Tom Lehrer

Tom Lehrer at an event, in 1967

Thomas Andrew Lehrer (April 9, 1928 – July 26, 2025) was an American comedic singer-songwriter, pianist and mathematician. Lehrer was known for his comic songs which were written in the 1950s and 1960s. His career was short, as he retired in the 1970s, in order to focus on teaching mathematics at Harvard University. His most known songs are "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park", and "The Elements", where Lehrer sang all the elements in the periodic table (at that time), to the tune of "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General", a song that was written by Gilbert and Sullivan for the stage show The Pirates of Penzance.

His work

Lehrer released a few albums in his years of work. Some were split from recordings from live concerts. Some were studio versions, recorded without an audience. The first of these albums was released in 1953. The last was released in 1965. There was also a stereo rerecording of the first album. Songs and More Songs by Tom Lehrer in 1996 put two albums together, including a few more songs. These albums are:

In 2022, Lehrer released his music into the public domain. They are free to download.

Mathematics

Lehrer earned his Bachelor of Arts in mathematics in 1946. He earned a master's degree the following year. He taught mathematics at many universities. Some of these are Harvard, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of California-Santa Cruz.

Death

Lehrer died on July 26, 2025 at his home in Cambridge, Massachusetts at the age of 97.

References

  1. 1 2 Severo, Richard; Keepnews, Peter (July 27, 2025). "Tom Lehrer, Musical Satirist With a Dark Streak, Dies at 97". The New York Times. Retrieved July 27, 2025.
  2. ↑ "Tom Lehrer Puts His Songs into the Public Domain & Makes Them Free to Download (for a Limited Time) | Open Culture". Retrieved 2023-03-12.
  3. ↑ Robinson, Andrew (2018-04-04). "Tom Lehrer at 90: a life of scientific satire". Nature. 556 (7699): 27–28. doi:10.1038/d41586-018-03922-x.