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Arup Acoustics Amazes at Gala Opening of Oslo Opera House
When journalists and assembled VIPs visited Norway's stunning new Operaen - the Oslo Opera House - for its inaugural gala performance on 12 April, they were prepared to be impressed. They weren't disappointed, either with the stunning architecture or the acoustics. The opera house, which seats 1,450, is the new home of Den Norske Opera, the national opera company of Norway. In addition to the main space - the Store Sal - the building contains a second, flexible format auditorium, the Lille Sal, plus rehearsal, production and administrative facilities befitting of a major international opera company.
A comprehensive brief for the opera house facilities written by Statsbygg, the Norwegian State Property Service, called for "excellent acoustics for traditional proscenium-type grand opera", and the tender for acoustic design was won by BrekkeStrandArup (BSA) - a joint venture between international auditorium acoustic design company Arup Acoustics and local consultancy Brekke Strand Akustikk. BSA combines local knowledge and presence with international design expertise.
The House's Oslo-based architect, Snøhetta, worked closely with BSA to develop the room form and finishes, integrating the functional, aesthetic and acoustic requirements in a homogenous and harmonious manner. But the balance between words and music is critical in opera, and the careful balance between clarity of the sung words and reverberance has dominated opera house design.
Rob Harris, director of Arup's Performing Arts Sector says: "Many old (Italian) opera houses have short reverberation times of about a second, making the words sound clear but the orchestra dry; modern houses tend to have longer reverberation times, perhaps two seconds, producing a more concert-like orchestral sound. The brief in Oslo followed this trend, so the challenge for BrekkeStrandArup was to provide the right balance between the two.
"We carried out acoustic analysis of the developing design using room acoustics software, then fed the results back into the design process. This allowed the designers to actually listen to the room before it was built. Over 200 versions of the model were made to investigate the effects of proposals. In addition, we built a 1:50 scale model of the Store Sal room to carry out further tests."
Auditorium acoustic designer at Arup, Jeremy Newton, continues: "We needed to maximise the volume while still providing intimacy in the relatively small space. So we exposed the room structure and formed the idea of ‘ears' for the room, stepping out the auditorium walls at high level above the seating tiers. The room is narrow low down (which provides clarity and intimacy) and wide at the top (which provides
reverberance). Because the ideal acoustics of a hall are different for different performances, the House includes large area of curtains. These can be extended into the room, using computer-controlled motors, to provide a less resonant acoustic for contemporary (electronic) opera and for the occasional amplified concert."
Gunnar Ihlen, a member of the DNO orchestra with a particular interest in the acoustics of the new theatre, says: "The new opera house sounds amazing, and I was really excited to be in the orchestra playing in the inaugural concert. As time progresses, I look forward to playing in different types of opera and hearing for myself how the acoustics can be changed by use of the different technologies which have been employed.
"The auditorium gives an astonishing experience of what natural acoustics can be like. We enjoy a wonderful range of dynamics, and feel a freedom of musical expression which, I think, compare only to the most outstanding opera houses of the world."
After the gala opening, the first performance in the new opera house is the world premiere of the ballet A Modern Place by renowned Norwegian choreographer Ingun Bjørnsgaard on Stage 2. This is followed on May 24, when Worlds Beyond by the celebrated Czech choreographer Jirí Kylián will open on the main stage.
In picture: Operaen, Norway's new Opera House photo: Arup
16th April 2008
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