Designing Percussive Timbre Remappings: Negotiating Audio Representations and Evolving Parameter Spaces

Jordie Shier, Rodrigo Constanzo, Charalampos Saitis, Andrew Robertson, and Andrew McPherson

Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression

Abstract

Timbre remapping is an approach to audio-to-synthesizer parameter mapping that aims to transfer timbral expressions from a source instrument onto synthesizer controls. This process is complicated by the ill-defined nature of timbre and the complex relationship between synthesizer parameters and their sonic output. In this work, we focus on real-time timbre remapping with percussion instruments, combining technical development with practice-based methods to address these challenges. As a technical contribution, we introduce a genetic algorithm - applicable to black-box synthesizers including VSTs and modular synthesizers - to generate datasets of synthesizer presets that vary according to target timbres. Additionally, we propose a neural network-based approach to predict control features from short onset windows, enabling low-latency performance and feature-based control. Our technical development is grounded in musical practice, demonstrating how iterative and collaborative processes can yield insights into open-ended challenges in DMI design. Experiments on various audio representations uncover meaningful insights into timbre remapping by coupling data-driven design with practice-based reflection. This work is accompanied by an annotated portfolio, presenting a series of musical performances and experiments with reflections.

Citation

Jordie Shier, Rodrigo Constanzo, Charalampos Saitis, Andrew Robertson, and Andrew McPherson. 2025. Designing Percussive Timbre Remappings: Negotiating Audio Representations and Evolving Parameter Spaces. Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.15698926 [PDF]

BibTeX Entry

@inproceedings{nime2025_66,
 abstract = {Timbre remapping is an approach to audio-to-synthesizer parameter mapping that aims to transfer timbral expressions from a source instrument onto synthesizer controls. This process is complicated by the ill-defined nature of timbre and the complex relationship between synthesizer parameters and their sonic output. In this work, we focus on real-time timbre remapping with percussion instruments, combining technical development with practice-based methods to address these challenges. As a technical contribution, we introduce a genetic algorithm - applicable to black-box synthesizers including VSTs and modular synthesizers - to generate datasets of synthesizer presets that vary according to target timbres. Additionally, we propose a neural network-based approach to predict control features from short onset windows, enabling low-latency performance and feature-based control. Our technical development is grounded in musical practice, demonstrating how iterative and collaborative processes can yield insights into open-ended challenges in DMI design. Experiments on various audio representations uncover meaningful insights into timbre remapping by coupling data-driven design with practice-based reflection. This work is accompanied by an annotated portfolio, presenting a series of musical performances and experiments with reflections.},
 address = {Canberra, Australia},
 articleno = {66},
 author = {Jordie Shier and Rodrigo Constanzo and Charalampos Saitis and Andrew Robertson and Andrew McPherson},
 booktitle = {Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression},
 doi = {10.5281/zenodo.15698926},
 editor = {Doga Cavdir and Florent Berthaut},
 issn = {2220-4806},
 month = {June},
 numpages = {10},
 pages = {452--461},
 title = {Designing Percussive Timbre Remappings: Negotiating Audio Representations and Evolving Parameter Spaces},
 track = {Paper},
 url = {http://nime.org/proceedings/2025/nime2025_66.pdf},
 year = {2025}
}