History 

Mandy Wigby is a key figure in the creative music ecology of Manchester and beyond.

She is an electronic musician, composer, producer and educator based in Manchester UK.  As part of the Manchester music scene, she was voted into an exhibition by the Manchester Digital Music Archive project, Rebel Music,  whose aim was to spotlight the achievements of women and the LGBT+ community. ( Photo above). 

In 1988, Mandy relocated to Manchester for sound engineering studies at Spirit. She embraced the emergence of acid house and rave culture and contributed to the renowned ‘Out Of The Blue’ studio. Here, she assisted and tape oped in recording sessions for Inspiral Carpets’ ‘Life,‘ album, James ‘Goldmother’, early Oasis and  Verve demos, and various dance music ventures including Bizarre Inc. She even sang and performed ‘Magical Dream’ from 808 State’s ’90’ album with them at Cities in the Park in 91 where they performed with band including  New Order, De La Soul and Happy Mondays .

Her time at the studio created numerous opportunities and enduring bonds for Mandy. She later engaged as a keyboardist with notable figures like Justin Robertson (Lionrock) and Phil France (Cinematic Orchestra). Mandy co-founded The Sugar Merchants (Audioweb) and Sisters Of Transistors alongside the iconic Graham Massey (808 State). She also formed the duo Danger Diabolik with talented Swiss musician Sib Vey and Phoney with multi- instrumentalist Adam Piper and pioneering DJs Kath Mcdermott and Philippa Jarman from Flesh/Homo Electric club nights.

 Five years on the road with Sisters of Transistors, an album echoing an original and inventive spirit ‘At The Ferranti Institute’ was launched in 2009 on Simian Mobile Disco’s imprint, ‘This is Music.’ Mandy also contributed writing to the Lionrock album “ City Delirious”. The album yielded the infectious single ‘Rude Boy Rock ‘ and went to number 19 in the charts in 1998 resulting in a US and European tour, and featured in the video game FIFA 99 as well as on the 199 film ‘Idle Hands’. 

Currently weaving her musical threads as one half of the duo Architects of Rosslyn, and D.N.W, she has worked on various multimedia projects, and live cinema performances. AoR have collaborated with innovative artist, inventor and filmmaker Di Mainstone, conjuring sonics on multiple sound art projects.

In 2018 Di invited Mandy to be musical director for her award-winning film ‘Time Bascule’, commissioned by Tower Bridge to mark its 125th Anniversary. The film reimagines Tower Bridge as a giant musical instrument, blending fantasy and reality through a fairytale-esque story of Hannah Griggs, a cook, pioneering gardener and first woman to be employed at the landmark from 1911-1915. The film explores themes of sustainability, ecology, nature, community, and creativity. Her most recent work with Di was to co-create music for ‘Radical Rooms’ Installation @RIBA with Mainstone & architect Charles Holland in 2022.

Guided by her love for film and sound experimentation, Mandy found herself nominated for the Famlab 2018 Music, Film, and Archive residency. This global odyssey was propelled by the British Council, BFI, and Sensoria Festival. There, she wove music into archive film, creating bonds with international composers,  Sensoria Film Festival and the British Council.

Her music and collaborations feature also in films, such as ‘My son the fanatic’  and on BBC TV and radio shows. As a guest appearing on BBC 6 Music’s ‘Freakier Zone’ hosted by Stuart Maconie, Mandy delved into her more freaky tastes in film soundtracks and experimental music, sharing from her record collection.

An advocate of equality and music for all, Mandy’s wider work includes delivering music technology projects that seek to connect and empower both community and artists. 

Bands  (coming soon)

Commissions 

Education