El Museu de la Música - Centre Robert Gerhard is screening Sisters with Transistors, a film that accurately portrays a narrative that has been ignored by a large part of the historiography of music and academic institutions: the foundation created by pioneering women in electronic music during the 20th century. From Clara Rockmore, Daphne Oram and Wendy Carlos to Éliane Radigue and Maryanne Amacher, the documentary provides a fascinating journey explained by the central figures themselves using archival material.
Along with the screening, the museum is also presenting an exhibition that brings together some of the central figures from Barcelona’s experimental scene. The composers Anna Bofill and Mercè Capdevila represent the starting point as pioneers in the field of electroacoustics during the 1970s. Outside the walls of sound laboratories, the city’s underground and experimental scene has been spurred on thanks to contributions from creators like Rosa Arruti (Nad Spiro), Barbara Held and Eli Gras.
From different starting points, each of these women has played a crucial role in crafting and enriching Barcelona’s musical scene. Just like Sisters with Transistors, these creators invite us to learn about a part of the city's musical history through their own experiences and materials. This is a story that has not been traditionally heard and is consequently unknown to the larger public. So, let’s open our ears and listen.
