Hello my name is Michael Kavanagh and on this Blog I will be talking about an innovation of Electronic Music; The Theremin.
What is a theremin you might ask? Well a theremin is the only musical instrument you play without touching. It was invented in 1920, in Russia, by Russian scientist Leon Thermin aka Lev Termen. It was originally known as the ‘Aetherphone’ and worked by a player moving their hands through two ‘fields’; volume and pitch, thus changing the tone being generated by the theremin. It was never commercially successful, but a few musicians were able to utilize it in their compositions, thus making it a success in it’s own way.
The Theremin’s most recognizable usage continues to be the howling electric tone utilized in the score of vintage science and horror films.
This also inspired other inventions such as the Ondes Martenot which was first patented in 1928 by Maurice Martenot, who had been inspired to create his device from a meeting with Leon Theremin; the creator of the Theremin.
The Theremin was originally used to play classical music, both transcriptions and original sheet music, but in today’s day and age the Theremin or derivatives of it are used in a lot of Hip-Hop music, sometimes even as a lead melody instrument and once discovered by film composers used in film as well. Some films Theremins were used in are ‘Spellbound’ and ‘The Day The Earth Stood Still’.
As a listener it draws me in because the Theremin to me provides and eerie and almost ‘spooky’ sound thus drawing me in. As an industry professional I also like it because I think it gives the score or arrangement of music a different feel, and I have also used the instrument in a few of my productions.
No comments:
Post a Comment