The Woman behind the Dr Who theme

“Delia Derbyshire Day” is a Manchester-based organisation which pays tribute to Delia Derbyshire, a pioneer of electronic music in England from the 1960’s. The organisation applied for funding through National Lottery Project Grants to develop their engagement with ages 16-30 for their new arts project “Electric Storm 50”, which honours the 50th anniversary of album “An Electric Storm” by White Noise. We spoke to the organisation to find out more.

Delia Derbyshire was an English musician famous for her electronic style. Her most famous work includes the iconic Dr Who theme tune and she has influenced the likes of Aphex Twin, the Chemical Brothers and Paul Hartnoll of Orbital. After Delia’s death in 2001, it was revealed that she had 267 reel-to-reel tapes and a box of a thousand papers in her attic. In 2007, almost all the tapes were digitised and our work centres around this collection which is now accessible at the John Rylands Library in Manchester.

Image of Delia Derbyshire — Image: Andrea Pazos

We were requesting support to deliver a new arts project “Electric Storm 50” which would benefit diverse members of the public, artists, and help our organisation continue to develop by reaching new audiences and new partners. This project focuses on creating or commissioning new work and working with new people. This is the first time we’ve worked with a higher profile London based artist (Bishi), thereby expanding the impact for artists and audiences in this region.

The event has offered a public opportunity to get involved by issuing a callout for artist commissions.

Spirit Studios (Manchester venue partners) offers a rich learning and audience experience. Their live venue is equipped to latest high specifications. Workshops will be in a professional studio environment, offering the highest quality experience, being both aspirational and inspirational for participants.

This year’s activities honour the 50th anniversary of ‘An Electric Storm’ by White Noise. We are looking forward to shedding some more light on Delia’s work beyond the BBC. David Vorhaus of White Noise will be involved as he worked closely with Delia on this album and talks of Delia as his teacher in terms of tape manipulation and bringing together the worlds of physics and music.

We have commissioned artists to create their own audio-visual “electric storm” inspired by White Noise’s album. We are about looking back, but also about the now and looking forward, showcasing the exciting potential of being creative with technology. We’re also excited to see what comes from our “Create Your Own Electric Storm” workshops.

We want people to get involved though workshop participation, being in the audience, online and in-person. Many participants continue to make music after their workshops and some DD Day 2019 participants go on to study at Spirit Studios.

We believe in the power of self-expression and developing creative and technical skills. We want to help people develop their technical skills, confidence and have opportunities to experience the benefits of creativity for their career, creative hobby or more general well-being.

Support from the Arts Council means we can offer these creative learning opportunities to people who might not usually be able to access them. We can make our fun, empowering and inspiring activities available at a lower price. And we have the resources to do the outreach and marketing needed to make sure a more diverse audience feels welcome at our events.

Check out their website to find out more about the event.