Occupied audiences absorb up to 90 percent of incident sound in a hall

Evidence

Second, because in the steady state the reverberant sound at any time instant is the sum of all the energy in the reverberation tail, the overall sound level is increased by reverberation. The level of the reverberation will depend on how fast the sound is absorbed in the room. A low level of absorption will result in sound that stays around in the room for longer and so will give a higher level of reverberant field. — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1756 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: An audience’s breathing and perspiration dynamically alter a hall’s high-frequency acoustics; Physical sound absorption can be strong enough to measurably alter room reverberation; Low absorber rooms raise overall sound level because reverberant energy persists longer — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1756 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• Physical sound absorption can be strong enough to measurably alter room reverberation #corroborates (0.92)
• An audience’s breathing and perspiration dynamically alter a hall’s high-frequency acoustics #exemplifies (0.85)
• Low absorber rooms raise overall sound level because reverberant energy persists longer #expands (0.80) — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1756
• Room absorption determines the steady-state level of reverberant sound #expands (0.75) — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1781