A sounding board, also known as a tester and abat-voix is a structure placed above and sometimes also behind a

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...

or other speaking platform that helps to project the sound of the speaker. It is usually made of wood. The structure may be specially shaped to assist the projection, for example, being formed as a

parabolic reflector A parabolic (or paraboloid or paraboloidal) reflector (or dish or mirror) is a reflective surface used to collect or project energy such as light, sound, or radio waves. Its shape is part of a circular paraboloid, that is, the surface generate ...

. In the typical setting of a

church building A church, church building or church house is a building used for Christian worship services and other Christian religious activities. The earliest identified Christian church is a house church founded between 233 and 256. From the 11th th ...

, the sounding board may be ornately carved or constructed. The term "abat-voix," from the French word for the same thing (''abattre'' (“to beat down”) + ''voix'' (“voice”)), is also used in English. The term “sounding board” is also used figuratively to describe a person who listens to a speech or proposal in order that the speaker may rehearse or explore the proposition more fully. The term is also used inter-personally to describe one person listening to another, and especially to their ideas. When a person listens and responds with comments, they provide a perspective that otherwise would not be available through introspection or thought alone.

References

Acoustics Church architecture Pulpits {{Church-architecture-stub

See also

References