Suntory Hall Classical
Suntory Hall seat view and sound experience
Sound experience
About the sound
Strings, woodwinds and brass together · Direction and distance change with your seat.
Direct sound is combined with early reflections and reverberation. Their proportions change with the seat. This is a synthesis based on assumptions, not a recording of the actual hall.
Acoustic sources and model scope
Ensemble listening estimates direct sound from five equally loud representative instruments plus early and late reflected energy. It does not trace individual wall reflections or measure sound on site. Playback uses the same energy model, but the samples' instrumentation and volume differ from the equal-strength scoring assumption. Changing a sample does not change the recommendation criteria.
- Reverberation time used
- 2.1s Operator and acoustician figure · occupied · mid-frequency
- Room volume used
- 21,000m³ Acoustician figure (Nagata Acoustics)
We also check score variation under nine assumptions: reverberation time ±0.4 seconds and volume ±20%. Balcony obstruction, reflector placement, and instrument directivity are not included. Scores cannot rank sound quality across venues.
Acoustic method and limitationsModel calculations from the selected seat to the reference point. A larger angular size means the person appears larger.
Furniture size and posture are illustrative. Adjust the A/B eye heights to compare. Seat type alone adds no score bonus.
Seat type sourceA/B score comparison
Standard seating · 118 cm above floor
- Estimated acoustics · Ensemble listening
- 97pts
- View · Balanced
- 76pts
Lowest component: Instrument delivery balance, 93 pts. Weaker components influence the combined score; scenarios range from 75 to 98 pts.
Scores rise when all three criteria are met together. Weights indicate importance; weaker components have more influence on the combined score.
Ensemble estimate: 75–98 pts
These are nine calculations with different assumed reverberation times and room volumes. Actual quality is not guaranteed to fall within this range, and a few points do not establish which seat is better.
- Clarity–reverberation ratio (C80)
- -0.1 dB
- Sound strength (G)
- 4.3 dB
These values come from a statistical model, not measurements. C80 is assessed against a chosen balance range rather than rewarding higher values; G is assessed for sufficient strength. View calculation criteria
Standard seating · 118 cm above floor
- Estimated acoustics · Ensemble listening
- 93pts
- View · Balanced
- 75pts
Lowest component: Sound energy adequacy, 85 pts. Weaker components influence the combined score; scenarios range from 68 to 98 pts.
Scores rise when all three criteria are met together. Weights indicate importance; weaker components have more influence on the combined score.
Ensemble estimate: 68–98 pts
These are nine calculations with different assumed reverberation times and room volumes. Actual quality is not guaranteed to fall within this range, and a few points do not establish which seat is better.
- Clarity–reverberation ratio (C80)
- -0.7 dB
- Sound strength (G)
- 3.3 dB
These values come from a statistical model, not measurements. C80 is assessed against a chosen balance range rather than rewarding higher values; G is assessed for sufficient strength. View calculation criteria
Ensemble listening uses assumed direct sound, early reflections, and late reverberation. Direct-sound preference is distance-based; view scores use distance, overview, and alignment. Reflectors, balcony obstruction, and instrument directivity are not modeled, so rear-seat acoustics may also be overestimated. How to read the scores
Comparing seats at Suntory Hall
Compare stage views and strings, bass or full orchestra sound in A/B. Ensemble listening scores are acoustic model estimates, not on-site measurements. Blocks, rows and seat numbers follow the operator’s seating chart (2019). Wheelchair spaces and universal-design seats are not included.
How this experience was built
What sources confirm — We read the 2,006 seat cells and their blocks, rows and numbers from the main-hall seating chart PDF published by the operator (2019, vector), and every block total matches the operator’s seating table. Positions come from the seat rows drawn on the plan in the acoustician Nagata Acoustics’ fact sheet (20 m scale bar), converted to metres. Floor heights for 1F, 2F Block C and Block P are read row by row from the longitudinal section on the same sheet (1F rows 1–5 flat → row 23 +2.25 m, Block C rows 2–12 5.1 → 9.4 m, Block P rows 2–6 2.8 → 4.9 m, stage +0.84 m). The stage width of 21 m and depth of 12 m are the operator’s facility figures. We compared the app’s view with the operator’s 30 seat-view photos from the same seats, and re-checked the height of the LA/RA front rows from the photos by the height difference between the stage floor and the front ledge at the same depth.
What remains estimated — The plan is the 1986 design drawing and the seating chart is the 2019 edition, so where they differ we follow the seating chart and place seats approximately: 1F row 23 (not in the plan, one row behind row 22), the sides of 2F Block C row 13, the second groups of Blocks LC/RC rows 4–7, and Blocks LD/RD (one continuous row in the plan, 6 + 6 seats with an aisle in the chart) including row 6. Heights of the side blocks (LA–LD, RA–RD), Block C rows 1 and 13 and Block P rows 1 and 7 are estimates read from elevation lines in the longitudinal section or extrapolated (about ±0.5 m; LA/RA ±0.4 m from the photos). The LA/RA/LB/RB front barriers (a low ledge plus a handrail, 0.45 m in front of the seats) approximate the shape seen in the official seat-view photos; their dimensions were not measured. The section draws Block P about 1.6 m further back than the plan; positions follow the plan. The stage outline (about 230 m²) is read from the same plan; the semicircular risers at the back of the stage, the railings, walls, ceiling and organ (14.6 m wide, approximated from the transverse section) are approximations. Wheelchair spaces (Blocks LB/RB row 8) and universal-design seats (up to 14) are not included.
Views are calculated using a 1.75 m figure, your chosen eye height and seat coordinates. Actual obstructions from people, railings or equipment and show-specific layouts may not be represented. Orchestral sound combines direction, distance and assumed early reflections and reverberation. It does not use responses measured in the actual hall. Scores indicate preference fit; actual obstructions, sound quality and price are not yet included.
Orchestral audio: original samples made from VSCO 2 CE recordings (Versilian Studios, CC0). Band and game sounds are synthesized. Crowd audio uses Sandermotions’ CC0 recordings, not recordings from this venue.