Dubreq Stylophone
Encyclopedia
Stylus
A stylus is a writing utensil, or a small tool for some other form of marking or shaping, for example in pottery. The word is also used for a computer accessory . It usually refers to a narrow elongated staff, similar to a modern ballpoint pen. Many styli are heavily curved to be held more easily...
-operated synthesizer invented in 1967 by Brian Jarvis and going in to production in 1968. It consists of a metal keyboard
Musical keyboard
A musical keyboard is the set of adjacent depressible levers or keys on a musical instrument, particularly the piano. Keyboards typically contain keys for playing the twelve notes of the Western musical scale, with a combination of larger, longer keys and smaller, shorter keys that repeats at the...
played by touching it with a stylus — each note being connected to a voltage-controlled oscillator
Electronic oscillator
An electronic oscillator is an electronic circuit that produces a repetitive electronic signal, often a sine wave or a square wave. They are widely used in innumerable electronic devices...
via a different-value resistor
Resistor
A linear resistor is a linear, passive two-terminal electrical component that implements electrical resistance as a circuit element.The current through a resistor is in direct proportion to the voltage across the resistor's terminals. Thus, the ratio of the voltage applied across a resistor's...
- thus closing a circuit. The only other controls were a power switch and a vibrato control on the front panel beside the keyboard, and a tuning control on the rear. Some three million Stylophones were sold, mostly as children's toys.
The Stylophone was available in three variants: standard, bass and treble, the standard one being by far the most common. There was also a larger version called the 350S with more notes on the keyboard, various voices, a novel 'wah-wah' effect that was controlled by moving one's hand over a photo-sensor, and two styluses.
In the mid-70s a new model appeared which featured a fake wooden effect on the speaker panel, and, more importantly, a volume control. (Previous Stylophones had been infamous for being too loud in quiet situations). This was shortly before the Stylophone ceased production altogether in 1975.
Rolf Harris
Rolf Harris
Rolf Harris, CBE, AM is an Australian musician, singer-songwriter, composer, painter and television personality.Born in Perth, Western Australia, Harris was a champion swimmer before studying art. He moved to England in 1952, where he started to appear on television programmes on which he drew the...
appeared for several years as the Stylophone's advertising
Advertising
Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common...
spokesman in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and appeared on many "play-along" records sold by the manufacturer.
Usage
The earliest known recording of the Stylophone was used by Rolf HarrisRolf Harris
Rolf Harris, CBE, AM is an Australian musician, singer-songwriter, composer, painter and television personality.Born in Perth, Western Australia, Harris was a champion swimmer before studying art. He moved to England in 1952, where he started to appear on television programmes on which he drew the...
on his 1969 live concert album released only in the UK called "Rolf Harris Live at the Talk of the Town", a London nightclub. After he demonstrates it for the audience, it's used on two songs, "Moon River
Moon River
"Moon River" is a song composed by Johnny Mercer and Henry Mancini in 1961, for whom it won that year's Academy Award for Best Original Song. It was originally sung in the movie Breakfast at Tiffany's by Audrey Hepburn, although it has been covered by many other artists...
" and "Let the Rest of the World Go By".
The Stylophone also appears on a few better-known commercial recordings, most notably David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
's "Space Oddity" and "Slip Away
Slip Away
"Slip Away" is a song written by David Bowie for the album Heathen in 2002. This is a tribute to Uncle Floyd and it was originally intended with that name for the unreleased album Toy in 2001.-Live versions:...
" and the commercial rave
Rave
Rave, rave dance, and rave party are parties that originated mostly from acid house parties, which featured fast-paced electronic music and light shows. At these parties people dance and socialize to dance music played by disc jockeys and occasionally live performers...
single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
"Stylophonia" by Two Little Boys in 1992. Irish experimental folk group Dr. Strangely Strange
Dr. Strangely Strange
Dr. Strangely Strange were an experimental Irish folk group, formed in Dublin in 1967 by Tim Booth , vocals and guitar, and Ivan Pawle bass and keyboards.-Career:...
used the instrument on their 1969 debut album Kip of the Serenes. Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk is an influential electronic music band from Düsseldorf, Germany. The group was formed by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider in 1970, and was fronted by them until Schneider's departure in 2008...
used the Stylophone on the track "Pocket Calculator" from their album Computer World
Computer World
Computer World is the eighth studio album by the German electronic music band Kraftwerk, released in May 1981. The album deals with the themes of the rise of computers within society. Critics see this album as a peak in the career of Kraftwerk, along with Autobahn and Trans-Europe Express...
in their middle era. The British duo Erasure
Erasure
Erasure are an English synthpop duo, consisting of songwriter and keyboardist Vince Clarke and singer Andy Bell. Erasure entered the music scene in 1985 with their debut single "Who Needs Love Like That"...
also employed it on the single "Don't Say Your Love Is Killing Me" (from the album Cowboy
Cowboy (album)
Cowboy is an album recorded by Erasure in 1997 and released by Mute Records in the UK. In the U.S., it was released by Madonna's former label Maverick Records...
in 1997) as well as on their 2000 album Loveboat. In a lesser-known instance, the Stylophone is used for the bulk of Orbital
Orbital (band)
Orbital are a British electronic dance music duo from Sevenoaks, England consisting of brothers Phil and Paul Hartnoll. Their career initially ran from 1989 until 2004, but in 2009 they announced that they would be reforming and headlining The Big Chill, in addition to a number of other live shows...
's 1999 single, "Style
Style (Orbital song)
"Style" is a 1999 single by the electronica duo Orbital. It was their fourth consecutive single, and fifth overall, to reach the top 20 of the UK singles chart, peaking at number 13....
". Marilyn Manson
Marilyn Manson
Marilyn Manson may refer to:* Marilyn Manson , an American rock musician* Marilyn Manson , the American rock band led by the singer of the same name...
made use of it for "You and Me and the Devil Makes 3". The American band They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years Flansburgh and Linnell were frequently accompanied by a drum machine. In the early 1990s, TMBG became a full band. Currently, the members of TMBG are...
played the Stylophone in several of their songs, including "The Cap'm" and "Bee of the Bird of the Moth" on their 2007 album, The Else
The Else
The Else is the 12th studio album by rock duo They Might Be Giants, released by Idlewild Records in 2007. The album was produced in part by The Dust Brothers, along with Pat Dillett and the band....
. Jon Spencer has used the Stylophone extensively on recordings with his band Blues Explosion, and has famously had problems bringing the device — described as "the world's most annoying musical instrument" — through airport security. Korn
Korn
Korn is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The current band line up includes four members: Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Ray Luzier. The band was formed as an expansion of L.A.P.D.The band released their first demo album,...
used the instrument on their seventh studio album, 2005's See You on the Other Side, during the introduction of its thirteenth track, "Seen It All". Umphrey's McGee
Umphrey's McGee
Umphrey's McGee is an American progressive rock jam band based in Chicago whose music is often referred to as "progressive improvisation", or "improg" ....
guitarist Jake Cinninger
Jake Cinninger
Jake Cinninger, born Jacob Alan Cinninger, December 16, 1975 in Niles, Michigan, is an American musician. He has risen to fame as one of two lead guitarists, in the Chicago-based jam band Umphrey's McGee.-History:...
has used the instrument during live performances. Swedish producer Mattias Olsson (Roth Händle studios) uses the Stylophone and the 350s prominently in his productions of Pineforest Crunch, Vijaya and Andreas & Jag. UK punk/reggae band SLC Black Ops use stylophones heavily in their recordings, notably "Nat Turner", "Let Me Go (Nazi Pigs)", "Stalwart Curmudgeons (There's No I-talism in Capitalism)" and "The Real Survival Horror".
American jazz saxophonist Rahsaan Roland Kirk
Rahsaan Roland Kirk
Rahsaan Roland Kirk was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist who played tenor saxophone, flute and many other instruments...
played Stylophone on a 1969 live performance of "I Say a Little Prayer
I Say a Little Prayer
"I Say a Little Prayer" is a song written by songwriters Burt Bacharach and Hal David for Dionne Warwick, originally peaking at number four on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart in December 1967.-Background:...
".
The Stylophone is also listed as being played by Jack White
Jack White (musician)
Jack White , often credited as Jack White III, is an American musician, songwriter, record producer and occasional actor...
on the 2008 album Consolers of the Lonely
Consolers of the Lonely
Consolers of the Lonely is the second album of The Raconteurs. It was released on March 25, 2008 on Warner Bros. Records in most parts of the world, and a day earlier on XL Recordings in the UK....
by the American band The Raconteurs
The Raconteurs
The Raconteurs is an American rock band that was formed in Detroit, Michigan, featuring four members known for other musical projects: Jack White , Brendan Benson , Jack Lawrence , and Patrick Keeler .-Formation:The...
. While on tour in 2008, The Raconteurs' merchandise booths included Stylophones as something to be purchased by concert-goers. In addition to this, in 2009 they held a contest through their website in which people would cover their songs, via YouTube videos, using a Stylophone. More recently, British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
band Los Campesinos!
Los Campesinos!
Los Campesinos! are a seven piece indie pop band from Cardiff, Wales, formed in early 2006 at Cardiff University. Although the band formed in Wales, none of its members are Welsh. They released their debut album, Hold on Now, Youngster..., in February 2008 and followed this up by releasing a record...
used the Stylophone in the song "Ways to Make It Through the Wall" on their latest album We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed
We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed
We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed is the second full-length record from Cardiff-based seven-piece Los Campesinos!. It was released in the UK on 27 October 2008 on Wichita Recordings. The band does not consider We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed to be their second album, instead considering it a...
, as well as Flight of the Conchords
Flight of the Conchords
Flight of the Conchords are a New Zealand-based comedy duo composed of Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement. The duo's comedy and music became the basis of a BBC radio series and then an American television series, which premiered in 2007 on HBO, also called Flight of the Conchords.They were named...
on the song "Demon Woman" off their 2nd album I Told You I Was Freaky.
The more versatile 350s version of the instrument was used by UK experimentalists
Experimental music
Experimental music refers, in the English-language literature, to a compositional tradition which arose in the mid-20th century, applied particularly in North America to music composed in such a way that its outcome is unforeseeable. Its most famous and influential exponent was John Cage...
Camberwell Now
Camberwell Now
Camberwell Now were formed in London in 1982 after the demise of This Heat featuring one of the founders of that group, drummer and vocalist Charles Hayward, bassist and vocalist Trefor Goronwy, who had joined This Heat to replace Gareth Williams after the latter had quit the band, and This Heat's...
, and appeared on their album All's Well. The 350s dual-stylus version was also extensively used as a lead instrument by British band Pulp
Pulp (band)
Pulp are an English alternative rock band formed in Sheffield in 1978. Their lineup consists of Jarvis Cocker , Russell Senior , Candida Doyle , Mark Webber , Steve Mackey and Nick Banks ....
from 1992 to 1994. Its glacial tones are particularly evident on their breakthrough album His 'n' Hers
His 'n' Hers
His 'n' Hers is the fourth studio album by Pulp and is commonly cited as the band's breakthrough album, reaching #9 in the UK charts. In 1998, Q magazine readers voted it the 70th greatest album of all time. A "deluxe edition" of His 'n' Hers was released on 11 September 2006. It contained a second...
(most notably the songs "Happy Endings" and "Pink Glove") whilst the 1993 album, Intro, features a track called "Styloroc (Nites of Surburbia)" which revolves around a riff played on the first model. Pop/rocker Richard Barone
Richard Barone
Richard Barone is a rock musician born in Tampa, Florida who gained attention as frontman for The Bongos. He works as a songwriter, arranger, author, director, and producer, releases albums as a solo artist, tours, and has created major concert events at Carnegie Hall, Hollywood Bowl and New York's...
features the 350s prominently on his 2010 album "Glow" (Bar/None Records
Bar/None Records
Bar/None Records is an independent record label based in Hoboken, New Jersey.-Early history:Tom Prendergast started Bar/None in early 1986. Having previously worked in pirate radio and booked and promoted bands in his native Ireland, Prendergast moved to Hoboken in 1982 and started Pier Platters...
), particularly on the title track, its instrumental reprise, and cover of T.Rex's "Girl," on which it is played by producer Tony Visconti
Tony Visconti
Anthony Edward Visconti is an American record producer and sometimes a musician or singer.Since the late 1960s, he has worked with an array of performers; his lengthiest involvement with any artist is with David Bowie: intermittently from Bowie's 1969 album Space Oddity to 2003's Reality, Visconti...
.
British electro artist Little Boots
Little Boots
Victoria Christina Hesketh, also known by her stage name/pseudonym Little Boots, is an English electropop singer-songwriter. Her stage name comes from a nickname given to her by a friend, a reference to her unusually small feet...
uses the Stylophone in many of her songs, often during live performances. The Stylophone has also been used by Mira Aroyo of Ladytron during live performances. Also Roger Taylor
Roger Meddows-Taylor
Roger Meddows Taylor , known as Roger Taylor, is a British musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as the drummer, backing vocalist and occasional lead vocalist of British rock band Queen. As a drummer he is known for his "big" unique sound and is considered one of...
's single The Unblinking Eye features a brief Stylophone solo and the 1998 Moloko
Moloko
Moloko were an Anglo-Irish electronic/pop duo consisting of Róisín Murphy from Wicklow, Ireland and Mark Brydon, from Sunderland, England.- Origin of band name :...
album I Am Not A Doctor
I Am Not a Doctor
I Am Not a Doctor is the second album from the electronic/dance duo Moloko, released in 1998. Upon release the album received critical praise, although it was not a big seller. I Am Not a Doctor was issued in the UK via Echo Records...
features the instrument in the song 'Stylophone Pet.'
British youtube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
Musician Brett Domino
Brett Domino
Brett Domino is the alter-ego of Youtube musician Rob J. Madin. As Brett Domino, he is a musician, internet celebrity and TV presenter from Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. He is best known for his YouTube videos, in which he plays mostly covers and medleys of popular songs on the Stylophone and...
uses the stylophone in almost all of his videos, live performances and recordings.
2007 revival
The dubreq.co.uk website also lists an upcoming product codenamed S2. The page features a silhouette
Silhouette
A silhouette is the image of a person, an object or scene consisting of the outline and a basically featureless interior, with the silhouetted object usually being black. Although the art form has been popular since the mid-18th century, the term “silhouette” was seldom used until the early decades...
of the product which looks somewhat like the existing Stylophones, along with the text "The product that dübreq Ltd have been working on since 2002 and which is getting ever closer to fruition. The S2 will be the ultimate incarnation of the pocket synth and will take Stylophonic music to another level". Although there was some speculation that this product might be the forthcoming Stylophone BeatBox, a Dubreq director recently explained that this is not the case; the S2 will be an advanced version of the S1 with added sounds and extended keyboard range.
In popular culture
In the Doctor WhoDoctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
audio drama Horror of Glam Rock
Horror of Glam Rock
Horror of Glam Rock is an audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. This audio drama was produced by Big Finish Productions and was broadcast on BBC 7 on 14 January 2007.-Plot:...
, a glam rocker in 1974 is contacted by aliens through his Stylophone, and playing a certain tune on the instrument summons the aliens to Earth. The play includes an original song (composed by Tim Sutton and performed by Stephen Gately
Stephen Gately
Stephen Patrick David Gately was an Irish pop singer–songwriter, actor, dancer, musician and author, who, with Ronan Keating, was one of two lead singers of the pop group Boyzone. All of Boyzone's studio albums hit number one in the United Kingdom, their third being their most successful...
and Clare Buckfield
Clare Buckfield
Clare Buckfield is an English actress, best known for playing the role of Jenny Porter in the BBC sitcom 2point4 children for most of the nineties and Natasha Stevens in the CBBC series Grange Hill.-Biography:...
) which heavily features the Stylophone.
In the UK TV series Green Wing
Green Wing
Green Wing is a British sitcom set in the fictional East Hampton Hospital. It was created by the same team behind the sketch show Smack the Pony, led by Victoria Pile, and stars Tamsin Greig, Stephen Mangan and Julian Rhind-Tutt....
episode "Slave Auction", Boyce
Boyce (Green Wing)
Boyce is a character in the British sitcom Green Wing, played by Oliver Chris.- History :Boyce is a medical student at East Hampton Hospital. He is currently being trained as a doctor by the more senior members, including Dr...
(Oliver Chris
Oliver Chris
Oliver Chris is an English actor from Tunbridge Wells.-Early life:He passed his Eleven plus exam and attended Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys before moving to the Michael Hall Steiner School in his fourth year. He later attended the Central School of Speech and Drama...
) is seen playing the Soft Cell
Soft Cell
Soft Cell are an English synthpop duo who came to prominence in the early 1980s. They consist of vocalist Marc Almond and instrumentalist David Ball. The duo is most widely known for their 1981 worldwide hit version of "Tainted Love" and platinum debut Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret...
version of the song "Tainted Love
Tainted Love
"Tainted Love" is a song composed by Ed Cobb, formerly of The Four Preps, which was originally recorded by Gloria Jones in 1965. It attained worldwide fame after being covered by Soft Cell in 1981, reaching number one in the UK Singles Chart, and has since been covered by numerous groups and...
" on a Stylophone.
BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
film critic Mark Kermode
Mark Kermode
Mark Kermode is an English film critic, musician and a member of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. He contributes to Sight and Sound magazine, The Observer newspaper and BBC Radio 5 Live, where he presents Kermode and Mayo's Film Reviews with Simon Mayo on Friday afternoons...
played a Stylophone on the 8 January 2010 instalment of his and Simon Mayo
Simon Mayo
Simon Mayo is an English radio presenter who has worked for BBC Radio since 1981. As of January 2010, Mayo is presenter of Simon Mayo Drivetime on BBC Radio 2 and, with Mark Kermode, presenter of Kermode and Mayo's Film Reviews on BBC Radio 5 Live.In 2008, Mayo was recognised as the "radio...
’s film review programme. Kermode described recently learning how to play the instrument.
On the 5 March 2010 edition of his Kermode Uncut vodcast, Kermode played a rendition of Richard Strauss
Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
' Sunrise
Also sprach Zarathustra (Richard Strauss)
Also sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30 is a tone poem by Richard Strauss, composed in 1896 and inspired by Friedrich Nietzsche's philosophical treatise of the same name. The composer conducted its first performance on 27 November 1896 in Frankfurt...
on the Stylophone in homage to Duncan Jones
Duncan Jones
Duncan Zowie Haywood Jones , also known as Zowie Bowie is an English film director, best known for directing the science fiction films Moon and Source Code .-Childhood and family life:...
' film Moon.
In the news quiz Have I Got News For You
Have I Got News for You
Have I Got News for You is a British television panel show produced by Hat Trick Productions for the BBC. It is based loosely on the BBC Radio 4 show The News Quiz, and has been broadcast since 1990, currently the BBC's longest-ever running television panel show...
episode hosted by Rolf Harris he used a Stylophone to play two tunes used as clues to a news story.
Renowned musician Jean Michel Jarre
Jean Michel Jarre
Jean Michel André Jarre is a French composer, performer and music producer. He is a pioneer in the electronic, ambient and New Age genres, and known as an organiser of outdoor spectacles of his music featuring lights, laser displays, and fireworks.Jarre was raised in Lyon by his mother and...
used one in his 2010 world tour.
Musician Charlie McDonnell
Charlie McDonnell
Charles Joseph "Charlie" McDonnell is a British vlogger and musician from Bath, Somerset, England. , his YouTube channel, charlieissocoollike, is the most subscribed in the UK...
uses the Stylophone in a lot of his music.
Stylophonia is a track from Amadeus Mozart and Guy Garrett as known as Two Little Boys, this is a electronic music project from the 90's. The Track called Stylophonia not include any sound from Stylophone, but it include the Rolf Harris picture in the sleeve cover of the vinyl release with a Stylophone in his hand.
At approximately the 35minute mark in the cult film
Cult film
A cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a highly devoted but specific group of fans. Often, cult movies have failed to achieve fame outside the small fanbases; however, there have been exceptions that have managed to gain fame among mainstream audiences...
Repo Man the character Otto (played by Emilio Estévez
Emilio Estevez
Emilio Estevez is an American actor, film director, and writer. He started his career as an actor and is well-known for being a member of the acting Brat Pack of the 1980s, starring in The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire...
) can be seen playing a Stylophone while leaning against a phone booth in which the character Bud (Harry Dean Stanton
Harry Dean Stanton
Harry Dean Stanton is an American actor, musician, and singer. Stanton's career has spanned over fifty years, which has seen him star in such films as Paris, Texas, Kelly's Heroes, Dillinger, Alien, Repo Man, The Last Temptation of Christ, Wild at Heart, The Green Mile and The Pledge...
) is engaged in a phone conversation.