Sound Room Process in Progress

I want to someday construct a sound room. I’ve been inspired by architecture, natural elements, and sound to create a space in which sound travel is the central purpose. The key concepts that this space will be built upon is the way that sounds reflect off of their surroundings and how they bounce back to the user in different ways. The idea behind this space is to present a way to experience possibly obnoxious or beautiful noises, sounds, and experimental music.

What I came up with are three rooms symmetrically within one another: a smaller room inside of a larger room inside of an even larger room. The design of the building exhibits both rounded and straight walls/ceilings, inspired by geometric shapes. Each room houses instruments made out of repurposed materials that are easily accessible for users to play. The largest room contains guitar strings at different lengths and thicknesses that attach from the ceiling to the floor. The medium sized room accommodates wind chimes that hang from the ceiling. In the center of the smallest room stands a single floor drum. Each inner room will also have a small sound proof window that may or may not be opened, to allow the instruments to be played and heard at the same time. This will encourage participants to compose experimental sounds with one another. I haven’t done any research thus far on wiring a speaker and microphone system, but I would also like to include that throughout the rooms so sounds can be recorded for archival purposes and future listening.

In my research I learned about various materials to use to build the walls. I found that rubber tires are great insulators of sound, so a mixture of ground up tires and mortar will create the exterior wall of the outer structure. The exterior of the inner rooms will consist of flax fibers which regulate moisture and produce less carbon dioxide than human-made fibers, and will be treated with natural chemicals (like borax) to prevent from rotting and catching fire. The inner layer of all of these walls will be made out of a mixture of straw, clay, and soil. I chose this mixture because it is non-deteriorating -- clay coated straw has been shown to last over 700 years.


I’ve done some research on sound reverberation and materials (such as wall coverings) that reflect sound in certain ways. I’ve discovered that carpet and drink holders from (for example)Starbucks are great absorbers of sound and decrease reverberation. For now, the interior of the outer room is covered in carpet and the inner rooms in drink holders. As I further my research, I may decide later that I want more reverberation and alter my materials.



This piece is currently 100 percent conceptual. I’m still in the process of determining dimensions and possible locations, and I am at a place in my life (aka still in school and not yet settled into a career) where my surroundings and the things available to me inhibit me from making my room a reality. For a long time now I’ve had a strong interest in architecture, and I feel that this field holds a potential future for me. In my recent class ventures, I’ve strengthened my attraction to sounds and developed an even further curiosity for experimental sounds in particular. As long as I can remember I’ve been a huge advocate for a sustainable environment. These three things always managed to come to the forefront of my concepts and creations, and this sound room is a way for me to integrate their importance in one interactive space.