The intention of this article is not to criticize, it is to build appropriate models so that churches adopt a cultural identity and that their parishioners feel comfortable and can live a religious experience.
Juan Tamayo
In recent years, I have had the opportunity to work on several, if not many, religious projects. I have had incredible challenges, some mistakes, and many successes, which has allowed me to develop an efficient work structure when making the design, I hope to share some notes with readers to change models and design paradigms.
Acoustics, is a physical phenomenon, not electronic
Before talking about budget and products, which is what usually start any design and / or quote analyze the acoustics of the space where the design will be proposed. The vast majority of religious temples have very bad acoustics.
Catholic churches were mostly designed before the 50's where the mechanical waves (voice of the priest) had to be optimized since there were no amplification systems. Modern non-Catholic Christian churches are usually installed in warehouses or commercial premises where the natural acoustics of the system are perverse. As a first task, check that the acoustics of the system are suitable for the project, but recommend the church to perform an acoustic treatment.
Sound insulation, if necessary?
Remember that religion is a right in the vast majority of countries, but it also has certain obligations that must be understood and made understood by church participants. I think a fundamental one is that what occurs within the church (Pressure Sonora) stays inside the church. So the audio designer must ensure that the acoustic treatment absorbs as much acoustic energy as possible, thus avoiding inconveniences with the different territorial entities that take care of noise pollution.
Temperature Control, the heat inside the churches
Each time climate change affects more the different eco-systems, and although the church is not an eco-system if it is affected by temperature changes, and more if we take into account that a sound isolation is proposed, which "encloses" the church.
So a temperature control (air conditioning) will have two purposes, the first of them is to generate satisfaction to the people who are inside the temple and the second is to protect the electronic equipment from thermal avalanches that can generate damage by overheating. Both systems must be independent. Remember that having temperature control can considerably increase the operational expenses of the church, so modern systems linked to energy saving processes are recommended.
In this first stage, audio-visual design is based on architectural decisions, and generally with high costs. According to the experience acquired, if this is not done from the beginning, the values to be paid once the project is finished can exceed 3 times the values that are raised in the design stage.
Now, if the project manager or project board approves these first decisions, what more needs to be done at the design stage?
Search for the identity of the church
Recently I was at an event of the Allegro Institute in Lima, Peru (http://institutoallegro.org) where they offer an intensive seminar of 3 days (every 2 years) for the design and execution of Christian artistic projects and between meetings and conversions we came to the conclusion that no matter the type of Christian church, the vast majority sound the same, Of course from the point of view of artistic production, but in technical production it is the same.
Every church wants to "copy" the success stories of other churches regardless of the sacrifice that must be made to sound the same, and when they have the teams they realize that they can never sound the same because the initial conditions are not the same. A good audio-visual designer must guarantee that his design seeks a sound and visual identity, that the design is made specifically for that church.
That the band that sings praises to the lord has the right microphones and that their mix is ideal. That the projected images are seen with the appropriate lighting. No matter when money invests in equipment, this will not work miracles, the designer is responsible for people who attend church to feel comfortable, to understand the preaching and to enjoy the praises.
Ergonomics, comfort improves understanding
As the designer has many responsibilities to the church, good design will not make parishioners enter the Kingdom of God, but at least it will make it much easier for them to understand the Lord's message. For this I recommend that you follow step by step all the audio visual mathematics designed to cover the aspects related to ergonomics.
Ergonomics seeks that the person does not have to make extra efforts to understand the content that is to be expressed, for our case they are teachings and praises, so designer, make your best effort so that the parishioners do not have to strive and can capture as much knowledge as possible.
I hope that this note allows designers to be more and more objective when doing their work, to use the necessary equipment and technologies so that the message of religion is transmitted without problem, whatever this may be, remember to locate the right equipment, it is not just closing a sale. If you have any questions you can contact me at [email protected] or [email protected]
