The original Holy Trinity Anglican Parish Church in Tauranga, New Zealand, was destroyed by fire in 1999, only to rise from the ashes four years later as a striking new structure of concrete and steel.

The centrepiece of the new church complex is the 900-seat, semi-circular worship auditorium, where a stunning acoustical ceiling treatment (made with rare kauri wood salvaged from the old church) conceals a nearly invisible system of loudspeakers.

Church music director, Peter Minson, has said that "the comment we get from outside people coming in for concerts is that they are not even aware of amplified sound."

The semi-circular seating arrangement allowed four loudspeakers in the gaps between the elegant overhead acoustical panels and configured in a left-right-left-right arrangement to provide stereo spread.  Sound for seats under the balcony is augmented by a dozen miniature wide-range loudspeakers, while deep bass is provided by an under-stage pair of compact subwoofers.

Both the sound system and the room acoustics were designed by Marshall Day Acoustics and significant effort was required to integrate the loudspeakers with the architectural design.

In its first year of operation, the church auditorium has hosted a number of outside concerts.  Although orchestral and operatic programs normally are un-amplified, most pop and jazz acts use the house system and find it more than adequate for their needs.

In an intimate setting such as Holy Trinity church, we believe that we have succeeded in providing a very effective sound system that is visually unobtrusive.  As Peter Minson says, "when you're listening in our church, you're not aware that the sound is coming from overhead.  When lips move on the stage, you get the impression that all the sound is coming from the speaker or singer directly.  That's as it should be."

Further details of the sound system can be found at Meyer Sound website.