Acoustic Design Review for the Historical Aula Magna at the University of Parma. Measurement and Simulation Tools to Predict the Amount of Absorption to be in Place

The Aula Magna (Great Hall) of the University of Parma, historically known as the Hall of the Philosophers, is part of a 16th-century palace located in the core of the city. The Aula Magna hosts official ceremonies and graduations. The geometrical composition of the room, provided with a wagon vault, and the high level of reflections due to the hard finish materials lead to a poor quality of speech intelligibility. This paper deals with an acoustic design review of the current furniture inside the auditorium, with the purpose of adjusting the acoustic parameters to be suitable for the current uses of the room. Acoustic measurements have been undertaken in accordance with the standard requirements outlined by ISO 3382-1, capturing the existing conditions of the hall. A highly accurate digital model of the room was obtained with photogrammetry and modelling, in order to carry out numerical simulations regarding the implementation of the acoustic treatments. The quantity and quality of the proposed absorbing panels improve the listening conditions to a degree of comfort assessed against the criteria set by UNI 11532-2:2020.