Oramics to Electronica Exhibit

Free Fri 29 Jul 2011 - Sat 01 Dec 2012 at the Science Museum, South Kensington, London.

"Electronic music is everywhere, from the television that we watch to the music we listen to in clubs and even the ringtones on our mobile phones. But who created these electronic sounds? And how did electronic music develop?

The Oramics Machine is a revolutionary music synthesiser that was created in the 1960s by Daphne Oram. Daphne had a strong passion for both sound and electronics and the vision to combine the two.

It is too fragile to restore to working order, but you can use our new interactive to recreate the sounds that it made.

In October 2011 more exhibits will be added to this core display that will be co-created by people who are working with electronic music today as well as a group of Daphne’s contemporaries.

They will tell the intriguing story of how electronic sound has advanced, changed and was democratised from the 1950s through to the modern era, and they will look at how people envisioned new sounds and pushed the boundaries of what was possible. They will explore how over the years musicians have invented, altered and improved (often cheap) equipment to be able to produce these dreamt-up electronic sounds. And finally they will show how the production of electronic music has moved from purpose-built laboratories to a music studio the size of a laptop.

Find out more on the Oramics Machine Facebook page.

Oramics to Electronica is part of the Public History Project, which aims to explore how visitors understand the history of science and to develop a new collaborative approach to developing exhibitions. This is a novel type of exhibition for the Science Museum, filled with objects that will fascinate enthusiasts, families and adults alike."

Don't miss The Oramics Machine for iOS coming soon.