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The Ponchielli theater of Cremona was built in 1808 after a fire destroyed the old wooden structure. The interior, the architecture and the shape of the plan layout are reminiscent of the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, a masterpiece by the architect Piermarini, albeit on a smaller scale. The four orders of balconies crowned by the top gallery are typical features of a 19th Century Italian Opera theater. Acoustic measurements have been undertaken across the stalls and in some selected boxes according to ISO 3382. The main acoustic parameters resulting from the measurements have been used for the acoustic calibration of a 3D model representing the Ponchielli theater. The calibration has been used to compare different scenarios involving the acoustic response of the main hall at 50% and 100% occupancy. The outcomes indicate that no significant change can be detected when the seats are provided with robust upholstery, which can be considered a positive result, especially for the actors who are not forced to change their effort between rehearsal and live performance. In order to contextualize the measured values in relation to the optimal ones, a comparison with other Italian Opera theaters provided with similar architectural characteristics has been carried out. Overall, the findings indicate that the acoustics of the Ponchielli theater are suitable for both music and speech in line with the other selected theaters, as these places were mainly created for multifunctional purposes in the 19th Century.

The acoustic characteristics and spatial features of the world’s only surviving Italianate Gordonia-style miniature theatre, one of the smallest theatres in the world, have inspired the author to analyse the acoustic behaviour of the Monte Castello di Vibio theatre, also called “Teatro della Concordia”. In this paper, the geometric and architectural features of this historical and unique performing art space were first reproduced, considering that these features are essential factors affecting acoustic characteristics. Subsequently, the acoustic measurements were taken throughout the stall and inside some selected boxes, and their main parameters were acoustically characterised according to ISO 3382-1. Lastly, the main acoustic parameters of the Monte Castello di Vibio theatre were compared to those of the 1763 theatre in Bologna, which is also a miniature theatre of similar size. The aim is to explore the main influences on the acoustic parameters of miniature theatres, and the results show that the plan layout of the theatre and interior decoration are the main factors influencing the acoustic characteristics rather than volume. Preserving the acoustic features of this unique heritage building is also seen as one of the goals of this paper.

Equipment, sound sources, operators, microphone placement, calculation techniques, and thermal–humidity measurement conditions all have an impact on the measurement of impulse responses when several channels are present. However, the thermal–humidity variable, which is a significant component of these factors impacting the assessment of acoustic characteristics, is commonly overlooked in research. The effects of altering temperature, relative humidity, and air velocity on acoustic parameters are investigated in this paper through experimental activities carried out in an experimental room. The patterns of fluctuation of a range of room acoustic characteristics are examined, data are acquired, and statistical analyses based on R (language and environment for statistical computing and graphics) are generated in order to ascertain the relationship between the variation of acoustic parameters and the variation of thermo-hygrometric parameters. Finally, a statistical analysis reveals relationships between thermal and hygrometric variables and interior acoustic characteristics.

The work presented here investigates the risk of interstitial condensation between the existing masonry and the insulation using several materials and evaluates the water content inside the insulation (WCI) through various simulations in dynamic mode onto existing buildings located in different countries in Europe. The insulation materials considered are specifically: natural fibre materials, mineral fibre materials, and artificial materials. The scenarios were chosen considering different climate zones, according to the Köppen climate classification, and the analysed buildings were taken from the TABULA database in the years of construction from 1945 to 1969. The building typologies are single-family houses, where in each building system the insulation was placed towards the warm side with a fixed thickness of 5 cm. The simulations concerned: (a) the application scenario, (b) the type of stratigraphy chosen, and (c) the exposure of the existing building system. The outputs generated by the simulations provided the data to determine in which type of building, depending on the insulating materials, interstitial condensation is formed or not. It is shown that only for the climate zones of the cities of Oslo and Brussels, associated with their building typologies, for the insulating materials: mineral and natural, is there the formation of interstitial condensation

The need for capturing the acoustic properties and spatial information of significant ancient theatres became very important in the last years. Particularly, the knowledge of sound propagation became very important during the design or refurbishment of historic theatres and opera houses. Theatre 1763 in Villa Aldrovandi Mazzacorati, in Bologna (Italy), is chosen as a remarkable example. This is a small private theatre built by the Aldrovandi family during the 18th Century inside the historic Villa Aldrovandi Mazzacorati. The theatre maintains its original shape, indoor materials and furnishings as chairs. For this reason and its peculiarities, the theatre was deeply investigated by several architects, but no acoustic measurements were extensively conducted within the hall. This article reports the results of two measurement campaigns which were conducted in different periods and with different methodologies, to evaluate the variability of the acoustic parameters and determine intrinsic characteristics of this unique small theatre.

The Eszterh&aacute, za Opera House was a theatre built by the will of the Hungarian Prince Nikolaus Esterh&aacute, zy in the second half of the 18th century that had to compete in greatness and grandeur against Austrian Empire. The composer that inextricably linked his name to this theatre was Haydn that served the prince and composed pieces for him for many years. The Opera House disappeared from the palace complex maps around 1865 and was destroyed permanently during the Second World War. This study aims to reconstruct the original shape and materials of the theatre, thanks to the documents founded by researchers in the library of the Esterh&aacute, zy family at Forchtenstein, the Hungarian National Library, and analyze its acoustic behavior. With the 3D model of the theatre, acoustic simulations were performed using the architectural acoustic software Ramsete to understand its acoustical characteristics and if the architecture of the Eszterh&aacute, za Opera House could favor the Prince&rsquo, s listening. The obtained results show that the union between the large volume of the theatre and the reflective materials makes the Opera House a reverberant space. The acoustic parameters are considered acoustically favorable both for the music and for the speech transmission too. Moreover, the results confirm that the geometry and the shape of the Eszterh&aacute, za Opera House favored the Prince&rsquo, s view and listening, amplifying onstage voices and focusing the sound into his box.

The identification of techno-economically feasible decarbonisation paths and sustainability transitions for the built environment is a necessary task for research today and building stock renovation processes can act in synergy with innovative economic and technological development paradigms to achieve different types of benefits such as economic growth and employment, together with resource efficiency and sustainability for the whole sector. The research presented aims at selecting the most relevant data analysis processes and techniques to respond to practical technical questions and to support decision-making in the built environment, at multiple scales of analysis, from individual buildings, to building stock and urban environment. The research aims to indicate in this way the possibility to join the micro-scale view, involving technological and behavioral issues in buildings, and the macro-scale view, involving strategic problems at market and policy levels for energy and sustainability planning. Further, the combined use of modelling techniques with large scale data acquisition and processing could guarantee multiple feed-backs from measured data, useful for the evolution, first of all, of design and operation practices in building but also, more in general, of the whole value chain of the sector. A synthesis and integration of modelling methodologies is presented through case studies, showing a path to improve transparency of performance assessment across building life cycle phases. Finally, multivariate data visualization techniques are presented to ease wider applicability of the described numerical techniques.

Among the studies of musical instruments, one important, sometime underestimated discipline, is represented by ethnomusicology. The acoustic analyses on ethnic musical instruments (M.I.) are much more infrequent if compared to those on classical M.I. This article deals with the vibro-acoustic analysis on one of the most unknown ethnic, Italian M.I., i.e., the carabattola (also called battola), which used to be played in Italy until the late 1960s during the Holy Thursday before Easter. The study includes modal analysis and Intensity of Acoustic Radiation measured on an original carabattola, which was played in the Romagna area until the early twentieth century. After a brief overview about the theory of acoustic and vibrational analysis on musical instruments, the Intensity of acoustic radiation and its correlation with modal analysis are recalled, based on previous studies. In the experimental part of the article, the measurements conducted on the carabattola are described. Afterwards, the results obtained both from modal analysis and IAR measurements are analyzed and compared with other measurements previously conducted on musical (particularly percussion) instruments and commented.

The physics of musical instruments often uses modal analysis as one of the most important methods for describing the behavior of sound chests and their acoustic radiation. However, some studies conducted in Europe (Wogram), Japan (Suzuki) and the United States (Giordano) underlined a very weak correlation between sound radiation and modal analysis. This mismatch required further research. The acoustic parameter intensity of acoustic radiation (IAR) is highly related to the mechanical vibration of the sound source. IAR was able to quantify the sound efficiency of musical instruments, and to relate sound radiation with modal analysis. This paper investigates IAR measured on three Persian stringed musical Instruments, namely the thar, si-thar and santoor. The analysis contributes to the knowledge of stringed musical instruments and sound propagation, since IAR is capable of linking the mechanical vibrations of soundboards with the sound generation of the musical instruments. The IAR results coming from the modal analysis carried out during the study of the instruments are reported herein.

The sound characteristics of musical instruments have been constantly growing in importance. Consequently, several congresses, workshops, and conferences have been organized in the last ten years. The studies on musical instruments, their mechanical behavior, sound emission, and characteristics started thousands of years ago, and among the physicists and mathematicians that addressed this matter, we should at least remember Leonardo da Vinci, with his experimental water organ, and Ernst Chladni, who discovered the nodal patterns on rigid surfaces, such as soundboards. The growing awareness of our intangible cultural heritage and the need to better understand our roots in the field of music have contributed to increasing the efforts to extend our knowledge in this field, defining new physical parameters, extending the analysis to other musical instruments, and developing new methods to synthesize sound from musical instruments using a simple keyboard. These motivations led us to the proposal of a special issue called “Musical Instruments: Acoustics and Vibration” since we believe in the importance of musical acoustics within modern acoustics studies. In total, 13 papers were submitted and 8 of them were published, with an acceptance rate of 61.5%. Among all the papers published, one of them was classified as a review paper, while the rest were classified as research papers. According to the number of papers submitted, and the specificity of the musical acoustics branch within acoustics, it can be affirmed that this is a trendy topic in the scientific and academic community and this special issue on “Musical Instruments: Acoustics and Vibration“ aims to be a future reference for the research that is to be developed in the next few years.

Simple and robust data analysis methodologies are crucial to learn insights from measured data and reduce the performance gap in building stock. For this reason, continuous performance monitoring should become a more diffuse practice in order to improve our design and operation strategies for the future. The research presented aims to highlight potential links between experimental approaches for test-facilities and methods and tools used for continuous performance monitoring, at the state of the art. In particular, we explore the relation between ISO 9869:2014 method for in-situ measurement of thermal transmittance (U) and regression-based monitoring approaches, such as co-heating test and energy signature, for heat load coefficient (HLC) and solar aperture (gA) estimation. In particular, we highlight the robustness and scalability of these monitoring techniques, considering relevant issues in current integrated engineer design perspective. These issues include, among others, the necessity of limiting the number of a sensors to be installed in buildings, the possibility of employing both experimental and real operation data and, finally, the possibility to automate and perform monitoring at multiple scales, from single components, to individual buildings, to building stock and cities.

The acoustic design auditoria is founded on objective acoustic parameters determined on the basis of the computed or measured impulse response. Such objective parameters are related on the average response of the human ear to transient sounds, without considering the subjective perception of the individual, which, in turn, is related also to social and education aspects. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between individual sound perceptions and energy parameters. In detail, a questionnaire has been submitted to a sample of people listening to tracks of different musical genres. The questionnaire has been conceived to come up with a classification model for the audience allowing to express the listener's experience according to different indicators, such as overall acoustic quality and overall acoustic experience. Results of this experiment are analyzed by means of Random Forest non-parametric model belonging to the data mining algorithms. The final purpose of the study is to define which physical and acoustical characteristics are the most suitable to represent the subjective perceptions of the listeners

This paper investigates the relationship between Indoor Environmental Quality index (IEQ): thermal comfort index and indoor temperature trend in moderate thermal environments, in buildings that belong to the Class A with reference to the Energy Performance of Building Directive (EPBD). The work consists of the measurement of IAQ and energy efficiency in a residential building located in centre-north of Italy, namely Ravenna. The results of the measurements, as well as the PMV-PPD indexes, are presented and commented. These indexes could be a criteria to test if EPBD labelling building could be coherent with EN 15251 requirements.

Modelling and simulation in acoustics is gathering more and more importance nowadays. In fact, with the development and improvement of innovative computational techniques and with the growing need of predictive models, an impressive boost has been observed in this domain. The design of a model needs a proper conversion of reality to functions and parameters. On the other hand, once the model has been designed, an adequate simulation must be run, in terms of modelling and computational parameters. Keeping in mind the limitation and the approximations of any model, the data analysis, both online and offline, is the last step of this process and can be extremely important to extract the required output from the process. These basic and general concepts can be applied in many acoustical problems. In acoustics, in fact, there is a large demand for modelling and simulation, in several research and application areas, such as noise control, indoor acoustics, industrial applications, etc. These motivations led us to the proposal of a Special Issue about “Modelling, Simulation and Data Analysis in Acoustical Problems”, since we definitely believe in the importance of these topics in modern acoustics studies. In total, 81 papers were submitted and 33 were published, with an acceptance rate of 37.5%. Among the 33 papers published, two of them were classified as review papers, while the rest were classified as research papers. According to the number of papers submitted, it can be affirmed that this is a trendy topic in the scientific and academic community and this special issue will try to be a future reference for research to be developed in the next years

The Directive 2002/91/CE introduced the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), an energy policy tool. The aim of the EPC is to inform building buyers about the energy performance and energy costs of buildings. The EPCs represent a specific energy policy tool to orient the building sector and real-estate markets toward higher energy efficiency buildings. The effectiveness of the EPC depends on two factors: • The accuracy of energy performance evaluation made by independent experts. • The capability of the energy classification and of the scale of energy performance to control the energy index fluctuations. In this paper, the results of a case study located in Italy are shown. In this example, 162 independent technicians on energy performance of building evaluation have studied the same building. The results reveal which part of confidence intervals is dependent on software misunderstanding and that the energy classification ranges are able to tolerate the fluctuation of energy indices. The example was chosen in accordance with the legislation of the Emilia-Romagna Region on Energy Efficiency of Buildings. Following these results, some thermo-economic evaluation related to building and energy labelling are illustrated, as the EPC, which is an energy policy tool for the real-estate market and building sector to find a way to build or retrofit an energy efficiency building.

The Directive EPBD introduced Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) an energy policy tool. The aim of EPC is to inform building buyer about energy performance (and energy cost) of buildings. They represent a specific energy policy tool to orientate building sector and retail market toward higher energy efficiency building. The Real Estate market was built in different periods, and in each of these periods the building envelope or the heating plant had different kinds of energy performance. Therefore, in real estate, each building-period has a determinate incidence respect total existing buildings, and they have different energy consumption incidence respect total energy national consumption. The EPBD recast highlight the relation between building elements or technical building system, energy rating and cost-optimal levels of minimum energy performance requirements. In present paper a discussion about Directive's news, Italian EPC and real estate market prospective is presented. Furthermore we proposed a reflection about link between energy cost, energy rating and building property value.

The energy policy in Europe regarding buildings and the energy efficiency sector are regulated by two directives: 2002/91/CE – EPBD and 2006/32/CE – EEESD [1] , [2] . The CEN has elaborated a standard to revise all European normatives about building energy performance and HVAC plants. The “CEN Umbrella” CEN/TR 15615 [3] includes a new version of EN ISO 13790:2008 [4] and a new standard about heating plant, use and contributions of renewable energy sources. Furthermore, the CEN Standard provides a software version for technicians. In this paper we present a Round Robin Test between a selection of softwares applied to an Italian case study. The selected calculation methodologies, range from research packages to extra-simplified software. Furthermore, the Italian procedure described in UNI TS 11300 [5] has been analyzed and considered as the reference for all other calculation methodologies. The results of the Round Robin Test show the relationship between thoroughness of data input and energy evaluation accurancy. The more the input data is affected by uncertainty, the less precise is the energy efficiency calculation. On the other hand the energy performance of building evaluation accurancy depends on the aim of the simulation: the energy audit, the energy design or the energy labeling (certification).

The European Community introduced the energy certificate of buildings to reduce the energy consumption in buildings and emanated some standards in order to publicize the energy buildings certificate procedure. Consequently, to calculate energy performance of buildings (EPB), many numerical codes have been developed, which take into account several parameters in static or dynamic conditions. In this article three different models for EPB software calculations have been analysed and compared, in order to quantify their gap with the real energy consumptions. The study has been conducted considering a single-family house in Italy, and focused the differences among numerical codes and real consumption in relation with flexible architectural solutions, that are widely utilised especially in rural areas in Mediterranean countries.

The acoustical features of kettledrums have been analyzed by means of modal analysis and acoustic radiation (p/v ratio) measurements. Modal analysis of two different kettledrums was undertaken, exciting the system both by a hammer and a shaker. Up to 15 vibrational modes were clearly identified. Acoustic radiation was studied using two ways. Based on previous experiments of other researchers, a new parameter, called intensity of acoustic radiation (IAR), has been defined and measured. Results show a strict relationship between IAR and the frequency response function (FRF, which is the v/F ratio), and IAR also strongly relates the modal pattern to acoustic radiation. Finally, IAR is proposed for vibro-acoustical characterization of kettledrums and other musical instruments such as strings, pianos, and harpsichords.

The analysis of the sound field’s 3D properties has been strongly improved in recent years, after spatial properties of sound propagation have been acknowledged to be important during the design or correction of theatres and auditoriums. Besides, a proper assessment of spatial accuracy is requested for 3D sound reproduction systems, initially designed for acoustical virtual reality and now also employed in the entertainment/cinema industry (Immsound, Auro-3D, NHK 22.2). Often only monoaural or binaural measurements are performed by means of omni-directional microphones and dummy heads, although international standards like ISO 3382/1:2009 also define some “truly spatial” parameters such as JLF and JLFC. The two latter parameters are derived from measurements made with a pressure velocity (p/v) microphone, but this is still a 2-channel measurement. 3D Impulse Responses (4-channel B-format) have for many years been measured and employed for sound reproduction. Recently, higher-order 3D Impulse Responses have been measurable thanks to the availability of compact microphone arrays employing a much larger number of transducers. In this paper, two procedures for measuring and analysing the complete spatial sound information are presented, which are aimed to create easy-to-understand images and videos showing the direction-of-arrival of the room reflections. The description of these techniques is emphasised. Furthermore, results are illustrated of experiments conducted with the novel methodologies in different rooms, including some ancient theatres.

Athanasius Kircher, a Jesuit, was born in Geisa, Thüringen, in 1608. He spent a large part of his life in Rome, where he died in 1680. He was active in many different topics, ranging from geology to philosophy. He was the author of many books, among them the Musurgia Universalis, written in 1650, and the Phonurgia Nova, of 1673. Whilst the Musurgia Universalis has gathered wide attention, his Phonurgia Nova, which means " a new method of sound production", has only recently been rediscovered. In this paper the original Latin version of the Phonurgia Nova, which comprises two different books, i.e. the "Phonosophia nova" and the "Phonosophia anacamptica", is analyzed. The first book deals with the influence of music on human beings, whereas the second book analyses sound propagation in enclosed spaces. This book reveals some interesting acoustic apparatuses for sound production and propagation, such as the "tuba stentorophonica" (the "loud trumpet"), and the "statua citofonica" (the "talking statue"). Some of these phonic apparatuses are described, analyzed and commented on

The definition and measurement of sound spatialisation have been strongly enhanced in last years, as nowadays spatial properties of sound propagation are considered quite important during design of auditoria. Besides, a proper description of spatiality is requested during virtual audio reproduction of sound quality in dedicated listening rooms for 3D reproduction purposes. Normally, only binaural measurements are performed, by means of a dummy head, even though international standards like ISO 3382 require measuring some spatial parameters (i.e. LE, LF, IACC). 3D impulse responses are rarely measured and utilised for sound reproduction. In this paper, an innovative procedure of measuring spatial sound characteristics is presented. The application of this new technique in virtual 3D sound reconstruction is emphasized. Furthermore, the methodology is compared with other techniques of 3D sound reproduction. Finally, the results of a wide campaign of measurements of spatial parameters among different auditoria all over the world, and conducted with the novel methodology, are compared with the results of standard binaural and 3D measurements. The possibility to enhance the spatial reproduction of sound quality in real spaces and the comprehensibility of spatial parameters is then considered and presented in different cases.

The evaluation of room acoustics characteristics in rooms has been thoroughly described in several papers since 1960s. Moreover, the ISO 3382 standard describes several acoustic parameters and their measurements. However, there are only a few information about the methods of pre-processing the impulse responses that are required before calculating those acoustic parameters. In this paper, the main processing methods (based on Luneby, Chu, and Hirata methods) are analyzed. Moreover, they are compared with the Schroeder (background integrated) methods. In a further step, these methods are applied in some acoustic measurements employed in some opera houses in Italy. Finally, after a full discussion about the uncertainties that is beyond these methods, the acoustic parameters are compared with the JND that is actually accepted in the evaluation of the mono-aural, binaural, and spatial acoustic parameters.