The Teatro Augusteo, once home of the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, remains an enigmatic case study in the history of concert hall design and architectural acoustics. Constructed atop the Mausoleum of Augustus, the theatre represented a distinctive acoustic experiment in early twentieth-century Italy. Its circular geometry introduces acoustic challenges, particularly in terms of sound energy reflection control. This study reconstructs the acoustics of the long-lost Teatro Augusteo, with particular attention to the influence of the halls’ cylindrical temporal and shape on spatial energy distribution. The simulated results indicate average sound strength (G) values comparable to those observed in concert halls of similar volume. However, specific acoustic anomalies were identified, including delayed ceiling reflections and localized energy clustering associated with the concave geometry. These phenomena were particularly evident in the analysis of the impulse responses (IRs). Auralization renderings were generated within the virtual hall in three-degree-of-freedom (3DoF). Highlights1. Archival research was conducted to retrieve original drawings and documentation of the now-lost circular concert hall.2. Material properties were inferred from historical black-and-white photographs to enable acoustic simulations under two source conditions: (i) a full orchestra configuration and (ii) an unamplified standing speaker.3. The main acoustic parameters were evaluated, including reverberation time, speech clarity, and strength.4. The simulated acoustic response was compared with that of other circular concert halls reported in the literature.5. Early and late sound reflections were analyzed through the corresponding impulse responses.
Antonella Bevilacqua (Mon,) studied this question.