If you’ve ever watched old-timey Dr. Who, you probably wondered how they made the music for that series. It’s simple, really:
In 1963 Delia Derbyshire working for the BBC Radiophonic Workshop created one of the most significant and innovative pieces of electronic music, even before the availability of commercial synthesizers.
Starting with a score written by composer Ron Grainer, Delia created every note by cutting, splicing, speeding up and slowing down segments of analog tape recordings of plucked strings, white noise, and the simple harmonic waveforms of test-tone oscillators which were used for calibrating equipment and rooms, not creating music.
Below are pictures of Delia Derbyshire and the studios of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop.