[1][2] Prior to and concurrently with her early music career, Caterina studied electroacoustic composition as well as classical guitar at the Conservatorio Giovanni Battista Martini in Bologna, in which she earned a bachelor's and master's degree, respectively.
[10][11][12] Brainwashed called the album the "work of a hyper-intelligent android who has discovered human emotions and feels them very intensely," while Rolling Stone Italia included Ecstatic Computation among the best Italian records of the decade.
[18] Critics noted that Spirit Exit was also more taut and condensed in sound compared to previous albums, owing to its development occurring in her home studio.
[19] Barbieri has participated in some of the most important music festivals in the world, from Berlin Atonal[20] to Unsound[21] to Primavera Sound,[22] Sónar,[23] Dekmantel,[24] Berghain[25] and CTM.
[26] She has also presented her work in prestigious venues such as the Barbican Centre[27] in London, the Berliner Festspiele,[28] Haus der Kunst[29] in Munich, the Museo Anahuacalli[30] in Mexico City, the Ruhrtriennale[31] and the Philarmonie de Paris[32] among the many others.
[34] In 2024, Barbieri participated in the Venice Biennale with a music piece co-composed with Kali Malone for Massimo Bartolini’s organ at the Italian Pavilion[35] and she also premiered new work Womb in Paris, commissioned by IRCAM and Centre Pompidou for the 350 loudspeaker system at ESPRO.