Warm birthday wishes are in order for composer and inventor Raymond Scott, who would have been 105 today. Best known as the go-to man for musical zaniness in the 50s and 60s—Looney Tunes purchased his entire back catalog for use in their cartoons—the Brooklyn-born Scott might be better remembered as one of the fathers of electronic music, responsible for such instruments as the Clavivox (co-designed by a young Bob Moog), the Videola (a film music recording tool), and, perhaps most impressively, the Electronium.
Designed to be an “electronic composing machine" and described by Scott as a “cockpit of dreams,” the hulking Electronium—bedecked with more buttons and switches than the dashboard of the Space Shuttle—is a partial inspiration for Questlove’s upcoming show at BAM, which will celebrate the history of electronic music as only the indelibly plugged-in drummer can.
We’ll have more to say about Scott later, but for now we say happy birthday, sir, wherever your current cockpit. Here's a video:
Designed to be an “electronic composing machine" and described by Scott as a “cockpit of dreams,” the hulking Electronium—bedecked with more buttons and switches than the dashboard of the Space Shuttle—is a partial inspiration for Questlove’s upcoming show at BAM, which will celebrate the history of electronic music as only the indelibly plugged-in drummer can.
We’ll have more to say about Scott later, but for now we say happy birthday, sir, wherever your current cockpit. Here's a video: