The theremin is probably the world’s strangest and spookiest musical instrument ever made.
It has no keys, no strings, just two metal rods that you dont even touch.
The theremin was an accident.
A woman playing the theremin in a concert in Istanbul, Turkey.
By next year, Termen had mastered his instrument enough for the first public concert.
He originally named it the etherphone.
The theremin typically consists of a box with two metal antennasone vertical and one horizontal.
The electric signals produced by the antennas are then amplified and fed to a loudspeaker.
When the hand approaches the antennas, the pitch (or the volume) gets higher.
When the hand moves away from it, the pitch (or the volume) gets lower.
By making small rapid movements with the hands, an expert theremin player can generate soulful music.
It drew crowds wherever he went.
It was considered magic at the time.
Unsurprisingly, RCA managed to sell less than 500 instruments and the venture was a financial disaster.
Clara Rockmore (19111998) a virtuoso performer of the theremin playing the instrument.
Leon Theremin demonstrating his invention.
Unknown to his admirers, Termen was leading a dual life in the US.
He was also a KGB spy.
He fed these information back to the Soviet Union.
Termen also ran his own companies, which were fronts for industrial espionage.
Termens sudden departure aroused controversy and many suspected he was kidnapped by the KGB.
Alexandra Stepanoff playing the theremin on NBC Radio.
During Theremins long absence from the West, his inventions influence spread.
Termen was released from the Gulag in 1947, but he continued working for the KGB until 1966.
Termen did not return to the United States until 1991 at the age of ninety five.
Carolina Eyck demonstrates the eight finger position.
Theremin continues to remain an obscure instrument, partly because it is so difficult to master.
