Published: August 14, 2026 | Reading Time: 7 minutes

What is a Stylophone? History, How It Works & How to Play

The stylophone is one of the most recognisable sounds of 20th-century popular music — yet many people have heard it dozens of times without knowing what it is. That buzzing, slightly nasal electronic tone on David Bowie's Space Oddity? That's a stylophone. The quirky electronic melody on Kraftwerk's early recordings? Stylophone again.

Invented in 1967 and launched in 1968, the stylophone is a miniature electronic keyboard played with a metal stylus — a toy-like instrument with an unmistakable sound that has appeared on some of the most iconic recordings of the past 60 years.

What is a Stylophone?

A stylophone is a miniature electronic instrument with a metal keyboard and a metal stylus (a pen-like pointer). When the stylus touches one of the keyboard contacts, it completes an electrical circuit that activates an oscillator — producing a note. The pitch of the note is determined by which contact is touched.

The instrument is about the size of a thick paperback book. The original Dubreq Model 1 stylophone (1968) had 20 notes covering 1.5 chromatic octaves, a single volume knob, a vibrato switch, and a small built-in speaker. It ran on a 9-volt battery.

Because the stylus slides freely across the metal contacts, the player can produce glissandos (sliding between notes) effortlessly — a characteristic sound of stylophone playing. Unlike piano keys, the stylophone's contacts are simply flat metal strips, allowing the stylus to rest on two contacts simultaneously, creating a buzzing effect between adjacent notes.

History of the Stylophone

Invention (1967)

The stylophone was invented by Brian Jarvis and launched by the Dubreq company in London in 1968. It was designed primarily as an affordable, accessible instrument for children — a pocket-sized electronic keyboard anyone could pick up and play immediately without any musical training.

Dubreq enlisted Rolf Harris — an Australian entertainer hugely popular in the UK at the time — as the stylophone's celebrity endorser. Harris appeared in television advertisements playing the stylophone enthusiastically, famously asking "Can you play one?" The campaign was enormously effective. The stylophone became one of the defining novelty instruments of the late 1960s and 1970s, with over 3 million units sold.

Space Oddity (1969)

In 1969, producer Gus Dudgeon included a stylophone in the orchestration of David Bowie's Space Oddity. The instrument's thin, slightly synthetic tone was perfect for the song's space-age theme. Bowie became associated with the stylophone in popular imagination, despite not playing it himself on that original recording (Bowie later did learn to play it and used it in live performances).

The association with Bowie transformed the stylophone from novelty toy to cult instrument. Its presence on one of the most famous songs in rock history gave it a cultural legitimacy that has sustained interest in the instrument for decades.

Kraftwerk and electronic music (1970s)

Kraftwerk incorporated the stylophone into their early recordings, alongside other primitive electronic instruments. The stylophone's raw oscillator sound — before synthesizers became sophisticated — had a lo-fi quality that appealed to experimenters in early electronic music.

Revival (2007–present)

In 2007, a new company acquired the Dubreq brand and relaunched the stylophone in its original form as the S1. They subsequently introduced the Stylophone Gen X-1 (with filter, distortion, and envelope controls) and the Stylophone 350S (a professional-grade polyphonic version). Indie and electronic artists rediscovered the instrument, and it has appeared in recordings by Kraftwerk, Orbital, Beck, and many others.

How the Stylophone Works — Technically

The stylophone's operation is elegantly simple:

• Oscillator circuit: A single oscillator (in the original) generates a square wave at a fixed base frequency.
• Resistor ladder: Each key contact connects to the oscillator through a resistor of slightly different value. Touching a contact changes the total resistance in the circuit, which changes the oscillator's frequency — producing a different pitch.
• Vibrato: The vibrato switch connects a low-frequency oscillator that modulates the pitch oscillator, creating a warbling effect.
• Amplification: The oscillator output passes through a small amplifier to the built-in speaker and/or headphone/output jack.

Famous Recordings Featuring the Stylophone

How to Play the Stylophone

The stylophone is one of the easiest instruments to get started on. There is no embouchure, no bow technique, no fret positions — you simply touch the metal stylus to the keyboard contacts.

Basic technique:

• Hold the stylophone in your non-dominant hand, with the keyboard facing you and the speaker/output at the top.
• Hold the stylus in your dominant hand like a pen, connected to the body via the thin wire tether.
• Touch contacts firmly — light contact can produce crackling or intermittent notes. Firm contact is needed for clean notes.
• Slide for glissandos — run the stylus across multiple contacts for an effortless slide effect.
• Use vibrato — the vibrato switch adds the wavering pitch modulation characteristic of classic stylophone recordings.

Stylophone vs Other Electronic Instruments

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the stylophone a toy or a real instrument?

Both. It was designed as a toy but has been used as a serious instrument on significant recordings since 1969. Its "toy" status is part of its appeal — the lo-fi sound is intentional when used by artists who know what they are doing. Many professional musicians collect and use stylophones specifically for their distinctive, unpolished character.

Can you play chords on a stylophone?

Not with the original stylophone — it is monophonic (one note at a time). The Stylophone 350S (a more expensive professional model) is polyphonic. On the virtual stylophone, keyboard shortcuts allow chord playing on desktop.

What happened to Dubreq?

Dubreq, the original manufacturer, ceased production in the 1970s as the novelty market moved on. The brand was acquired and revived in 2007 by Benjamin Jarvis (son of inventor Brian Jarvis), who relaunched the S1 in the original form and subsequently expanded the product range to include modern variants with added electronic features.

Conclusion

The stylophone occupies a unique place in instrument history — designed as a toy, adopted by some of the most important artists of the 20th century, and possessing a sound so distinctive that it has never been completely replaced by more sophisticated technology. Its lo-fi square wave has an honesty that appeals to musicians across genres. Whether you know it from Bowie, from Kraftwerk, or from a corner of a charity shop — the stylophone rewards the few minutes it takes to learn to play it.

Start playing now: Open Virtual Stylophone → Free, no download. Works on mobile and desktop.

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