Acoustic Analysis of the Interaction of Choral Arrangements, Musical Selection, and Microphone Location

Acoustic differences were evaluated among three choral arrangements and two choral textures recorded at three microphone locations. A choir was recorded when singing two musical selections of different choral texture, one homophonic and one polyphonic. Both musical selections were sung in three choral arrangements: block sectional, sectional-in-columns, and mixed. Microphones were placed at the level of the choristers, the conductor, and the audience. The recordings at each location were analyzed using long-term average spectrum (LTAS). The LTAS from the mixed arrangement exhibited more signal amplitude than the other arrangements in the range of 1000-3500 Hz. When considering the musical selections, the chorus produced more signal amplitude in the region of 1800-2200 Hz for the homophonic selection. In addition, the LTAS produced by the choir for the homophonic selection varied across the microphone locations. As for the microphone location, the LTAS of the signal detected directly in front of the chorus had a greater slope than the other two locations. Thus, the acoustic signal near the choristers differed from the signals near the conductor and in the audience. Conductors may be using acoustic information from the region of the second and third formants when they decide how to arrange a choir for a particular musical selection.