THE 'NEW' RADIOPHONIC WORKSHOP

In 1958 the BBC Radiophonic Workshop was established. It's aim was to create new sounds, music and sound effects for BBC programmes.
It quickly became the most important electronic music studio in the UK, creating innovative, ground breaking work in often very mainstream and visible ways. It's most famous creation is probably the Doctor Who theme music, although it is known as much for the pioneering work of the individuals who worked there - including the rare opportunity for women such as Daphne Oram, and Delia Derbyshire to experiment as equals.

It finally closed its doors in 1998 after a slow decline brought on in part by the democratisation and mass production of electronic components, synthesizers and computers. Its reputation rightly remains unequalled in Britain, if not the world.

Now, some fourteen years after the Workshops at the Maida Vale studios finally fell silent, experimental composer Matthew Herbert has been appointed Creative Director of the New Radiophonic Workshop with a new home - the website of The Space, created in joint partnership between the BBC and the arts council. Instead of being confined to rooms full of equipment in Maida Vale studios in London, the new RW will instead be a 'virtual' institution, visibly manifested as an online portal and forum for discussion around the challenges of creating new sounds in a world saturated in innovative music technology but lacklustre in terms of actual original output. "We will primarily bring together two key disciplines: music composition and software design, and as such its members will be drawn from the cutting edge of both" said Matthew.
Herbert is heading a team of seven musicians and audio practitioners, including sound designer James Mather, composer and instrument maker Max de Wardener and technologist Tony Churnside, a member of BBC R&D.

[Credits due to ProSoundNews Europe & The Space websites.]