I recently received the above album in the mail. The music is not what I was expecting. Initially, I was expecting something similar to the stylings of master theremin player Clara Rockwell;
classical pieces either featuring the theremin as a solo instrument, or incorporating it in some interesting way. Instead, the compositions take a more contemporary form, focusing on more nuanced and quiet compositions than featuring melodic solos as I originally imagined. The result is quite interesting, and overall rather good in my opinion. This is not pop music, this is not theremin exploitation, this is an exploration of at least one facet of the instrument that is sometimes overlooked. The composers and performers are attempting to bring about Leo Theremin's initial hopes of the theremin being seen as a serious instrument, by trying to find a place for it outside of wacky sound-effects, and to fit it organically inside these compositions.
If you enjoy the album, I suggest you purchase it. I found it at a reasonable price from Amazon. The album includes extensive liner notes and composer commentary for each track, outlining the intended purpose behind each piece. Oh... and it is printed in full in both English and German.
Enjoy.
"When playing the theremin there is no mechanical memory, no connection between a note and a hand or finger position. There is no form of visual or tactile orientation when playing. The player's only source of orientation is her ear; she plays - in this sense it is like singing - only intonations that are imagined by listening inwardly. The sound ideas and interpretations of various theremin performers are as different as the voices of different singers. That is what makes the electronic sound of the theremin so alive, so spontaneous - and as vulnerable as the human psyche itself."
- Lydia Kavina and Barbara Buchholz
from the liner notes of
Touch! don't touch!: Music for Theremin (click here to download)
Performers:
Lydia Kavina - Theremin
Barbara Buchholz - Theremin
& Kammerensemble neue Musik Berlin
Track Listing:
(Composer name in bold, title of piece in italics, instruments in brackets)
1. olga bochihina - canto ostinato [for two theremins, piano, and percussion]
2. caspar johannes walter - vakuum-halluzinationen [for two theremins, piano, and percussion]
3. nicolaus richter de vroe - thereminskie ostrova (theremin islands) [for two theremins,
piano, and percussion]
4. michael hirsch - rezitativ und arie [for two theremins, violin, violoncello, piano, and
percussion]
5. juliane klein - se vuoi [ for theremin, violin, violoncello, piano, and percussion]
6. vladimir nikolaev - cherno-belaja muzyka (black-and-white music)
[for two theremins, violin, violoncello, piano, and percussions]
7. moritz eggert - the son of the daughter of dracula versuse the incredible
frankenstein monster (from outer space)
[for two theremins, violin, violoncello, piano, and percussion]
8. iraida yusupova - kitezh-19 [for theremin and tape]
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