Menu
FREE ART CONSULTATION
PreviewPreview AR previewAR preview Buy Print Buy PrintBuy Image Buy Image SendSend
DetailsDetails Add to favorites Add to favorites DownloadDownload SimilarsSimilars X-RayX-Ray DiaporamaDiaporama

Music Typewriter

Discover Arnold Schoenberg’s innovative 'Music Typewriter' (1909) – a complex mechanical blueprint showcasing his visionary design & engineering talent. A rare technical illustration.

Explore Arnold Schoenberg's revolutionary music – atonality, twelve-tone technique & influence on 20th-century composers. Discover his legacy at the Schönberg Center.

Hand Made Oil Reproduction

Hand-painted oil on canvas in your size and frame, made to order by our artists. (Buy Print Buy PrintBuy Image Buy Image)

P118B $10
P118H $10
P118W $10
P438Z $10
P508JH $12
P508YH $12
P805H $10
P805Z $10
P919BZ $10
P919G $10
P919XJ $10
P959ZH $10
P968JZ $12
W106C $8
W218G $10
W218JH $8
W218Y $10
W307PJ $10
W316G $10
W316PJ $8
W316Y $10
W398PJ $8
W4111J $10
W500HY $15
W500JH $15
W692G $12
W849H $8
W940BG $15
W953PJ $8

Standard
custom
CM
INCH

Pick from our preset sizes that match the artwork's original proportions.

width
height

You may enter your own dimensions to fit a specific frame or space. If your selected size does not match the original image's proportions, we will either crop the artwork or extend the painting with additional hand-painted elements. A digital mockup will be sent for your approval before production begins.
Please note that the on-screen preview does not reflect the actual cropping or extension. Only the mockup will accurately show the final composition.
While custom sizes are available, we recommend selecting a dimension from the predefined list to preserve the original proportions.

Examples of what can be changed: Replace face with customer photo; Add pet (e.g., replace cat with dog); Include hidden message in background; Change background landscape or elements.
After order, OriginalUniqueArt.com team will email client for instructions and provide a mockup preview

Worldwide Delivery () in 3/4 weeks instead of standard 5 weeks. (20 August). No compromise on quality.

why_choose_icon
Free Worldwide Express Shipping
why_choose_icon
High-Quality Linen Canvas
why_choose_icon
Full Shipping Insurance
why_choose_icon
Customs Tax Refund Guarantee
why_choose_icon
True Color Matching Guarantee
why_choose_icon
60-Day Return Policy (Defects Only)
why_choose_icon
100% Money-Back Guarantee
why_choose_icon
Bulk Discount Offer

Total Price

$ 300

reproduction

Music Typewriter

Reproduction Medium

Reproduction Size

-

Total Price

$ 300

Quick Facts

  • Movement: Avant-garde
  • Subject or theme: Musical engraving; Scribing machine
  • Notable elements or techniques: Complex mechanical design; Precise character placement; Electric motor operation
  • Year: 1909
  • Location: Arnold Schoenberg Center, Vienna
  • Title: Music Typewriter
  • Influences: Mechanical engineering

Art Quiz

There is only one correct answer for each question.

Question 1:
What is the primary material used in creating Arnold Schönberg’s ‘Music Typewriter’?
Question 2:
The design of the Music Typewriter incorporates a trapezoidal cross section for what purpose?
Question 3:
According to the description, why is tilting necessary when operating the Music Typewriter?
Question 4:
What was Arnold Schönberg’s belief about using an electric motor in this type of machine?
Question 5:
What artistic style is exemplified by the depiction of the Music Typewriter’s design?

Artwork Description

The music typewriter is based on the principle of a mechanical typewriter, it has a keyboard, levers which bear the type, and an ink ribbon. In order to be able to write scores with all the necessary characters, however, Schönberg had to extend and change the conventional design. The paper is not inserted into a roller, and a flat surface serves as a writing surface. It can be moved from left to right, upwards and downwards, turned in a circle around a midpoint and can also be tilted. In this way, every section of the writing surface can be reached with the utmost precision. Tilting is necessary because Schönberg designed the print head with a trapezoidal cross section in order to fit three characters on the type bars, and in order to keep the number of type bars – which is still an impressive 120 – within a reasonable limit. If operated electrically, several of these typewriters could be connected with each other. An expert typist, Schönberg believed, could produce small volumes of sheet music within a shorter amount of time, at lower cost and with a clearer print image than was previously possible. With an electric motor and rein­forced type bars, the machine could also be used for music engraving and in principle, if the design were altered, as a scribing machine as well. In April 1909 Schönberg submitted the patent specification which was not queried in principle, although several details were commented upon. His design seems intricate and the complexity of the key characters and dual functions requires the typist’s utmost concentration. However, this piece of equipment is anything but a technical fantasy or a fictitious machine. Arnold Schönberg’s music typewriter dated 1909 was never realised, but the designs show an enormous amount of imagination and mechanical talent.

Artist Biography

early life and musical beginnings

arnold schoenberg, an austrian-american composer, was born on september 13, 1874, in vienna, austria. his early life was marked by a humble beginning, with his father being a shoe-shopkeeper. despite this, schoenberg's innate passion for music led him to largely self-educate himself in the field. schoenberg's early works, such as verklärte nacht (1899), showcased a brahmsian–wagnerian synthesis. as he progressed, he became the central figure of the second viennese school, alongside anton webern and alban berg. his compositions, including string quartet no. 2 (1907–1908), erwartung (1909), and pierrot lunaire (1912), exemplified his innovative approach to atonality. schoenberg resigned from the prussian academy of arts in 1933 due to the nazi's rise to power, labeling his music as "degenerate." he then taught in the us, including at the university of california, los angeles (1936–1944), where facilities are named in his honor. [https://OriginalUniqueArt.com/@/arnold-schoenberg](discover more about schoenberg's life and works on OriginalUniqueArt). as the world learned of the holocaust, schoenberg memorialized its victims in a survivor from warsaw (1947). the israel conservatory and academy of music elected him honorary president in 1951. [https://OriginalUniqueArt.com/@@/a@d3bqc7-the-museum-destroyed-by-fire-(united-states)](learn more about the impact of his work on OriginalUniqueArt). key points: * schoenberg's innovative music was among the most influential and polemicized of 20th-century classical music. * at least three generations of composers extended its somewhat formal principles. * his aesthetic and music-historical views influenced musicologists theodor w. adorno and carl dahlhaus. [https://OriginalUniqueArt.com/@@/a@d3cl2x--a-journey-through-art-history-with-OriginalUniqueArt-s-extensive-collection-](explore the vast collection of art on OriginalUniqueArt, spanning from the 12th to the 20th century).
arnold schoenberg

arnold schoenberg

1874 - 1951 , Austria

Quick Facts

  • Artistic Movement Or Style: Twelve-tone technique; Expressionism
  • Artists Or Movements Influenced By This Artist:
    • Anton Webern
    • Alban Berg
  • Artists Who Influenced This Artist:
    • Johannes Brahms
    • Richard Wagner
  • Date Of Birth: September 13, 1874
  • Date Of Death: 1951
  • Full Name: Arnold Schoenberg
  • Nationality: Austrian-American
  • Notable Artworks:
    • Suite, op. 29
    • Music Typewriter
    • Staffliner
  • Place Of Birth: Vienna, Austria
Explore artworks organized by themes, styles, and characteristics.