This website presents the practice-based component of a doctoral research project investigating the acoustic materiality of Brutalist architecture through impulse response, convolution reverb, and spatial sound practices.
Research Themes/Key Concepts:
1. Acoustic Materiality
Brutalist architecture is commonly recognised through its exposed concrete surfaces and monumental visual forms. This research approaches these buildings as acoustic environments, shaped by the material behaviour of sound.
The low absorption coefficient of concrete surfaces, together with large enclosed volumes and geometric spatial configurations, produces distinctive sonic phenomena such as prolonged reverberation, strong reflections, and flutter echoes. These acoustic characteristics form the basis of the project’s investigation into the relationship between architecture, listening, and sound art.
Figure 1. Frobisher Crescent, Barbican Estate, London.
The curved geometry and large enclosed courtyard create a distinctive reverberant environment, illustrating how spatial configuration contributes to acoustic materiality.
Figure 2. The Alexandra and Ainsworth Estate, London.
Exposed concrete surfaces and repetitive structural forms generate characteristic patterns of sound reflection and reverberation.
2. Impulse Response
If acoustic materiality describes how architecture shapes sound, impulse response recording provides a method for capturing these acoustic characteristics.
Throughout this research, impulse responses were collected in a series of Brutalist sites across London, including the Frobisher Crescent in Barbican, and the Alexandra and Ainsworth Estate. These recordings document the unique reverberant behaviour of each space and serve as the foundation for later compositional and spatial sound experiments.
Figure 3. Frobisher Crescent, Barbican Estate, London. （Generating an impulse response by popping the ballon)
(different format/style
Figure 4. A stereo microphone pair and Zoom F3 recorder were used to capture the acoustic response of the space following a balloon burst. This method records the unique reverberant characteristics of the architectural environment.
Figure 5. Convolution reverb experiment using an impulse response recorded at Frobisher Crescent.(Transforming architectural acoustics into compositional material)
The recorded impulse response was imported into Logic Pro’s Space Designer, allowing the acoustic signature of the site to be applied to other sound sources through convolution reverb.
3. Convolution Reverb
Rather than treating convolution reverb as a tool for realistic simulation, this research explores its potential as a creative medium for transforming and reimagining spatial memory.
4. Spatial Sound Practice
Multi-channel sound installations investigate how sound can construct spatial relationships and influence bodily perception within architectural environments.