Delian Modes: Listening for Delia Derbyshire in Histories of Electronic Dance Music

Abstract

This paper examines the work of English composer and sound designer Delia Derbyshire (1937-2001) in the context of histories of EDM and historical accounts of women in electronic music. Examining the media discourse around Derbyshire, whose reputation has grown significantly since her death, I consider how Derbyshire has come to be regarded posthumously as both a pioneering electronic composer and a forerunner of dance music and electronica in the UK. I consider how these identities are related to her gender, and how gender is constructed and expressed in the discourse around her life and work, with reference to the musical-critical phenomenon of hauntology.

Keywords

• Delia Derbyshire
• BBC Radiophonic Workshop
• electronica
• feminist histories
• archival practice
• music blogging
• music journalism
• hauntology
• fan studies