Delia Derbyshire Day

The work of electronica pioneer Delia Derbyshire is being celebrated in Manchester tomorrow.

As part of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop team, Derbyshire realised the Doctor Who theme music, composed by Ron Grainer, and her work creating sounds strongly influenced the world of pop and electronic music.

After her death in 2001, her collection of 267 tapes was entrusted to Mark Ayres and then loaned permanently by Ayres and the Delia Derbyshire estate to the University of Manchester, where they were digitised.

Tomorrow, Band On The Wall, a non-profit venue in Swan Street, Manchester, will be hosting the first Delia Derbyshire Day with performances, screenings, and talks in honour of the composer and arranger.

Among the events, the daytime "mini-symposium" - from 3pm to 6pm - will include a screening of the documentary The Delian Mode as well as a listening session of rare Derbyshire tracks, while the evening session - from 8pm to 10.30pm - will include the première of new commissions by Ailís Ní Ríain, Caro C, and Naomi Kashiwagi, who together comprise the event organisers Delia Darlings, inspired by their time spent with the Delia Derbyshire archives.

---

Delia Derbyshire was featured on BBC Radio 4's Today programme on Saturday 12th January. It can be listened to via the Today website.