The writer is a computer engineer and a classically trained pianist and guitarist. He has been regularly writing IT articles, reviewing music albums, and covering concerts for more than 30 years.
One of the least known and
played instruments, the theremin is a unique musical instrument. It sounds like
no other. It perfectly illustrates the music-meets-technology concept, though,
in comparison to synthesizers, for example, it remains significantly simpler in
design.اضافة اعلان
There is no contact between the performer and the
instrument; it is the only instrument that one plays without physically
touching it. To put it in simple terms, the musician’s hands just move in the
air, one controlling the pitch (the note) and the other the amplitude (the
volume). It all takes place in the rectangular air space between the theremin’s
two antennas, the vertical antenna and the horizontal antenna.
I knew a couple of things about the instrument: that it all
started when Russian inventor Leon Theremin designed the early model back in
the 1920s; that avant-garde French composer Jean-Michel Jarre had used it in
his “Oxygène” and “Equinoxe” pieces in the 1970s; and that the Ondes Martenot
is a distant cousin to the theremin. But its heavenly sound had always
fascinated me, and I wanted to learn more about it.
An opportunity came knocking at my door a few days ago when
a friend sent me the link to a YouTube video that featured renowned Jordanian
French soprano Dima Bawab interpreting the Stabat Mater by Giovanni Pergolesi,
accompanied on the theremin by French musician Grégoire Blanc. The piece is
from the classical repertoire of the eighteenth century.
“With the theremin, we have a different approach; we tend to give priority to the expression, to the musicality, and are happy with the very sound the instrument generates. The purity of this sound and its simplicity are intrinsic parts of the theremin and directly contribute to making its unique character and building its identity.”
Everything in the video is beautiful: Bawab’s immaculate
interpretation, the inherent beauty of Pergolesi’s composition, and of course
the exceptional, fascinating performance of Blanc on the theremin, as well as
the gorgeous setting. The sound is magical; some would even say eerie and
haunting! It is monophonic; only one note can be produced at a time, contrary
to a piano, for example. An attempt to put it in words: the sound is close to
that of a string instrument or of a female voice vocalizing (i.e., singing
without words). But it really must be heard to be felt.
Luck was here again when I was able to contact French
musician Grégoire Blanc, 27. He very kindly agreed to meet with me on Zoom last
week to talk about the theremin. The 30-minute video chat was a most enjoyable
and enlightening one.
Blanc explained to Jordan News that he discovered the
instrument and started his love story with it when he was a teenager. He now
has 10 years' worth of experience playing it and is among the rare professional
theremin players.
“The trend with digital synthesizers is to keep looking for
different sounds, or timbres,” Blanc explained. “With the theremin, we have a
different approach; we tend to give priority to the expression, to the
musicality, and are happy with the very sound the instrument generates. The
purity of this sound and its simplicity are intrinsic parts of the theremin and
directly contribute to making its unique character and building its identity.”
Blanc also said that there are very few professional,
well-known performers in the world. Probably less than a dozen. He mentioned
German Carolina Eyck whom he had the chance to meet. “I have high regard for
her and her mastery of the instrument,” he said. He also spoke of Russian Lydia Kavina, another well-known performer.
“it was actually musician Paul Tanner who made and played a very simple, linear instrument that sounded a little bit like a theremin, but it was not a theremin.”
Those who can play the theremin are essentially self-taught.
The instrument has no official academic status, and finding a teacher is
tantamount to going on a treasure hunt. Therefore, although buying a theremin
online is easy and would only cost you about $300, learning how to play it is
another story.
Blanc also corrected me when I told him that the celebrated
American band the Beach Boys had used the theremin in their megahit Good
Vibrations in 1966. He said that “it was actually musician Paul Tanner who made
and played a very simple, linear instrument that sounded a little bit like a
theremin, but it was not a theremin.”
He added, “Those who have been trained to play fretless
string instruments like the violin or the cello are more likely to become good
theremin performers.”
After a rather dry period between 1970 and 1990, Leon
Theremin’s invention gained more popularity thanks to the internet and
platforms like YouTube, where searching with the keyword theremin will return
countless videos that are great to watch and listen to.
Indeed, the sonic and visual experiences are like no other.
Those who, for the first time, watch a musician play the theremin have only one
word for it: unbelievable.
Jean-Claude Elias is a computer engineer and a classically trained pianist and guitarist. He has been regularly writing IT articles, reviewing music albums, and covering concerts for more than 30 years.
Disclaimer:
Views expressed by writers in this section are their own and do not necessarily reflect Jordan News' point of view.
.jpg)
.jpg)
