The Typewriter

"The Typewriter" is a short piece of light music by American composer Leroy Anderson. It uses a typewriter as a percussion instrument.

Typewriter

Composition

Anderson completed "The Typewriter" on October 9, 1950 in Woodbury, Connecticut.^[1] "The Typewriter" was first performed on September 8, 1953 during a recording Anderson and the Boston Pops Orchestra made in New York City for Decca Records.^[2] Anderson composed the melody for symphony and pops orchestras; William Zinn and Floyd Werle arranged it for string orchestras and wind bands.^[3]

Bell structure

It is named "The typewriter" because a real typewriter is needed to perform the piece. It uses three basic sounds of a typewriter: that of typing, the "bell" that indicates the end of a line, and the sound the typewriter makes when jumping to the next line. A bell is sometimes used for the end-of-line sound, the sound of the typewriter’s carriage returning is made by a musical gourd,^[4] flute, string or other instrument.^[5]

The typewriter for the performance was modified so that only two keys work to prevent the keys from jamming. According to the composer himself, as well as other musicians, the typewriter part is difficult because of how fast the typing speed is: even professional stenographers cannot do it, and only professional drummers have the necessary wrist flexibility.^[6]

The composition has been called one of "the wittiest and most clever pieces in the orchestral repertoire".^[7] Author Steve Metcalf has written that "Despite the almost total disappearance of typewriters in everyday life, the statistics show that "The Typewriter" is still a favorite Anderson item."^[8]

The typewriter is considered a percussion instrument.^[9] The typewriter part is usually performed by a percussionist or drummer, or rarely by the conductor.^[10][6]