehearsal rooms that were separated by an STC 70+ wall. The authors parsed through the complaints and field conditions to extract a range of reasons for the problems. The paper presents the analysis techniques for these challenges and shows options that were developed for practical solutions.

Modern library design—architectural directions

The architectural practice of Moshe Safdie and Associates in Boston has been challenged by numerous clients recently to design major public libraries. The clients have stated an interest in making the library a major civic focal point and a place for community activities and identity. Moshe Safdie has responded to these challenges in Philadelphia, Vancouver, and Salt Lake City by designing buildings that encourage community interaction with large light‐filled gathering spaces to support public congregating venues, shops and eateries, music recitals, meetings, electronic technologies, and even book club gatherings. This presentation will discuss the architectural context of contemporary library design. As a coda to the presentation, there will be a discussion about the acoustical implications of these new directions in civic library design.

The role of sound masking treatment in the value engineering of office designs

In the design and planning of office spaces, sound masking systems are often considered optional because of an owner/occupier requirement due to an understanding that can create a more pleasing and private acoustic environment or are required to provide adequate speech privacy. Installations are rarely considered on the basis of project value engineering or return on investment. In this paper, the authors argue that sound masking systems should in fact be considered as another important cost component of the office design, and evaluated along with ceiling tile, private office wall construction and workstation design for their mutual impact on the project budget, as well as on their contribution to acoustical performance. The authors provide typical project data to demonstrate masking systems typically result in overall project cost savings.

Historical preservation of acoustics at Spelman College, Atlanta

In 1926, Spelman College in Atlanta dedicated its new Sisters Chapel, named after Laura Spelman Rockefeller and Lucy Maria Spelman, mother and aunt of John D. Rockefeller, Jr., the major donor. The Chapel has around 1000 seats and serves as a major venue for a myriad of programs, ceremonies, concerts, and student activities. In 2003, architects Surber Barber Choate and Hertlein were commissioned to renovate and rehabilitate the chapel with air‐conditioning, new toilet facilities, new roof, enlarged balcony, and new sound system. The neo‐classic pseudo Georgian basilica has a barrel vault running the length of the room. Sometime in the past, probably around 1950, the chapel ceiling was covered with a sound absorbing acoustic tile, presumably to rectify a focusing problem from the curved ceiling. With computer modeling, Acentech reconstructed the apparent acoustical problems and used this information to guide a renovation. The goal was to recapture the visual aspects of the original design, enhance the reve...