Electronic Sound Past, Present and Future: Delia Derbyshire Day 2025
Sat 22 November, 2-4pm, Manchester Central Library, FREE
This year’s Delia Derbyshire Day Manchester event, on 22 November (the library is closed on Sundays), is centred around the 10th anniversary of Delia Derbyshire Day as a registered charity. Our amazing team of younger volunteers for 2025 have designed an afternoon of activities to celebrate the heritage connected with this electronic music charity.
Join us for an array of family-friendly creative activities where you can play, learn and make. Be inspired, play with weird and wonderful sounds, and experience new artworks in response to the Delia Derbyshire and Delia Derbyshire Day archives.
Drop-in activities/displays:
- Listening stations with creative electronic music by Delia Derbyshire and other pioneers
- Play a game inspired by Delia’s music-making with Morse Code
- Play with dreamy sounds and effects with Flowfal motion control accessible tech
- Enjoy a hands on tape demo by North West Sound Archive
- Explore some of the heritage of the Delia Derbyshire Archive
- Create your own art and 3d models at the crafts station
- Enjoy the quiet space with sensory/low stimulation listening and hands on creative activities
- Explore new creative commissions available to listen to/view
Performances/screening:
2:30pm – Live audio-visual performance of ‘Glimmers’ – a collaborative 2025 commission by Zolatec (music) & hippiezilla (visuals). A 10 minute piece about resilience, hope and inspired by Delia’s playful spirit and innovative approach to sound.
3pm – Screening of ‘Daydreams’ (1972, 8 mins) – Delia Derbyshire composed the soundtrack for this experimental short film by Madelon Hooykaas and Elsa Stansfield. The film will be introduced by Madelon Hooykaas herself!
3:30pm – Live audio-visual performance of ‘Glimmers’ – a collaborative 2025 commission by Zolatec (music) & hippiezilla (visuals). A 10 minute piece about resilience, hope and inspired by Delia’s playful spirit and innovative approach to sound.
Do get in touch via our Contact Page if you have any access requirements or want any more information about the event.
This event is gratefully supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Manchester Central Library, Northwest Sound Archive, John Rylands Library & Manchester Histories. With thanks to School of Noise for the loan of the telegraph keys (for the Morse Code game).
