Last Monday the Vestry passed a resolution instructing the General Manager, Jim Tracy, to take the first step in resolving the hearing problem in our sanctuary. This will involve making certain enhancements to our sanctuary and may cost up to $80,000.

Because of the significance of this decision, I have asked to the Vestry to call a parish forum on April 30, to familiarize the parish with this issue before changes are made in the sanctuary.

My first goal over the past two months as Rector here has been to get to know our parishioners. This continues to be my top priority. An opportunity to visit with anyone, anywhere, anytime trumps every other item on my agenda.

I hear several themes repeated throughout my visits.

• One is how much people value the quality of community here.
• Another is how warm and welcoming our parish is.
• A third is how difficult it is to hear in our sanctuary.

How difficult it is to hear in our sanctuary?

The Vestry tells me that from the first day the parish moved into the new church it has struggled with hearing problems in the sanctuary.

It is of first concern among the seniors in our congregation. “I just can’t hear,” they say.

Our choir director regrets that the choir has no place to belong. “We have tried several different positions for the choir,” he says. “None of them work.” (A member of Vestry noted at our recent meeting that he could not hear the Choir at all at the Easter service.)

A recent visitor to the parish found the acoustical problem so acute she said, “Sheryl Crowe couldn’t sound good in this space.”

Some even claim congregational singing is inhibited by the problem. “A congregation that cannot hear itself sing, won’t.”

That people have a problem with hearing in the sanctuary appears to be a universal complaint.

What to do?

Fortunately, the Vestry began working on this problem long before I arrived.

In the spring of 2005 the Vestry commissioned a formal study of the acoustical dynamics of our worship space. Our General Manager, Jim Tracy contracted with Church Design Team to conduct an acoustical study of our church. (Church Design Team is a group formed by three independent companies -- All Church Sound, Eagle Sound & Acoustics, and JdB Sound Acoustics Inc. Together they specialize in consulting with churches that face acoustical problems like ours.)

In June 2005 Church Design Team performed a technical analysis of our worship space and submitted a formal report to the parish, on file in the office of the General Manager for any who would like to see it.

The findings of the report are dispiriting at best. One paragraph sufficiently summarizes its conclusion:

Speaking from a usability standpoint, the sanctuary design does not include a proper location for the choir, it doesn’t support congregational singing, it doesn’t even work well for the spoken word. Acoustics considerations were not addressed during the design and construction. This room can’t meet the basic minimum requirements for any church sanctuary.

Ouch.

Our problem is complex. Acoustics involves the physics of sound waves and how they bounce off of walls and interact in space. Without getting into the technical details the solution may involve a number of steps.

Unfortunately we can’t know how many steps. A sound wave is dynamic energy in space. As we apply each solution, the energy dynamic in the room changes. We will have to work at it, and keep working at it, until we create a space that supports our community at worship. The report puts it like this:

In all rooms with acoustical problems, the problems come in layers.... Usually, after the first few major problems are taken care of, further acoustical sweetening results in a better room with each change. In your facility, there are so very many cascading problems, nearly 75% of the “acoustical sweetening checklist” will need to be completed before the room begins to perform as it should.

Church Design Team knows the visual aesthetics of worship must be an important consideration in improving the space for sound. The reports notes:

The Key to modification is to make the change appear as though it was done during the original construction process. While this will add additional cost to any project the long term benefits will be worth the cost. Once any project is completed you want people to come in and enjoy the architecture.

The report recommends as a first step that we apply ornamental elements to the walls of the sanctuary that will “diffuse” or “spread out” the sound waves throughout room. Our solution must enhance the architectural integrity and beauty of the space.

Here is the recommendation from the report:

Diffusion is a very effective means of controlling room acoustics. It makes the room sound larger than it is. It also proves the best conditions for speech over distances of 5 feet or more. The main principle of diffusion is to use air to attenuate the delay reflections long enough so they do not interfere with the direct sound. Diffusion is not just for better speech control. It is most often the preferred and only method for enhancing music. This is mostly seen in great concert halls around the world. The least expensive option to introduce diffusion into a large room is to use architectural outrounds.

An “architectural outround” simply takes a flat surface and makes it appear rounded. Instead of flat walls and rectangles, our space will be enhanced by walls with graceful curved surfaces.

After seven years of living with the problem, and after one year of commissioning a study on the problem, the Vestry is ready to take action.

Will this first step enhance the worship experience of our older parishioners?

Will this first step honor the hard work of our choir?

Will this first step allow us to create a more hospitable space for everyone who enters our church?

This is our hope.

Our parish forum is on Sunday, April 30. I think it will be a fruitful discussion.