Timbral perception and semantic description of synthesized sounds in European Portuguese
This presentation, based on the author’s MA dissertation, examines the relationship between spectral characteristics of synthesized sounds and their semantic descriptions, drawing on a transdisciplinary approach between Psychoacoustics and Linguistics. The relevance of this research is anchored on a lack of timbral cognition studies in the Portuguese language.
In this light, the author seeks to explore the subjectivity of the ontological concerns about the relationship between auditory perception and description in European Portuguese, which are deeply intertwined with sonic and musical memory, as well as cultural context and subtext.
The main goals of the research are to 1) investigate how spectral energy distribution impacts the auditory perception of synthesized sounds; 2) analyze the semantic descriptors used for these sounds; 3) reflect on a specific ontology of descriptors in European Portuguese.
A study was conducted in which participants were exposed to a sequence of synthesized sounds, whose timbres varied solely in spectral energy distribution. A scale was used to measure a series of semantic descriptors for each sound, to gauge differences in perception, as well as the specific impact of energy distribution on semantic description of sound timbre.
While the perception of timbre has been a topic of academic attention since the mid-twentieth century, most of the efforts are directed onto instrumental sounds. This study innovates by examining the description of synthesized sounds, offering a novel perspective on how musical memory influences psychoacoustic responses to non-instrumental timbres.
The findings will contribute to a deeper understanding of the cognitive processes of auditory stimuli and the specific semantic descriptors associated with spectral characteristics. The systematization of these results will allow for the establishment of a specific ontology for timbre in European Portuguese, contributing to the scientific context of music and sound memory.
Keywords: sound, timbral perception, semantic description
Biography
Gonçalo Valente is a Portuguese student, researcher, and musician based in Lisbon. Born in Porto, Portugal, he is currently pursuing an MA in Musical Arts at NOVA FCSH (Lisbon) under the supervision of Professor Isabel Pires. His dissertation, titled “The Correlation Between Spectral Energy Distribution of Abstract Sounds and Semantic Description in the Portuguese Language,” explores the intersection of acoustics, linguistics, and sound perception. Gonçalo earned a BA in Musical Sciences from the same institution in 2023. His work has been presented at both national and international conferences, including his most recent presentation, “The Semantic Description of Synthesized Sounds in Portuguese: The Effect of Spectral Energy Distribution,” delivered at the SMI/ICTMD-IE Postgraduate Conference 2025 at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland.
NOVA University of Lisbon / CESEM, Portugal – a2020129405@campus.fcsh.unl.pt