The Reformation in Rhyme: Sternhold, Hopkins and the English Metrical Psalter, 1547–1603. By Beth Quisland. St. Andrews Studies in Reformation History. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2008. x + 329 pp. $114.95 cloth

摘要

assess acoustic qualities in the twelve spaces studied and were designed to helpnthe researchers register the perception of sonic characteristics of the space andnsound (volume, clarity, reverberance, envelopment, intimacy, warmth,nbrilliance, echo, timbre, and background noise). In the case of one of theirnspaces, which was demolished in the nineteenth century, the authorsnreconstructed the space using computer-aided design (CAD). Drawing onnplans and section drawings of the structure, and eighteenth-century engravingsnof the interior, they were able to simulate the building’s sonic properties.nHoward and Moretti also conducted scientific measurements of the acousticnparameters of each space such as sound pressure levels, early decay time, anvariety of reverberation rates, and other features, each of which could bencompared productively to the human reception of sound qualities gathered innthe questionnaires. Finally, the authors studied archival documents and othernhistorical sources to inform their study of the uses of the space in liturgicalnperformance and other ritual settings. An extensive apparatus of appendicesncompiles their methods and resulting data.