A Study Of Musical Instruments Acoustics In Selected Church Auditoria In South-western Nigeria

Exposure to excessive sound volume has been a major challenge to grapple with in church auditoria in Nigeria. This exposure to excessive sound has become a source of noise pollution and it is dangerous to human health. To control the noise pollution being experienced, this study, therefore, examined musical instruments‟ acoustics in selected church auditoria in South-western Nigeria. The objectives of the study were to: (i) examine the congregants‟ perception of musical sound in selected church auditoria in South-western Nigeria; (ii) establish the factors that determine good and bad musical sound; (iii) measure the volume of musical sound in relation to the church auditoria; (iv) assess the level of sound decibel (dB) perceived at each worship service; (v) investigate the acoustic parameters of each church auditorium;and (vi) evaluate the acoustical treatment of the various church auditoria.rnThis study adopted descriptive research method using the quantitative and qualitative designs. The tool for data collection were participant-observation, oral interviews and questionnaires on church congregants, pastors, choristers and sound engineers. The study population comprised eleven interviewees, and 959 questionnaires in six churches – three Orthodox and three Pentecostal – using A4DaTuner to measure the sound pressure level in each church auditorium. The Place Theory of Sound Perception (PTSP) by Bekesy (1928) was applied in the study as the theoretical framework.A simple percentage was used to analyse the data.rnThe findings of this study were that: -rn(i) 100% of the congregation perceived musical instruments‟ acoustics as sound for praising and worshipping God;rn(ii) the representation of good (89.57%), bad (7.63%) andrelative (2.8%) of musical instruments‟ acousticsin relation to Sound Clarity(SC), Sound Pressure Level(SPL), Reverberation Time(RT)} and Auditorium Acoustic Parameter(AAP) were obtained;rn(iii) the musical sound volume in five auditoria with (83.33%) did not take the sizes of the auditoria into consideration while one with (16.66%) did;rn(iv) the average sound decibels of 98dB were recorded in all the selected church auditoria which is higher than the recommended 60dB for normal human hearing by the World Health Organisation (WHO);rn(v) using the acoustic parameters such as acoustic floor tiles, wall tiles, wooden-roofing materials and sound absorbers; one church auditorium with (16.66%) of the selected auditoria was acoustically treated while the other five with (83.33%) were not; andrn(vi) The acoustic treatment of five with (83.33%) of the selected church auditoria were not adequatefor the high volume of musical sound output while one with (16.66%) was adequate.rnThe study concluded that there was excessively high volume of sound which has been the order of church worship sessions resulting into physical and emotional disturbances of the congregants and the environment in South-western Nigeria. The study recommended that minimal musical instruments‟ acoustics volume of 60dB as suggested by WHO be upheld to set acceptable optimal standards for sound production in church auditoria. This should be appropriately legislated by the Federal, State and Local governments, while the congregants also be adequately educated to reduce the hazards of noise pollution.

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