Catherine Guastavino, McGill University

Research

soundscape public space multistakeholder co-design sound quality Acoustics Motion perception Psychoacoustics Psychophysics

Latest papers

Composing with acoustic niches: A laboratory soundscape evaluation of sound installation reactivity.
NPJ acoustics · 2026
Using soundscape simulation to evaluate compositions for a public space sound installationa).
The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America · 2024
Current approaches to planning (with) sound.
The Science of the total environment · 2024 · senior author

All 23 publications

Latest funding

Le son du futur / Le futur du son
SSHRC · 2021 · Co-investigator
$25,000
Sound Art Documentation : Spatial Audio and Significant Knowledge
SSHRC · 2020 · Co-investigator
$62,826
Sound in Space: towards a unified theory of auditory localization
NSERC · 2019 · Principal investigator
$330,000

All 16 grants and awards

23 publications.

01

Composing with acoustic niches: A laboratory soundscape evaluation of sound installation reactivity.

Fraisse V, Schütz N, Vincent C, Wanderley MM, Guastavino C, Misdariis N

NPJ acoustics2026

DOI: 10.1038/s44384-026-00066-5 PMID: 42694287

02

Using soundscape simulation to evaluate compositions for a public space sound installationa).

Fraisse V, Schütz N, Wanderley MM, Guastavino C, Misdariis N

The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America2024

DOI: 10.1121/10.0028184 PMID: 39158326

03

Current approaches to planning (with) sound.

Tarlao C, Leclerc F, Brochu J, Guastavino C

The Science of the total environment2024Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.172826 PMID: 38685418

04

Investigating sonic injustice: A review of published research.

Trudeau C, King N, Guastavino C

Social science & medicine (1982)2023Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.115919 PMID: 37141678

05

Humans sense by touch the location of objects that roll in handheld containers.

Frissen I, Yao HY, Guastavino C, Hayward V

Quarterly journal of experimental psychology (2006)2023

DOI: 10.1177/17470218221086458 PMID: 35212251

06

Effect of Hearing Protection Use on Pianists' Performance and Experience: Comparing Foam and Musician Earplugs.

Boissinot E, Bogdanovitch S, Bocksteal A, Guastavino C

Frontiers in psychology2022Senior author

DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.886861 PMID: 35903731

07

Assessing the ecological validity of soundscape reproduction in different laboratory settings.

Tarlao C, Steele D, Guastavino C

PloS one2022Senior author

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0270401 PMID: 35759477

08

Comparison of Road Noise Policies across Australia, Europe, and North America.

Perna M, Padois T, Trudeau C, Bild E, Laplace J, Dupont T, Guastavino C

International journal of environmental research and public health2021Senior author

DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19010173 PMID: 35010436

09

Quieted City Sounds during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Montreal.

Steele D, Guastavino C

International journal of environmental research and public health2021Senior author

DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18115877 PMID: 34070796

10

A Tale of Three Misters: The Effect of Water Features on Soundscape Assessments in a Montreal Public Space.

Trudeau C, Steele D, Guastavino C

Frontiers in psychology2020Senior author

DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.570797 PMID: 33324284

Le son du futur / Le futur du son

Co-investigatorSSHRC2021Connection Grants

Principal investigators: Marandola, Fabrice

Keywords: music; media; technology; interdisciplinarity; research-creation; digital musical instruments; computer-aided composition; human-computer interaction; acoustics; immersive systems; digital humanities; music cognition; performance studies; hearing health

$25,000

Sound Art Documentation : Spatial Audio and Significant Knowledge

Co-investigatorSSHRC2020Insight Development Grant

Principal investigators: Boutard, Guillaume

Keywords: documentation methodology; cultural heritage; sound art; spatial audio; sensory experience; significant knowledge; digital curation

$62,826

Sound in Space: towards a unified theory of auditory localization

Principal investigatorNSERC2019Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Principal investigators: Guastavino, Catherine

Keywords: Acoustics; Motion perception; Psychoacoustics; Psychophysics; Sound localization; Spatial audio; Spatial hearing

$330,000

Sound in Space: towards a unified theory of auditory localization

Principal investigatorNSERC2019Discovery Grants Program - Accelerator Supplements

Principal investigators: Guastavino, Catherine

$120,000

Analysis, creation and teaching of orchestration (ACTOR)

Co-investigatorSSHRC2018Partnership Grants

Keywords: orchestration; musical timbre; musical data mining; auditory grouping; music analysis; musical performance; computer-aided orchestration; orchestration pedagogy; digital humanities; digital educational tools

$1,754,922

Sounds in the city: a cross-sector partnership to make cities sound better

Principal investigatorSSHRC2017Partnership Development Grants

Principal investigators: Guastavino, Catherine

Keywords: soundscape; public space; multistakeholder co-design; sound quality

$199,680

Analysis, creation and teaching of orchestration (ACTOR)

Co-investigatorSSHRC2017Partnership Grants

Keywords: orchestration; musical timbre; musical data mining; auditory grouping; music analysis; musical performance; computer-aided orchestration; orchestration pedagogy; digital humanities; digital educational tools

$745,078

Sounds in the city: applying the soundscape approach to urban noise management

Principal investigatorSSHRC2016Insight Development Grant

Principal investigators: Guastavino, Catherine

Keywords: (1) soundscape; (2) noise policy; (3) urban planning; (4) best practices; (5) noise management; (6) built environment

$56,056

Finalization and Validation of a Virtual Acoustic Model

Principal investigatorNSERC2016Engage Plus Grants Program

Principal investigators: Guastavino, Catherine

$12,500

Virtual Acoustic Models for Physically-Modeled Musical Instruments

Principal investigatorNSERC2015Engage Grants Program

Principal investigators: Guastavino, Catherine

$25,000

From CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC funding decisions: CIHR since 2008, NSERC since 1991 and SSHRC since 1998, including their latest published competition results.

Frequent collaborators

School of Information Studies
Music Research
département génie mécanique
Other

Co-authors at McGill University, colored by department. Thicker lines mean more shared papers; select anyone to open their profile and their own map.

Philippe Depalle

Music Research

1 shared papers, latest 2016

Nicholas King

Faculty

1 shared papers, latest 2023

Thomas Dupont

département génie mécanique

1 shared papers, latest 2021

Write to this professor

A short, specific email works best. This draft uses one of their recent papers; replace the parts in brackets with your own details before sending.

Applying for

Paper to mentionMention their NSERC grant from 2019

Subject: Prospective PhD student: soundscape Dear Professor Guastavino, My name is [your name], and I am a [your current degree or role] at [your institution]. I am applying for a PhD position starting in [term and year]. I read your paper "Composing with acoustic niches: A laboratory soundscape evaluation of sound installation reactivity." (2026), and it connects closely to my own work on [your research topic]. [One or two sentences on what you did and what you learned.] I also saw your NSERC-funded project "Sound in Space: towards a unified theory of auditory localization" (2019), and I would be glad to contribute to work in that direction. Are you accepting new PhD students for [term and year]? I have attached my CV and transcripts, and I would be glad to talk at a time that suits you. Thank you for your time. Kind regards, [your name]