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BBC Radiophonic Workshop Revived Online
New submitter ratbag writes with this snippet from BBC News: "The BBC's Radiophonic Workshop, which created theme tunes and sound effects for programs including Doctor Who and Blake's 7, is to reopen after 14 years. The original workshop was known for its pioneering use of electronic sounds. Founded in 1958, it was best-known for creating the eerie swoosh of the Doctor Who theme tune, but its compositions were also used in numerous radio dramas, The Goon Show and The Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy. As well as music, the workshop created sound effects — from champagne corks popping to the distorted, strangulated voices of the Daleks."
How could you leave out the TARDIS sound? They started with a coin and an open string on a[n upright?] piano.
They also supplied the voice for George clinton's "Won't you take me to..." funky town and Eddy Grant's "Electric Avenue."
Delia Derbyshire!
wonder if the lab was involved with this one at all:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nebe1zuEtbc&feature=related
When I lived in the UK in '73 there was a video of this on Top of the Pops or something where there was an explosion halfway through and they ended up in heaven or something...
didn't find it on youtube though, although I found a lot of other good Goon bits.
-I'm just sayin'
On the "Goon Show", there was once a need for the sound of a wet sock filled with custard slammed against a wall.
After many experiments, and loss of life, they found the perfect sound effect.
They filled a wet sock with custard, and slammed it against a wall.
Over 50 years later, that sound effect is still used, when the need arises.
I'm glad that the Workshop is back.
Zomg I'll bet they did the coconuts sounds from Holy Grail.
(-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
Amazingly, most of the Hitchhiker's Guide fans I know have never heard the original radio production. Many of them didn't even know that it was a radio production first.
They did the sound effects for Hitchhiker's, but the theme song is Eagles - Journey of the Sorcerer
I don't know about anybody else, but the Daleks always sounded to me like they were suffering from extreme hysteria. Of course, considering how badly they tended to come off whenever they went up against the Doctor, do you blame them?
Good, inexpensive web hosting
And David Cain was wrong. ;p
"My hope was that the Workshop would regenerate itself, and I'm sure it will do, one day." A quote by Malcolm Clarke from the documentary, "Alchemists of Sound". One of my favorite documentaries of all time.
Now somebody needs to release "Same Trade As Mozart".
EXTEERMEENATE!
The functionality of synth equipment that used to fill a room can now be done on a laptop with a synth + sampler package these days. Probably even on a smartphone TBH. I don't see the point.
It's about the combination of both the tech and getting the creative people together in a working environment that allows them to explore interesting and sometimes dead ideas to come up with works of genius.
You're very right that the sound production equipment can probably be pulled together by any western teenager that really wants a fantastic sound studio. But the fact that the vast majority of people just produce low quality rubbish shows that you need to create an environment to produce the kind of ground breaking work that the BBC Radiophonic Workshop used to achieve (tips hat to Delia Derbyshire...).
I guess after all these years maybe some folk in the BBC have realised what an amazing set up they had, and would like to recreate it in some form in the hope more fantastic work will be produced, attract the right sort of people, give them the right sort of working environment etc.