Impact of design decisions on acoustical comfort parameters: Case study of Doğramacızade Ali Paşa Mosque

Acoustical design of mosques is critical considering speech and music related activity patterns held in such religious spaces. This paper aims to emphasize the importance of practicing acoustics of mosques as early as in the concept design stage. Within this framework, design issues of a contemporary mosque, namely, Doğramacızade Ali Paşa Mosque in Ankara, Turkey are discussed. The edifice known as the technological mosque with its eclectic interpretation has a unique architectural style. The architectural design of the mosque is heavily supported with acoustical design in all phases. Computer simulation is applied as an acoustical design tool and estimations are held by commercial room acoustics software. Results are justified with real size field measurements inside the mosque and related objective acoustical parameters including reverberation time (RT or T30), clarity (C50 or C80), speech transmission index (STI) and A-weighted sound levels (SPL-A) are assessed. Evaluation of the space indicates that the optimized acoustical field is proper for intended functions of use in a mosque and satisfies desired tranquil environment.