Make a note: Harmony Writer display opens with reception
It may look like a manual typewriter, but strikes of its keys produce musical notes — sharps, flats and treble clefs.
Called a Harmony Writer, the vintage machine is on display in Lee University’s Music Resource Center. A reception tonight, Sept. 8, on the Cleveland, Tenn., campus will show what it can do.
Laud Vaught, music resource coordinator at Lee, explains that this customized typewriter for music composition was used for more than three decades before the development of Finale, considered the world standard in music notation software.
“It’s nice to be reminded that resourceful and imaginative people have always found a way to accomplish significant things — even before the computer age,” says Vaught. “This customized typewriter, the Harmony Writer, designed to imprint music for publication, is truly a case in point, and attendees at the reception will hear about its inventor and its use in the industry and also have the opportunity to use it firsthand.”
According to Vaught, there will be a brief reception to officially present the display, which also includes other instruments handmade by the inventor, Garland A. Bailey. The evening will include a demo performance on the instruments by current and former Lee students and an interview with the inventor’s son, Luchen Bailey, as well as Jack Clark, who made his living with the machine, typesetting music for Nashville publishers.
The reception is set for 7 to 8 p.m. in the Curtsinger Music Building on Parker Street. Admission is free. Refreshments will be served.
For more information, email lvaught@leeuniversity.edu.