Electronic music is young, and techno, even younger. Born in the 80s, it is a genre that focuses on rhythm and the use of sound synthesis to develop new timbres. By using electronic instruments, digital audio workstations, software emulators and more, artists build their music across long periods of time —sets instead of songs.
The vast majority of techno musicians prepare their sound in advance. This allows them to perform the same set many times fairly reliably. However, this is not the case for modular techno, which is performed by patching different elements of a modular synthesizer to make electrical signals evolve into rhythm and timbre in real time. This subgenre, which relies completely in improvisation, has been doing rounds for less than twenty years. There are not many people who work with it.
Cue Andrea Gill, a German musician born in the 60s. Before techno arrived, she got her music journey started with rock, playing the electric guitar. During the 80s, she became a DJ. The 90s made her fall in love with minimal techno, and when she returned to music one decade later, that love clashed with the widespread use of software. Finding it stiff and frustrating, she turned to modular synthesizers.
Her work gained traction until, at age 63, she debuted in the Awakenings Upclose festival 2026 under the name The Tunegirl. Her set caused a deep impression, which only grew when more people learned that she does not use pre-recorded tracks of any kind, but creates the sound on the spot by manipulating the modules of her synthesizer.
Each one of her sets is an ephemeral, unrepeatable experience.
Just as it happens in many other music genres, there are disproportionately less women than men making techno. It is also uncommon to find older women actively working as musicians outside of the realm of classical music. The Tunegirl’s highly experimental, technically complex work is a breath of fresh air that breaks stereotypes. Her sets might be ephemeral, but her impact in the music world will last a very long time!
You can learn more about her on this website.
