The theremin was invented in 1919 by a Russian physicist named Lev Termen. It is not like any other instrument, since it is played without being touched. Two antennas protrude from the theremin - one controlling pitch, and the other controlling volume. The electronic oscillators are tuned by hand capacity affects. As a hand approaches the vertical antenna, the pitch gets higher. Approaching the horizontal antenna makes the volume softer. They were originally built in the 1930's by RCA, GE & Westinghouse and found immediate use in the film industry because of their weird ethereal sounds. Robert Moog was building these in the 60's before the synthesizer.
Showing posts with label Weird. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Weird. Show all posts
Tuesday, 3 March 2009
The Theremin
The theremin was invented in 1919 by a Russian physicist named Lev Termen. It is not like any other instrument, since it is played without being touched. Two antennas protrude from the theremin - one controlling pitch, and the other controlling volume. The electronic oscillators are tuned by hand capacity affects. As a hand approaches the vertical antenna, the pitch gets higher. Approaching the horizontal antenna makes the volume softer. They were originally built in the 1930's by RCA, GE & Westinghouse and found immediate use in the film industry because of their weird ethereal sounds. Robert Moog was building these in the 60's before the synthesizer.
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