Ooooooh! Here's a Sci-Fi-Ready Theremin That Anyone Can Play
When Léon Theremin first released the instrument that bore his name, the world didn’t really know what to do with the thing.
The strange and ethereal electronic instrument was seen as more of an anomaly when it debuted shortly after the 1929 stock market crash, producing a strange sound that would ultimately provide the piercing and dissonant otherworldly soundtrack for science fiction movies like The Day the Earth Stood Still. Psychedelic bands of the ’60s and ’70s would find a lot to like in the instrument, as well (and while the Beach Boys’ “Good Vibrations” is often incorrectly cited as a song that uses the instrument, it should give you a pretty good idea of the eerie, voice-like sound we’re talking about.)
North Carolina’s Moog Music has been in the theremin business for a while now. In fact, the company was producing build-it-yourself theremin kits well before it began creating the wood-paneled keyboards for which it’s now primarily known. At this week’s National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) show in Southern California, the company showed off its latest take on the space. The Theremini is a lower-cost beginner’s theremin that takes some of the guesswork out of the notoriously difficult instrument.
(The Theremini, via Moog Music.)
The $319 Theremini features pitch control, making it “impossible to play a wrong note.” That’s a tall order for an instrument that few have mastered. Part of the difficulty derives from the fact that you don’t actually come in direct contact with the large metal rod that protrudes from the instrument — rather, it adjusts pitch based on your proximity. The pitch correction is adjustable, so you can alter it based on your skill level, making this a solid starter theremin for those who might have previously been intimidated by the instrument.
Watch the Theremini in action below:
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