Exploring the Theremin

    I first heard the Theremin in 2015 in my Advanced Orchestra class. Clara Rockmore performed The Swan from "The Carnival of the Animals" and it not only inspired me to learn the song on my own instrument, but led me to fall in love with this quirky instrument. Leon Theremin created his masterpiece completely by accident! The Russian scientist was originally supposed to be creating a machine to monitor the densities of gasses but quickly realized he had created something else. This is how, in the middle of the Russian civil war, a revolutionary instrument was born!


    The instrument is played by moving your hands between two antenna. One to control Pitch and one to control volume. It is also monophonic because it can only produce one clear sound at a time. It has a wide range to it as well because of the users ability to manipulate the sound. On the modern version of the instrument there are many nobs that can adjust the pitch, brightness, and wave form of the instruments. Funnily enough, you can also perform vibrato on the Theremin just like a violinist would on a violin!

    From the time Rockmore played the Theremin to now, there have been many modifications to the instrument. Robert Moog started selling Theremins from his basement but that quickly grew to become Moog Music Inc. and Robert went on the create the Moog Synthesizer. Like Moog's synthesizer, the modern Theremin has knobs to adjust it's sound. You can adjust the pitch and brightness of the sound produced just like you can with the Moog and the Mini-Moog. Moog's company still sells thousands of Theremins even to this day. The instrument is still rare and people who can play it well are even more rare, despite this, the Theremin is a treat to listen to. I would like to challenge anyone willing to watch scary movies to try to pick out the Theremin's influence in the soundtracks. You might be surprised at the amount of horror films that utilize this unique sound!

Works Cited

 

“A Brief History of the Theremin.” Moogmusic.com, Moog Music, www.moogmusic.com/media/brief-history-theremin.

“The Theremin: A Strange Instrument, with a Strange History.” CBS News, CBS Interactive, 27 Oct. 2013, www.cbsnews.com/news/the-theremin-a-strange-instrument-with-a-strange-history/.


Comments

  1. se birch wrightOctober 14, 2020 at 11:14 PM


    That's wild that the theremin was invented during a science experiment. I had no idea it has been around that long either! My understanding is that the device is sitting there throwing out electrons and the player's body grounds the signal at different areas making different frequencies at different distances when completing a capacitor between the antenna and the hand. The Flaming Lips have some great songs that use one. Thanks for posting about such a cool instrument!

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  2. Farmgirl Fibers & ArtsOctober 15, 2020 at 5:09 PM

    What?! I didn't even know what a Theremin was until this post. That is so neat! I want one now! I was so intrigued that I watched more videos on the instrument. I found your post very interesting as I am always curious about new (new-to-me) instruments.
    I noticed that you didn't have a second contrasting video about the Theremin. What do the more modern Theremin look like now? You mentioned there being many modifications to the instrument since it's creation and I was curious to see if you added a second video to showcase that. Thank you for your post on this fantastic instrument. I am suddenly interested in learning to play one as I have been told I have a good ear.

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