Timbre as a marker of cultural territories in electroacoustic music

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5965/2525530411012026e0109

Keywords:

Electroacoustic Music, Timbre, Theory and Analysis, Cultural Studies, Decolonialism

Abstract

Departing from the field of music theory and analysis in dialogue with cultural studies, this article aims to investigate how timbre can function in electroacoustic music as a marker of social, cultural, and identity territories, even if that genre is supposed to strive for abstraction. Drawing on practical experiences and analyses of works by authors such as Fernando Iazzetta, Denis Smalley, Pierre Schaeffer, Pierre Henry, and Coriún Aharonián, the study shows how the use of certain sounds, such as those from the berimbau, the bagpipes, or native flutes, evoke specific cultural practices, functioning as signs of identity and social differentiation. While in some instances, the use of these timbres may reinforce colonial stereotypes and exoticizations, in others it can assume a critical and decolonial character, affirming resistance and cultural belonging. The article concludes that timbre, in electroacoustic music, is a central element not only for its structural dimension but also for its symbolic dimension, as being capable of representing cultures and enabling narratives.

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Author Biographies

Rafael Fajiolli de Oliveira, Santa Marcelina Cultura e USP

Rafael Fajiolli de Oliveira is an educational supervisor at Projeto Guri (São José dos Campos regional). He began his studies at the Cassilda Becker Municipal Conservatory in Pirassununga, where he studied classical guitar, harmony, music history, Brazilian folklore, complementary piano, and aural skills. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Music (Licentiate) from FFCLRP-USP and completed both his Master’s and Doctorate in Musicology at ECA-USP, where he was a member of the Laboratory for Theory and Musical Analysis (LATEAM), under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Rodolfo Coelho de Souza. His research interests include the analysis of contemporary Brazilian music (20th and 21st centuries), music education, composition for acoustic instruments, and electroacoustic music. As complementary training, he studied composition with professor Marcus Siqueira.

Rodolfo Coelho de Souza, USP

Full Professor at the Department of Music of the University of São Paulo, affiliated with the Faculty of Philosophy, Sciences and Letters of Ribeirão Preto. He serves as a doctoral advisor in the Graduate Program in Music at the School of Communications and Arts of USP. He was a Professor in the Department of Arts at UFPR (2000–2005). He earned his undergraduate degree in Engineering from the Polytechnic School of the University of São Paulo (1976), a Master’s in Musicology from ECA-USP (1994), and a PhD in Musical Composition from the University of Texas at Austin (2000). In 2009, he conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Texas at Austin with E. Antokoletz and R. Pinkston. His areas of expertise include Musical Composition, Music Technology, and Analytical Musicology. He was coordinator of Lacomus – Laboratory of Musical Computing at UFPR (2001–2004) and is currently the coordinator of Lateam – Laboratory of Theory and Musical Analysis at DM-FFCLRP-USP. He served as president of TeMA – Brazilian Association of Music Theory and Analysis (2019–2022) and as editor of the journal Musica Theorica published by TeMA (2016–2019). Among his notable musical compositions are: O Livro dos Sons (2010) for orchestra and electronic sounds, Concerto for Computer and Orchestra (2000), and Tristes Trópicos (1991). He is a CNPq PQ2 Research Productivity Fellow.

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Published

2026-05-19

How to Cite

FAJIOLLI DE OLIVEIRA, Rafael; COELHO DE SOUZA, Rodolfo. Timbre as a marker of cultural territories in electroacoustic music. Orfeu, Florianópolis, v. 11, n. 1, p. e0109, 2026. DOI: 10.5965/2525530411012026e0109. Disponível em: https://www.periodicos.udesc.br/index.php/orfeu/article/view/27784. Acesso em: 21 may. 2026.

Issue

Vol. 11 No. 1 (2026): Open-Topic Articles – Continuous Publication

Section

Articles

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Copyright (c) 2026 Rafael Fajiolli de Oliveira, Rodolfo Coelho de Souza

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