Cover Feature: Architecting sound for everyone

Houses of worship come in all shapes and sizes. While hundreds, or thousands, of years ago, particular types of sanctuary adhered to the same architectural patterns, today we see a wide variety of modern designs, especially when it comes to churches. Some churches are built to replicate the gothic stonework of centuries gone by, while others work with what they have, converting a warehouse perhaps, an old cinema or a school gym, to provide a practical space for a congregation to meet.

Occasionally, a new church will be built from the ground up that is immediately recognisable as a House of God, but also features its own, unique architectural flair. Something never before seen, yet familiar all the same. A building that is truly stunning to behold and joy for congregants to worship inside.

One example of this has recently appeared in the South Korean city of Daejeon. The brand-new Gwanpyeongdong Catholic Church has been designed with the story of Noah’s Ark in mind, a mighty vessel to welcome worshippers in from the storm of daily life. Its front façade mirrors the deck of the ship, sailing up towards heaven. The building’s interior was designed by Italian art organisation Centto-avo, as well as an architect who had been previously responsible for renovation work at the Vatican.

While the church itself provides a visual treat for the eyes, both inside and out, it is of course still of the utmost importance that those attending services can hear the pastor’s message. Therefore, prior to opening the doors to the church, those in charge approached systems integrator YNC Solution to design and install systems for sound reinforcement and assistive listening for the hard of hearing.

‘The people in charge at the Catholic church requested an audio reinforcement system that was easy to operate, while also blending into the internal architecture, so as to not distract from the room’s aesthetics,’ recalls Terrie Lee, president of YNC Solution. ‘We were able to design a solution that met these requirements with systems from Voice-Acoustic.’

The sanctuary is 28m x 17m (LxW), with a ceiling height of 8m. At the rear is a balcony with seating for 420 people, including the choir and musicians. To ensure coverage for the entire congregation, YNC Solution installed a main PA system comprising six Voice-Acoustic LA-Stick 4x4 line array speakers, flown three per side. Powered by a Voice-Acoustic HDSP-0.2A amplifier, these speakers were chosen due to their beam-steering capabilities and were finished in a white coat to match the decoration of the room. Even the brackets from which the speakers were hung were specially ordered with the RAL code to match the colour of the paint on the wall.

To ensure that everyone seated on the balcony receives the even coverage that congregants filling the pews on the floor experience, the YNC Solution team also flew four Voice-Acoustic Alea-4 compact loudspeakers from the ceiling as balcony-fills. These were aligned as delays and provide foldback for the choir. In addition, another four Alea-4 cabinets were installed on the floor around the podium and table at the front of the church as foldback monitors for the pastors and other speakers. The compact size of the Alea-4 was one of the major reasons it was included in the design here, so as not to stand out from the minimalist aesthetic design in the view of the congregation.

Completing the sound reinforcement setup are several ceiling speakers found above the balcony, in the baby room and in the hallway. A 32-channel Soundcraft Si Impact digital console handles mixing duties. The installation also includes Crown amplifiers, AKG gooseneck, suspension and dynamic microphones, and a wireless microphone system.

‘Sound absorption materials were not used in the church, as these would also distract from the look of the sanctuary,’ explains Lee. ‘For most people, the sound coming directly from the Voice-Acoustic speakers will be heard with full intelligibility. However, those with hearing loss and other hearing impairments would still have difficulty in listening to the priest’s sermon. During the audio system design, we therefore also included a personal assistive listening system from Listen Technologies for those with hearing loss, as well as a portable hearing loop system for those with hearing impairment.’

The Listen Technologies setup includes an LT-800-072 RF transmitter, LA-123 antenna and 12 LR-4200-072KR RF receivers. The church is also in possession of two LA-430 neck loop lanyards, 12 LPT-A207 breakaway lanyards and 12 LA-401 universal ear speakers. ‘These solutions allow everybody to hear under the same conditions,’ says Lee.

‘The video system at Gwanpyeongdong Catholic Church was also installed by YNC Solution,’ he adds. On the visual side, YNC Solution installed an 8,000 ANSI lumens projector from NEC with a projector screen, an HD camera for IMAG, a video switcher and a 32-inch television monitor in the church office.

This beautiful church is now open with services held before packed congregations that would indicate that the detail put into the building’s design has done its job. YNC Solution’s AV systems have also performed well, with Lee noting that the sound and assistive listening systems have particularly impressed.

‘The church was extremely satisfied by the custom colour-matched Voice-Acoustic products,’ Lee concludes. ‘Not only do they match the interior of the architecture very well, they also satisfy the need for a high quality of sound. And, in order to serve the older members of the congregation and those with hearing loss, the church has expressed its pleasure at being able to deliver services to all members of the public.’

This article was first published in the July-August 2019 edition of Worship AVL. Subscribe at www.proavl-central.com/subscribe/worship