Ambient Overlaps

Welcome back to Sound Bleed Week! *

* Yeah, dubious editorial choice. But important underlying issue.

In Sound Bleed, we found:

Truth #1: Sound bleed is very subjective. 
Truth #2: Sound bleed can’t be eliminated. 

So what can we do? There are at least six solutions for exhibitions. Here are the first three. (The first one below is a little mind-blowing to some, but the most useful by far),

A. Allow Overlaps
Total elimination is often undesirable and unnecessary. Ambient overlaps make spaces feel normal and live. (Ambient: no loudness, catchy melodies, or narration.) You can have way more overlap than you think.

B. Protect Silence
Caution: 100% silent spaces are difficult and expensive to make. You’ll need to plan your whole project accordingly if you need them. Do you? Feeling silent isn't being silent. Quiet spaces actually feel better when you hear other sounds a little.

C. Isolate Loudness
One loud repeating sound can impact a whole building. Doubly so when loud is next to quiet. You’ll need floor-to-ceiling walls and much more. Sure you need it that loud?

Next time, we’ll look the last three:

D. Separating Narratives
E. Focusing Sound
F. Individualizing Sound

Warmly,
Jonathan