Big waves

Theremin repertoire to discover

Aside from Martinu˚’s Fantasia and new works by Fazil Say (Universe Symphony) and Kalevi

Aho (Theremin Concerto, see p48), the theremin pops up in a few of classical music’s nooks and crannies. Written between 1932 and ’34, Edgar Varèse’s Ecuatorial was one of the first pieces to mix electronic and traditional instruments. A Mayan invocation to the creative gods, the work’s premiere featured two theremins, although subsequent performances used ondes Martenot. Gershwin’s pupil Joseph Schillinger wrote his 1929 First Airphonic Suite for Lev Termen, the inventor of the theremin (above) – highly Romantic in style, the suite incorporates the instrument as naturally as if a cello or violin were the soloist. Although not originally scored for the theremin, the Australian composer Percy Grainger’s theoretical Free Music Nos 1-4 suits them well, being written for an unnamed instrument of free, continuous pitch without rhythmic elements. In the film world, meanwhile, the theremin has been used for eerie sci-fi sounds, most notably by Bernard Herrmann (The Day The Earth Stood Still), Howard Shore (Ed Wood), Danny Elfman (Mars Attacks) and, notably, Miklós Rózsa (Spellbound).