Delia Derbyshire Archive on Film

Dr Janette Martin writes:

The compositions of Delia Derbyshire (1937-2001), a pioneer of British electronic music, continue to inspire and delight audiences today.

As regular readers of this blog will know, 2017 marks what would have been Delia’s eightieth birthday year. To commemorate this milestone lots of activities are taking place across the country.  As part of a Heritage Lottery Fund project, the Delia Derbyshire Day charity commissioned a film exploring the contents of the Delia Derbyshire Archive, which is held by the University of Manchester’s John Rylands Library. The film explains how the collection is available for anyone to use and gives a tantalising glimpse into its contents.  If you would like to register as a reader or find out more about this archive please contact uml.special-collections@manchester.ac.uk.

Breaking the Sound Barrier: Delia Derbyshire’s legacy to women in experimental music.

Delia fans are invited to a free sound performance at the John Rylands Library on Thursday 18 May 2017.  An event which is part of the Manchester After Hours festival, which is taking place across the city.

The evening features unpredictable, evocative and extraordinary performances by two female artists whose sound and method echo that of Delia Derbyshire’s pioneering work with the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. Listen as Vicky Clarke creates one of her trademark ‘sound sculptures’ using electronic, digital and analogue techniques, and watch Naomi Kashiwagi craft unexpected melodies using a wind-up gramophone in ‘The Gramophonica Mode’, her creative response to Delia Derbyshire’s archive.

Two performances will be held during the evening, starting at 7pm and 8.30pm. We highly recommend arriving on time for the performances as space is limited in the building. Free entry. No need to book.