Trained in Italy, Canada, and the United States, he currently teaches at the State Conservatory of Pesaro. He is the director of the Fragments of Extinction project, through which he developed an approach to science communication through sound art, based on the extremely high-definition 3D recordings he has made since 2002 in the Amazon, Congo Basin, and Borneo, in order to raise awareness about the global biodiversity crisis. From his archive of 24-hour recordings, the fragments of ecosystems can be digitally explored and made into sound documentaries and eco-acoustic compositions for installations, museums, record publications, contemporary music concerts and research.

Monacchi holds the international patent for Eco-Acoustic Theatre, the immersive enjoyment of natural sound ecosystems, leading to the birth of several deep listening spaces. Sonosfera® is the latest technological amphitheater for sensory and cognitive experiences, inaugurated in Pesaro UNESCO City of Music, and equipped with 45 speakers spherically positioned around the 60 listeners, who sit in a cave of perfect acoustics.

Since 1992, he has made multi-code sound works and lectured in the fields of scientific research, technological innovation and art, all over the world. Notable engagements include his keynote address at the opening plenary session of the UN COP-14 Conference on Biodiversity, and collaborations with visual artists such as Mimmo Paladino, Kristin Jones, and William Kentridge.
Science journals from Nature to PNAS have written about his work. He founded the International Society of Ecoacoustics and is the director of the film Dusk Chorus, awarded “Best European Science Film” 2018. His book L’arca dei suoni originari [The Ark of Original Sounds], published by Mondadori, was released in 2019.