DELIA
Derbyshire

(1937-2001)

Pioneer of Electronic Music

Delia Derbyshire: A ground-breaking British musician and composer often referred to as “the unsung heroine of British electronic music.” After receiving degrees in mathematics and music from Cambridge, she carried out notable work with the BBC Radiophonic Workshop during the 1960s, capturing sounds on reel-to-reel tape that she manipulated into soundtracks. Delia’s most memorable work includes her electronic arrangement of the theme music to the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who. Delia was not credited on-screen for her work until Doctor Who’s 50th anniversary special, The Day of the Doctor.

Delia is made from original sheet music of the strands of reel-to-reel audio tape, Doctor Who theme song sheet music, pages of the 1970s edition of Doctor Who and the Daleks acrylic, ink, and resin.

What She’s Made Of:

Listen to Delia describe her work.

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