An Exploration of the unique acoustic characteristics of Mantua's Teatro Bibiena

The Teatro Bibiena, known as the Scientific theatre in Mantua, is regarded as the most accomplished example of Rococo theatre construction, inspiring the authors to investigate its unique acoustic characteristics. An acoustic survey was carried out of the stall and some selected boxes according to the requirements of ISO 3382-1 standards. The results show that Mantua's Teatro Bibiena, unlike most Italian theatres, is more suited to musical performance than speech. The Italian opera house is a typical and precious architectural form, and scholars and scientists are responsible for highlighting the worth of cultural heritage. However, as an intangible cultural heritage, acoustics is intrinsically challenging to maintain and readily disregarded. Therefore, its recording, exploration, and transmission should be given equal weight to the historic theatre building itself.