Museum of Science and Industry

The computer system which helped create many of the distinctive sounds of Manchester bands such as The Fall, The Charlatans and The Inspiral Carpets, has now made history itself and has been donated to MOSI to help tell the story of the music industry.

The digital music set-up, which was owned by Stockport-based musician Julia Adamson, has gone on display in MOSI's Collections Centre in time for the 'Year of Computer' celebrations during the Easter holidays (9 April - 2 May 2011). Key items include a 1985 Atari 520ST - the first home computer to have built-in MIDI ports so it could be connected to electronic musical instruments - and an Akai S1000 professional digital sampler, which was introduced in 1988 and allowed the user to store and edit music samples.

Julia used this equipment whilst working at Strawberry Studios in Stockport, where she was the first woman sound engineer. It was used on recording sessions by many Manchester bands and is probably responsible for the distinctive percussion sounds in the opening to The Charlatans' hit song The Only One I Know, as well as the drum loops in The Fall track Cyber Insekt. Julia used the kit when performing on stage with The Fall and it was also used by her ex-husband and record producer Chris Nagle, while he worked at Strawberry Studios.

Julia Adamson said: "Strawberry Studios was an important hub of music and it was a dream job, to be a sound engineer there with all these different sessions going on. The studio was massive and full of hardware. When you walked into the control room it was like being on the deck of the Starship Enterprise."

She explained: "In the past, the synthesiser could link in with a drum machine but the computer was a more sophisticated system. It could delay notes or bring notes forward, so you had more control. In The Charlatans' The Only One I know', for example, they would use it like a metronome to work with so they played in time and then could add strings to the sound too or other layers."

The digital music set-up will be on display in MOSI's Collections Centre as part of activities for the 2011 Year of Computer, which celebrates 60 years since the Ferranti Mark 1 - the world's first commercial computer. Visitors can take part in a variety of activities including a retro 'games lounge', design your own computer character or design a CD cover.

Meg McHugh, curator of Community history at MOSI said: "I'm delighted that Julia wanted to donate this music system to MOSI. It helped to create some of the most iconic sounds of Manchester, and is in itself an example of the first computer system which enabled the development of a new, sophisticated sound. It is now on display at MOSI so please do come along to see it and to take part in the computer-related activities which will go on during the Easter holidays."

With the advent of MIDI and in particular the Atari ST, programmers were able to write software that could record and play back the notes played by a musician. Unlike the early sequencers, which played mechanical sounding notes of exactly equal length, the new ones recorded and played back expressive performances by real musicians. These were typically used to control external synthesizers, especially rackmounted sound modules as it was no longer necessary for each synthesizer to have its own keyboard.

Julia has had a long career in music, which started when she was in St Winifred's
School choir. She went on to work as Martin Hannett's assistant and has been a
member of several bands including Blackout and What?Noise. She is now the manager of Invisiblegirl Records.

Easter events for Year of Computer run from 9 April - 2 May 2011. For more details please ask on arrival or call 0161 832 2244.
For more information on MOSI look up www.mosi.org.uk and for information on Invisible Girl records look up www.invisiblegirl.co.uk

For media enquiries please contact: Sarah Roe, MOSI press and publicity officer on Tel: 0161 606 0176, m: 07847 372647

Notes to editors

• For more information on museums and galleries in Manchester:

Creativetourist.com is an online magazine, a series of city guides and a collaborative project that has been put together by Manchester Museums Consortium, a group of eight museums and galleries - Cornerhouse, Imperial War Museum North, The Lowry, Manchester Art Gallery, The Manchester Museum, (MOSI) Museum of Science & Industry, People's History Museum, and The Whitworth Art Gallery - in Manchester.  These venues have a dual vision: the desire to stage intelligent, thought-provoking and international exhibitions and events and to celebrate the city in which they live, work and play. Creativetourist.com, with its mix of exclusive features, interviews, arts news and city guides, allows readers to discover more about what's happening in the city, uncover its outstanding cultural programme and collections, and perhaps come to be as passionate about Manchester as its inhabitants.

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