The theremin ( / ˈ θ ɛr əm ɪ n / ; originally known as the ætherphone , etherphone , thereminophone or termenvox / thereminvox ) is an electronic musical instrument controlled without physical contact by the performer (who is known as a thereminist). It is named after its inventor, Leon Theremin , who patented the device in 1928.
145-426: The instrument's controlling section usually consists of two metal antennas which function not as radio antennas but rather as position sensors . Each antenna forms one half of a capacitor with each of the thereminist's hands as the other half of the capacitor. These antennas capacitively sense the relative position of the hands and control oscillators for frequency with one hand, and amplitude ( volume ) with
290-644: A Grammy Trustees Award for lifetime achievement in 1970, the Polar Music Prize in 2001 and a Special Merit/ Technical Grammy Award in 2002. In 2012, to celebrate Moog's birthday, Google created an interactive version of the Minimoog as its Google Doodle . In 2013, Moog was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame . On July 18, 2013, Moog's widow Ileana Grams-Moog announced plans to donate Moog's archives, maintained by
435-443: A sphere . Many nondirectional antennas, such as monopoles and dipoles , emit equal power in all horizontal directions, with the power dropping off at higher and lower angles; this is called an omnidirectional pattern and when plotted looks like a torus or donut. Robert Moog Robert Arthur Moog ( / m oʊ ɡ / MOHG ; May 23, 1934 – August 21, 2005) was an American engineer and electronic music pioneer. He
580-464: A touchscreen -operated piano. Moog married Shirley May Leigh on June 15, 1958. They had four children, Laura (1961), Renée (1963), Michelle (1967), and Matthew (1970). They divorced in 1994. On May 19, 1996 Moog married Ileana Grams. Moog was diagnosed with a glioblastoma multiforme brain tumor on April 28, 2005. He died on August 21, 2005, at the age of 71 in Asheville, North Carolina . He
725-399: A "Thereman" [ sic ] on the track "Mysterons" from the album Dummy , Portishead actually used a monophonic synthesizer to achieve theremin-like effects, as confirmed by Adrian Utley , who is credited as playing the instrument; on the songs "Half Day Closing", "Humming", "The Rip", and "Machine Gun" he has actually used a custom-made theremin. Page McConnell , keyboardist of
870-427: A PhD in engineering physics at Cornell University . He developed his synthesizer in response to demand for more practical and affordable electronic-music equipment, guided by suggestions and requests from composers. Moog's principal innovation was the voltage-controlled oscillator , which uses voltage to control pitch . He also introduced fundamental synthesizer concepts such as modularity , envelope generation and
1015-405: A boom; the boom is only for support and not involved electrically. Only one of the elements is electrically connected to the transmitter or receiver, while the remaining elements are passive. The Yagi produces a fairly large gain (depending on the number of passive elements) and is widely used as a directional antenna with an antenna rotor to control the direction of its beam. It suffers from having
1160-450: A change in capacitance between the performer and the instrument in the order of 0.01 picofarads produces a full octave of frequency shift. The mixer produces the audio-range difference between the frequencies of the two oscillators at each moment, which is the tone that is then wave shaped and amplified and sent to a loudspeaker. To control volume, the performer's other hand acts as the grounded plate of another variable capacitor. As in
1305-405: A current of 1 Ampere will require 63 Volts, and the antenna will radiate 63 Watts (ignoring losses) of radio frequency power. Now consider the case when the antenna is fed a signal with a wavelength of 1.25 m; in this case the current induced by the signal would arrive at the antenna's feedpoint out-of-phase with the signal, causing the net current to drop while the voltage remains
1450-463: A current will reflect when there are changes in the electrical properties of the material. In order to efficiently transfer the received signal into the transmission line, it is important that the transmission line has the same impedance as its connection point on the antenna, otherwise some of the signal will be reflected backwards into the body of the antenna; likewise part of the transmitter's signal power will be reflected back to transmitter, if there
1595-442: A debilitating recession. Moog remained employed as a designer at the company until 1977. He said that he would have left earlier if his contract had not required him to remain employed there for four years to cash his stock. By the end of the decade, Moog Music was facing competition from cheaper, easier-to-use instruments by competitors including ARP , Aries, Roland , and E-mu . In 1978, Moog moved to North Carolina and founded
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#17327723896321740-495: A fashion are known to be harmonically operated . Resonant antennas usually use a linear conductor (or element ), or pair of such elements, each of which is about a quarter of the wavelength in length (an odd multiple of quarter wavelengths will also be resonant). Antennas that are required to be small compared to the wavelength sacrifice efficiency and cannot be very directional. Since wavelengths are so small at higher frequencies ( UHF , microwaves ) trading off performance to obtain
1885-400: A feed-point impedance that matches that of a transmission line; a matching network between antenna terminals and the transmission line will improve power transfer to the antenna. A non-adjustable matching network will most likely place further limits the usable bandwidth of the antenna system. It may be desirable to use tubular elements, instead of thin wires, to make an antenna; these will allow
2030-500: A few extra components, a MIDI interface can be added to the Open Theremin, enabling a player to use their theremin to control different instrument sounds. The theremin's singular operation method has been praised for providing an accessible route to music-making for people with disabilities. The theremin is distinguished among musical instruments in that it is played without physical contact. The thereminist stands in front of
2175-399: A fixed frequency. The frequency of the other oscillator is almost identical, and is controlled by the performer's distance from the pitch control antenna. The performer's hand has significant body capacitance , and thus can be treated as the grounded plate of a variable capacitor in an L-C (inductance-capacitance) circuit , which is part of the oscillator and determines its frequency. In
2320-436: A flux of 1 pW / m (10 Watts per square meter) and an antenna has an effective area of 12 m , then the antenna would deliver 12 pW of RF power to the receiver (30 microvolts RMS at 75 ohms). Since the receiving antenna is not equally sensitive to signals received from all directions, the effective area is a function of the direction to the source. Due to reciprocity (discussed above)
2465-403: A greater bandwidth. Or, several thin wires can be grouped in a cage to simulate a thicker element. This widens the bandwidth of the resonance. Amateur radio antennas that operate at several frequency bands which are widely separated from each other may connect elements resonant at those different frequencies in parallel. Most of the transmitter's power will flow into the resonant element while
2610-650: A keyboard, dubbing his creation the Clavivox . Moog married in 1958 and continued building and selling theremin kits from his own home in Ithaca , before establishing the company's first commercial space at 41 East Main Street in Trumansburg, New York in 1963, all while continuing to pursue his postgraduate education . At Cornell, Moog began work on his first synthesizer components with composer Herb Deutsch . At
2755-450: A long Beverage antenna can have significant directivity. For non directional portable use, a short vertical antenna or small loop antenna works well, with the main design challenge being that of impedance matching . With a vertical antenna a loading coil at the base of the antenna may be employed to cancel the reactive component of impedance ; small loop antennas are tuned with parallel capacitors for this purpose. An antenna lead-in
2900-500: A new electronic instrument company, Big Briar. He also worked as a consultant and vice president for new product research at Kurzweil Music Systems from 1984 to 1988. In the early 1990s, he was a research professor of music at the University of North Carolina at Asheville . In 2002, he renamed Big Briar to Moog Music after retrieving the rights to the name. In later years, he continued to design electronic instruments, including
3045-400: A new invention, the Clavivox , which was intended to be an easy-to-use keyboard theremin.) Since the release of the film Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey in 1993, the instrument has enjoyed a resurgence in interest and has become more widely used by contemporary musicians. Even though many theremin sounds can be approximated on many modern synthesizers, some musicians continue to appreciate
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#17327723896323190-603: A number of parallel dipole antennas with a certain spacing. Depending on the relative phase introduced by the network, the same combination of dipole antennas can operate as a "broadside array" (directional normal to a line connecting the elements) or as an "end-fire array" (directional along the line connecting the elements). Antenna arrays may employ any basic (omnidirectional or weakly directional) antenna type, such as dipole, loop or slot antennas. These elements are often identical. Log-periodic and frequency-independent antennas employ self-similarity in order to be operational over
3335-445: A piccolo trumpet in unison in the solo interlude, but for this performance, thereminist Rob Schwimmer played the solo. Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich was one of the first to incorporate parts for the theremin in orchestral pieces , including a use in his score for the film Odna ( Russian : Одна , 1931, Leonid Trauberg and Grigori Kozintsev ). While the theremin was not widely used in classical music performances,
3480-415: A poor businessman. Moog had pursued the development of his synthesizer as a hobby, stressing that he was regarded as a businessman but had not known what a balance sheet was. He likened the experience to a theme park ride: "You know you're not going to get hurt too badly because nobody would let you do that, but you're not quite in control." Moog only patented his filter design; David Borden , one of
3625-427: A proper resonant antenna at the trap frequency. At substantially higher or lower frequencies the trap allows the full length of the broken element to be employed, but with a resonant frequency shifted by the net reactance added by the trap. The bandwidth characteristics of a resonant antenna element can be characterized according to its Q where the resistance involved is the radiation resistance , which represents
3770-516: A pure resistance. Sometimes the resulting (lower) electrical resonant frequency of such a system (antenna plus matching network) is described using the concept of electrical length , so an antenna used at a lower frequency than its resonant frequency is called an electrically short antenna For example, at 30 MHz (10 m wavelength) a true resonant 1 / 4 wave monopole would be almost 2.5 meters long, and using an antenna only 1.5 meters tall would require
3915-504: A rather limited bandwidth, restricting its use to certain applications. Rather than using one driven antenna element along with passive radiators, one can build an array antenna in which multiple elements are all driven by the transmitter through a system of power splitters and transmission lines in relative phases so as to concentrate the RF power in a single direction. What's more, a phased array can be made "steerable", that is, by changing
4060-434: A series tuned circuit , resonating with the parallel combination of the antenna's intrinsic capacitance and the capacitance of the player's hand in proximity to the antenna. This series tuned circuit is then connected in parallel with the parallel tuned circuit of the variable pitch oscillator. With the antenna circuit disconnected, the oscillator is tuned to a frequency slightly higher than the stand alone resonant frequency of
4205-443: A signal into the transmission line only when the source signal's frequency is close to that of the design frequency of the antenna, or one of the resonant multiples. This makes resonant antenna designs inherently narrow-band: Only useful for a small range of frequencies centered around the resonance(s). It is possible to use simple impedance matching techniques to allow the use of monopole or dipole antennas substantially shorter than
4350-440: A smaller physical size is usually not required. The quarter-wave elements imitate a series-resonant electrical element due to the standing wave present along the conductor. At the resonant frequency, the standing wave has a current peak and voltage node (minimum) at the feed. In electrical terms, this means that at that position, the element has minimum impedance magnitude , generating the maximum current for minimum voltage. This
4495-498: A standard resistive impedance needed for its optimum operation. The feed point location(s) is selected, and antenna elements electrically similar to tuner components may be incorporated in the antenna structure itself, to improve the match . It is a fundamental property of antennas that most of the electrical characteristics of an antenna, such as those described in the next section (e.g. gain , radiation pattern , impedance , bandwidth , resonant frequency and polarization ), are
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4640-448: A string quartet) for his two earliest experimental Free Music compositions (1935–1937) because of the instrument's complete 'gliding' freedom of pitch. Musician Jean-Michel Jarre used the instrument in his concerts Oxygène In Moscow in 1997 and Space of Freedom in Gdańsk in 2005, providing also a short history of Leon Theremin's life. The five-piece Spaghetti Western Orchestra use
4785-461: A theremin as a replacement for Edda Dell'Orso's vocals in their interpretation of Ennio Morricone 's "Once Upon a Time in the West". Other notable contemporary theremin players include Pamelia Kurstin , Peter Theremin , Natasha Theremin , Katica Illényi . and Lydia Kavina , Dutch classical musician Thorwald Jørgensen has been described as "one of the most important exponents of classical music on
4930-477: A total 360 degree phase change, returning it to the original signal. The current in the element thus adds to the current being created from the source at that instant. This process creates a standing wave in the conductor, with the maximum current at the feed. The ordinary half-wave dipole is probably the most widely used antenna design. This consists of two 1 / 4 wavelength elements arranged end-to-end, and lying along essentially
5075-477: A variation of the theremin (pitch antenna only) during performances of " Whole Lotta Love " and " No Quarter " throughout the performance history of Led Zeppelin, an extended multi-instrumental solo featuring theremin and bowed guitar in 1977, as well as the soundtrack for Death Wish II , released in 1982. Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones also used the instrument on the group's 1967 albums Between
5220-473: A wide range of bandwidths . The most familiar example is the log-periodic dipole array which can be seen as a number (typically 10 to 20) of connected dipole elements with progressive lengths in an endfire array making it rather directional; it finds use especially as a rooftop antenna for television reception. On the other hand, a Yagi–Uda antenna (or simply "Yagi"), with a somewhat similar appearance, has only one dipole element with an electrical connection;
5365-424: Is Kalevi Aho 's Concerto for Theremin and Chamber Orchestra "Eight Seasons" (2011), written for Carolina Eyck . Edgard Varèse completed the composition "Equatorial" for two theremin cellos and percussion in 1934. His work was a stated influence throughout the career of Frank Zappa , who also composed for theremin. Maverick composer Percy Grainger chose to use ensembles of four or six theremins (in preference to
5510-465: Is a monopole antenna, not balanced with respect to ground. The ground (or any large conductive surface) plays the role of the second conductor of a monopole. Since monopole antennas rely on a conductive surface, they may be mounted with a ground plane to approximate the effect of being mounted on the Earth's surface. More complex antennas increase the directivity of the antenna. Additional elements in
5655-434: Is a change in electrical impedance where the feedline joins the antenna. This leads to the concept of impedance matching , the design of the overall system of antenna and transmission line so the impedance is as close as possible, thereby reducing these losses. Impedance matching is accomplished by a circuit called an antenna tuner or impedance matching network between the transmitter and antenna. The impedance match between
5800-417: Is a component which due to its shape and position functions to selectively delay or advance portions of the electromagnetic wavefront passing through it. The refractor alters the spatial characteristics of the wave on one side relative to the other side. It can, for instance, bring the wave to a focus or alter the wave front in other ways, generally in order to maximize the directivity of the antenna system. This
5945-490: Is a consequence of the reciprocity theorem of electromagnetics. Therefore, in discussions of antenna properties no distinction is usually made between receiving and transmitting terminology, and the antenna can be viewed as either transmitting or receiving, whichever is more convenient. A necessary condition for the aforementioned reciprocity property is that the materials in the antenna and transmission medium are linear and reciprocal. Reciprocal (or bilateral ) means that
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6090-410: Is adjusted according to the receiver tuning. On the other hand, log-periodic antennas are not resonant at any single frequency but can (in principle) be built to attain similar characteristics (including feedpoint impedance) over any frequency range. These are therefore commonly used (in the form of directional log-periodic dipole arrays ) as television antennas. Gain is a parameter which measures
6235-421: Is an electronic device that converts an alternating electric current into radio waves (transmitting), or radio waves into an electric current (receiving). It is the interface between radio waves propagating through space and electric currents moving in metal conductors, used with a transmitter or receiver . In transmission , a radio transmitter supplies an electric current to the antenna's terminals, and
6380-399: Is at its minimum and the oscillation frequency is at its maximum. The steepening rate of change of shunt impedance with hand position compensates for the reduced influence of the hand being further away. With careful tuning, a near linear region of pitch field can be created over the central two or three octaves of operation. Using optimized pitch field linearisation, circuits can be made where
6525-400: Is called an isotropic radiator ; however, these cannot exist in practice nor would they be particularly desired. For most terrestrial communications, rather, there is an advantage in reducing radiation toward the sky or ground in favor of horizontal direction(s). A dipole antenna oriented horizontally sends no energy in the direction of the conductor – this is called the antenna null – but
6670-407: Is connected to a transmission line . The conductor, or element , is aligned with the electrical field of the desired signal, normally meaning it is perpendicular to the line from the antenna to the source (or receiver in the case of a broadcast antenna). The radio signal's electrical component induces a voltage in the conductor. This causes an electrical current to begin flowing in the direction of
6815-438: Is equal to 1. Therefore, the effective area A eff in terms of the gain G in a given direction is given by: For an antenna with an efficiency of less than 100%, both the effective area and gain are reduced by that same amount. Therefore, the above relationship between gain and effective area still holds. These are thus two different ways of expressing the same quantity. A eff is especially convenient when computing
6960-465: Is its radiation pattern . The frequency range or bandwidth over which an antenna functions well can be very wide (as in a log-periodic antenna) or narrow (as in a small loop antenna); outside this range the antenna impedance becomes a poor match to the transmission line and transmitter (or receiver). Use of the antenna well away from its design frequency affects its radiation pattern , reducing its directive gain. Generally an antenna will not have
7105-637: Is played and identified as such in the Jerry Lewis movie The Delicate Delinquent . The theremin is prominent in the score for the 1956 short film A Short Vision , which was aired on The Ed Sullivan Show the same year that it was used by the Hungarian composer Mátyás Seiber . More recent appearances in film scores include Monster House , Ed Wood , The Machinist and The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (2021), (last three featuring Lydia Kavina ), as well as First Man (2018). A theremin
7250-434: Is redirected toward the desired direction, increasing the antenna's gain by a factor of at least 2. Likewise, a corner reflector can insure that all of the antenna's power is concentrated in only one quadrant of space (or less) with a consequent increase in gain. Practically speaking, the reflector need not be a solid metal sheet, but can consist of a curtain of rods aligned with the antenna's polarization; this greatly reduces
7395-418: Is the transmission line , or feed line , which connects the antenna to a transmitter or receiver. The " antenna feed " may refer to all components connecting the antenna to the transmitter or receiver, such as an impedance matching network in addition to the transmission line. In a so-called "aperture antenna", such as a horn or parabolic dish, the "feed" may also refer to a basic radiating antenna embedded in
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#17327723896327540-410: Is the ideal situation, because it produces the maximum output for the minimum input, producing the highest possible efficiency. Contrary to an ideal (lossless) series-resonant circuit, a finite resistance remains (corresponding to the relatively small voltage at the feed-point) due to the antenna's resistance to radiating , as well as any conventional electrical losses from producing heat. Recall that
7685-416: Is the radio equivalent of an optical lens . An antenna coupling network is a passive network (generally a combination of inductive and capacitive circuit elements) used for impedance matching in between the antenna and the transmitter or receiver. This may be used to minimize losses on the feed line, by reducing transmission line's standing wave ratio , and to present the transmitter or receiver with
7830-440: Is unidirectional, designed for maximum response in the direction of the other station, whereas many other antennas are intended to accommodate stations in various directions but are not truly omnidirectional. Since antennas obey reciprocity the same radiation pattern applies to transmission as well as reception of radio waves. A hypothetical antenna that radiates equally in all directions (vertical as well as all horizontal angles)
7975-449: Is usable in most other directions. A number of such dipole elements can be combined into an antenna array such as the Yagi–Uda in order to favor a single horizontal direction, thus termed a beam antenna. The dipole antenna, which is the basis for most antenna designs, is a balanced component, with equal but opposite voltages and currents applied at its two terminals. The vertical antenna
8120-412: Is usually less stable and cannot generate the low frequencies that a heterodyne oscillator can. Better designs (e.g., Moog, Theremax) may use two pairs of heterodyne oscillators, for both pitch and volume. Important in theremin articulation is the use of the volume control antenna. Unlike touched instruments, where simply halting play or damping a resonator in the traditional sense silences the instrument,
8265-448: The 1 / 4 or 1 / 2 wave , respectively, at which they are resonant. As these antennas are made shorter (for a given frequency) their impedance becomes dominated by a series capacitive (negative) reactance; by adding an appropriate size " loading coil " – a series inductance with equal and opposite (positive) reactance – the antenna's capacitive reactance may be cancelled leaving only
8410-552: The Boy Scouts , and especially enjoyed spending time with his father, a Consolidated Edison engineer , visiting Manhattan 's Radio Row and working on radio and electronics projects. He became fascinated by the theremin , an electronic instrument controlled by moving the hands over radio antennae . In 1949, at the age of 14, he built a theremin from plans printed in Electronics World . He graduated from
8555-682: The Bronx High School of Science in 1952. He earned a Bachelor of Science in physics from Queens College of the City University of New York in 1955, and a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering from the Columbia University School of Engineering and Applied Science under a 3-2 engineering program in 1957. He earned a PhD in engineering physics from Cornell University in 1965. In 1953, Moog produced his own theremin design, and in
8700-615: The Los Angeles Philharmonic and Esa-Pekka Salonen in 2007. In Lenny Abrahamson's 2014 film, Frank , Clara, the character played by Maggie Gyllenhaal , plays the theremin in a band named Soronprfbs. Charlie Rosen , orchestrator of the Broadway musical Be More Chill , credits the show as being the first on Broadway to have a theremin in its band. Radio antennas In radio engineering , an antenna ( American English ) or aerial ( British English )
8845-528: The Musical Museum , Brentford, England. During the 1930s, Lucie Bigelow Rosen was also taken with the theremin and together with her husband Walter Bigelow Rosen provided both financial and artistic support to the development and popularisation of the instrument. In 1938, Theremin left the United States, though the circumstances related to his departure are in dispute. Many accounts claim he
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#17327723896328990-546: The RCA Mark II , had created sound from hundreds of vacuum tubes . Instead, Moog used recently available silicon transistors with an exponential relationship between input voltage and output current . With these, he created the voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO), which generates a waveform with a pitch that could be adjusted by changing the voltage. Similarly, he used voltage to control loudness with voltage-controlled amplifiers (VCAs). One innovative feature
9135-582: The RCA Synthesizer introduced a decade earlier, and much cheaper, at US$ 10,000, as compared to the six-figure sums of other synthesizers. Whereas the RCA Synthesizer was programmed with punchcards , Moog's synthesizer could be programmed with knobs and patch cables and played via keyboard, making it attractive to musicians. New Scientist described it as the first commercial synthesizer. At this time, Moog and then Fred Cochran constructed
9280-405: The lens antenna . The antenna's power gain (or simply "gain") also takes into account the antenna's efficiency, and is often the primary figure of merit. Antennas are characterized by a number of performance measures which a user would be concerned with in selecting or designing an antenna for a particular application. A plot of the directional characteristics in the space surrounding the antenna
9425-423: The pitch wheel . He is credited with introducing synthesizers to a wider audience and influencing the development of popular music . Moog pursued his work as a hobby, and he is regarded as a poor businessman. His only patent was on his transistor ladder filter design; commentators have speculated that he would have become extremely wealthy had he patented his other innovations, but that their availability in
9570-482: The public domain helped the synthesizer industry flourish. In 1971, Moog sold Moog Music to Norlin Musical Instruments , where he remained as a designer until 1977. In 1978, he founded the company Big Briar, and in 2002 he renamed it Moog Music after reacquiring the rights to the name. In later years, Moog taught at the University of North Carolina at Asheville and continued designing instruments for
9715-403: The resonance principle. This relies on the behaviour of moving electrons, which reflect off surfaces where the dielectric constant changes, in a fashion similar to the way light reflects when optical properties change. In these designs, the reflective surface is created by the end of a conductor, normally a thin metal wire or rod, which in the simplest case has a feed point at one end where it
9860-511: The 1950s, while he was a high-school student. Moog subsequently published a number of articles about building theremins, and sold theremin kits that were intended to be assembled by the customer. Moog credited what he learned from the experience as leading directly to his groundbreaking synthesizer , the Moog . (Around 1955, a colleague of Moog's, electronic music pioneer Raymond Scott , purchased one of Moog's theremin subassemblies to incorporate into
10005-570: The ADSR envelope shape), and Wendy Carlos . His other early customers included choreographer and composer Alwin Nikolais and composer John Cage . Universities established electronic music studios with Moog synthesizers. In 1970, Moog released the portable fixed-architecture Minimoog , described as the most famous and influential synthesizer in history. Though commentators have praised Moog's engineering abilities, some have also described him as
10150-529: The American rock band Phish , plays the theremin on rare occasions. His last notable performance was on 6 August 2017, the final evening of the band's 13-night residency at Madison Square Garden . When Simon and Garfunkel performed their song " The Boxer " during a concert at Madison Square Garden in December, 2003, they utilized a theremin. The original recording of the song had featured a steel guitar and
10295-545: The Bob Moog Foundation, to Cornell University . The foundation offered her $ 100,000 but Grams-Moog would not sell the archives. She felt that Cornell could provide better access for researchers and that the foundation had not made enough progress toward a planned museum to be worthy of maintaining the collection. The foundation responded that it had sufficiently preserved the collection and had made efforts to improve storage, although it could not yet afford to build
10440-499: The Buttons and Their Satanic Majesties Request . Tesla guitarist Frank Hannon used a theremin in the band's song "Edison's Medicine" from the 1991 album Psychotic Supper . Hannon is also seen using the instrument in the song's music video at the 2:40 mark. The Lothars are a Boston-area band formed in early 1997 whose CDs have featured as many as four theremins played at once – a first for pop music. Although credited with
10585-588: The French composer Regis Campo was written for Carolina Eyck and premiered with the Brussels Philharmonic in 2018. Theremins and theremin-like sounds started to be incorporated into popular music from the end of the 1940s (with a series of Samuel Hoffman / Harry Revel collaborations) and has continued, with various degrees of popularity, to the present. Lothar and the Hand People were
10730-546: The ITV drama Midsomer Murders and the Disney+ series Loki , the latter composed by Natalie Holt . The theremin is also used in concert music (especially avant-garde and 20th- and 21st-century new music ); for example, Mano Divina Giannone is a popular American thereminist who along with his orchestra, The Divine Hand Ensemble, regularly holds said concerts. It is also used in popular music genres, such as rock . The theremin
10875-665: The RCA Thereminvox (released immediately following the Stock Market Crash of 1929 ) was not a commercial success, it fascinated audiences in America and abroad. Clara Rockmore , a well-known thereminist, toured to wide acclaim, performing a classical repertoire in concert halls around the United States, often sharing the bill with Paul Robeson . Joseph Whiteley (1894-1984) performed under the stage name Musaire and his 1930 RCA Theremin can be seen, played and heard at
11020-524: The United States until 1991. After a flurry of interest in America following the end of the Second World War , the theremin soon fell into disuse with serious musicians, mainly because newer electronic instruments were introduced that were easier to play. However, a niche interest in the theremin persisted, mostly among electronics enthusiasts and kit-building hobbyists. One of these electronics enthusiasts, Robert Moog , began building theremins in
11165-467: The addition of a loading coil. Then it may be said that the coil has lengthened the antenna to achieve an electrical length of 2.5 meters. However, the resulting resistive impedance achieved will be quite a bit lower than that of a true 1 / 4 wave (resonant) monopole, often requiring further impedance matching (a transformer) to the desired transmission line. For ever shorter antennas (requiring greater "electrical lengthening")
11310-425: The antenna circuit. At that frequency, the antenna and its linearisation coil present an inductive impedance; and when connected, behaves as an inductor in parallel with the oscillator. Thus, connecting the antenna and linearising coil raises the oscillation frequency. Close to the resonant frequency of the antenna circuit, the effective inductance is small, and the effect on the oscillator is greatest; farther from it,
11455-402: The antenna consisting of a thin conductor. Antennas for use over much broader frequency ranges are achieved using further techniques. Adjustment of a matching network can, in principle, allow for any antenna to be matched at any frequency. Thus the small loop antenna built into most AM broadcast (medium wave) receivers has a very narrow bandwidth, but is tuned using a parallel capacitance which
11600-412: The antenna radiates the energy from the current as electromagnetic waves (radio waves). In reception , an antenna intercepts some of the power of a radio wave in order to produce an electric current at its terminals, that is applied to a receiver to be amplified . Antennas are essential components of all radio equipment. An antenna is an array of conductors ( elements ), electrically connected to
11745-400: The antenna structure, which need not be directly connected to the receiver or transmitter, increase its directionality. Antenna "gain" describes the concentration of radiated power into a particular solid angle of space. "Gain" is perhaps an unfortunately chosen term, by comparison with amplifier "gain" which implies a net increase in power. In contrast, for antenna "gain", the power increased in
11890-474: The antenna to the power radiated by a half-wave dipole antenna I dipole {\displaystyle I_{\text{dipole}}} ; these units are called decibels-dipole (dBd) Since the gain of a half-wave dipole is 2.15 dBi and the logarithm of a product is additive, the gain in dBi is just 2.15 decibels greater than the gain in dBd High-gain antennas have the advantage of longer range and better signal quality, but must be aimed carefully at
12035-427: The broadside direction. If higher gain is needed one cannot simply make the antenna larger. Due to the constraint on the effective area of a receiving antenna detailed below , one sees that for an already-efficient antenna design, the only way to increase gain (effective area) is by reducing the antenna's gain in another direction. If a half-wave dipole is not connected to an external circuit but rather shorted out at
12180-470: The degree of directivity of the antenna's radiation pattern . A high-gain antenna will radiate most of its power in a particular direction, while a low-gain antenna will radiate over a wide angle. The antenna gain , or power gain of an antenna is defined as the ratio of the intensity (power per unit surface area) I {\displaystyle I} radiated by the antenna in the direction of its maximum output, at an arbitrary distance, divided by
12325-557: The design operating frequency, f o , and antennas are normally designed to be this size. However, feeding that element with 3 f o (whose wavelength is 1 / 3 that of f o ) will also lead to a standing wave pattern. Thus, an antenna element is also resonant when its length is 3 / 4 of a wavelength. This is true for all odd multiples of 1 / 4 wavelength. This allows some flexibility of design in terms of antenna lengths and feed points. Antennas used in such
12470-463: The desired direction is at the expense of power reduced in undesired directions. Unlike amplifiers, antennas are electrically " passive " devices which conserve total power, and there is no increase in total power above that delivered from the power source (the transmitter), only improved distribution of that fixed total. A phased array consists of two or more simple antennas which are connected together through an electrical network. This often involves
12615-403: The effective inductance is larger, and fractional change on the oscillator is reduced. When the hand is distant from the antenna, the resonant frequency of the antenna series circuit is at its highest; i.e., it is closest to the free running frequency of the oscillator, and small changes in antenna capacitance have greatest effect. Under this condition, the effective inductance in the tank circuit
12760-405: The electromagnetic field. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves which carry signals through the air (or through space) at the speed of light with almost no transmission loss . Antennas can be classified as omnidirectional , radiating energy approximately equally in all horizontal directions, or directional , where radio waves are concentrated in some direction(s). A so-called beam antenna
12905-427: The emission of energy from the resonant antenna to free space. The Q of a narrow band antenna can be as high as 15. On the other hand, the reactance at the same off-resonant frequency of one using thick elements is much less, consequently resulting in a Q as low as 5. These two antennas may perform equivalently at the resonant frequency, but the second antenna will perform over a bandwidth 3 times as wide as
13050-418: The entire system of reflecting elements (normally at the focus of the parabolic dish or at the throat of a horn) which could be considered the one active element in that antenna system. A microwave antenna may also be fed directly from a waveguide in place of a (conductive) transmission line . An antenna counterpoise , or ground plane , is a structure of conductive material which improves or substitutes for
13195-407: The expressiveness, novelty, and uniqueness of using an actual theremin. The film itself has received positive reviews. Both theremin instruments and kits are available. The Open Theremin, an open hardware and open software project, was developed by Swiss microengineer Urz Gaudenz, using the original heterodyne oscillator architecture for a good playing experience, combined with Arduino . Using
13340-526: The feedline and antenna is measured by a parameter called the standing wave ratio (SWR) on the feedline. Consider a half-wave dipole designed to work with signals with wavelength 1 m, meaning the antenna would be approximately 50 cm from tip to tip. If the element has a length-to-diameter ratio of 1000, it will have an inherent impedance of about 63 ohms resistive. Using the appropriate transmission wire or balun, we match that resistance to ensure minimum signal reflection. Feeding that antenna with
13485-430: The feedpoint, then it becomes a resonant half-wave element which efficiently produces a standing wave in response to an impinging radio wave. Because there is no load to absorb that power, it retransmits all of that power, possibly with a phase shift which is critically dependent on the element's exact length. Thus such a conductor can be arranged in order to transmit a second copy of a transmitter's signal in order to affect
13630-494: The first rock band known to perform live with a theremin in November 1965. In fact, Lothar was the name they gave to their Moog theremin. The Beach Boys ' 1966 single " Good Vibrations "—though it does not technically contain a theremin—is the most frequently cited example of the instrument in pop music. The song actually features a similar-sounding instrument invented by Paul Tanner called an Electro-Theremin . Upon release,
13775-546: The first users of the Minimoog, felt that if Moog had patented his pitch wheel design, he would have become extremely wealthy. According to Sound on Sound , if Moog had created a monopoly on other synthesizer ideas that he created, such as modularity, envelope generation and voltage control, "it's likely the synth industry as we know it today would never have happened." Beginning in 1971, Moog Music absorbed investors, merged with Norlin Musical Instruments and moved to "less than ideal" premises near Buffalo, New York , amid
13920-438: The focal point of parabolic reflectors for both transmitting and receiving. Starting in 1895, Guglielmo Marconi began development of antennas practical for long-distance, wireless telegraphy, for which he received the 1909 Nobel Prize in physics . The words antenna and aerial are used interchangeably. Occasionally the equivalent term "aerial" is used to specifically mean an elevated horizontal wire antenna. The origin of
14065-513: The following year, he published an article on the theremin in Radio and Television News . That same year, he founded R.A. Moog Co. , building theremins and theremin kits in his parents' home and selling them via mail order . In 1956, Moog and his father visited Raymond Scott 's Manhattan Research facility, and Scott purchased a Moog Model 305 theremin. Scott rewired the Moog theremin to be controlled by
14210-446: The gain of an antenna used for transmitting must be proportional to its effective area when used for receiving. Consider an antenna with no loss , that is, one whose electrical efficiency is 100%. It can be shown that its effective area averaged over all directions must be equal to λ /4π , the wavelength squared divided by 4π . Gain is defined such that the average gain over all directions for an antenna with 100% electrical efficiency
14355-439: The geometrical divergence of the transmitted wave. For a given incoming flux, the power acquired by a receiving antenna is proportional to its effective area . This parameter compares the amount of power captured by a receiving antenna in comparison to the flux of an incoming wave (measured in terms of the signal's power density in watts per square metre). A half-wave dipole has an effective area of about 0.13 λ seen from
14500-474: The ground. It may be connected to or insulated from the natural ground. In a monopole antenna, this aids in the function of the natural ground, particularly where variations (or limitations) of the characteristics of the natural ground interfere with its proper function. Such a structure is normally connected to the return connection of an unbalanced transmission line such as the shield of a coaxial cable . An electromagnetic wave refractor in some aperture antennas
14645-413: The increase in signal power due to an amplifying device placed at the front-end of the system, such as a low-noise amplifier . The effective area or effective aperture of a receiving antenna expresses the portion of the power of a passing electromagnetic wave which the antenna delivers to its terminals, expressed in terms of an equivalent area. For instance, if a radio wave passing a given location has
14790-405: The instrument and moves their hands in the proximity of two metal antennas. While commonly called antennas, they are not used as radio antennae for receiving or broadcasting radio waves, but rather act as plates of capacitors . The distance from one antenna determines frequency (pitch), and the distance from the other controls amplitude (volume). Higher notes are played by moving the hand closer to
14935-606: The instrument found great success in many motion pictures, notably, Spellbound , The Red House , The Lost Weekend (all three of which were written by Miklós Rózsa , the composer who pioneered the use of the instrument in Hollywood scores), The Spiral Staircase , Rocketship X-M , The Day the Earth Stood Still , The Thing from Another World , Castle In the Air , and The Ten Commandments . The theremin
15080-405: The intensity I iso {\displaystyle I_{\text{iso}}} radiated at the same distance by a hypothetical isotropic antenna which radiates equal power in all directions. This dimensionless ratio is usually expressed logarithmically in decibels , these units are called decibels-isotropic (dBi) A second unit used to measure gain is the ratio of the power radiated by
15225-417: The loading coil, relative to the decreased radiation resistance, entail a reduced electrical efficiency , which can be of great concern for a transmitting antenna, but bandwidth is the major factor that sets the size of antennas at 1 MHz and lower frequencies. The radiant flux as a function of the distance from the transmitting antenna varies according to the inverse-square law , since that describes
15370-435: The log-periodic principle it obtains the unique property of maintaining its performance characteristics (gain and impedance) over a very large bandwidth. When a radio wave hits a large conducting sheet it is reflected (with the phase of the electric field reversed) just as a mirror reflects light. Placing such a reflector behind an otherwise non-directional antenna will insure that the power that would have gone in its direction
15515-553: The material has the same response to an electric current or magnetic field in one direction, as it has to the field or current in the opposite direction. Most materials used in antennas meet these conditions, but some microwave antennas use high-tech components such as isolators and circulators , made of nonreciprocal materials such as ferrite . These can be used to give the antenna a different behavior on receiving than it has on transmitting, which can be useful in applications like radar . The majority of antenna designs are based on
15660-599: The museum. In August 2019, the Bob Moog Foundation opened the Moogseum, a museum dedicated to Moog's work, in Asheville, North Carolina. The displays include rare theremins, prototype synthesizer modules and Moog's documents. Moog has been the subject of books about his life and work, including the 2004 book Analog Days: The Invention and Impact of the Moog Synthesizer by Trevor Pinch and Frank Trocco and
15805-406: The oscillator and lowers its resonant plate current. In the earliest theremins, the radio frequency plate current of the oscillator is picked up by another winding and used to power the filament of another diode-connected triode , which thus acts as a variable conductance element changing the output amplitude. The harmonic timbre of the output, not being a pure tone, was an important feature of
15950-653: The other parasitic elements interact with the electromagnetic field in order to realize a highly directional antenna but with a narrow bandwidth. Even greater directionality can be obtained using aperture antennas such as the parabolic reflector or horn antenna . Since high directivity in an antenna depends on it being large compared to the wavelength, highly directional antennas (thus with high antenna gain ) become more practical at higher frequencies ( UHF and above). At low frequencies (such as AM broadcast ), arrays of vertical towers are used to achieve directionality and they will occupy large areas of land. For reception,
16095-409: The other antenna. An example of a high-gain antenna is a parabolic dish such as a satellite television antenna. Low-gain antennas have shorter range, but the orientation of the antenna is relatively unimportant. An example of a low-gain antenna is the whip antenna found on portable radios and cordless phones . Antenna gain should not be confused with amplifier gain , a separate parameter measuring
16240-464: The other side connected to ground or an equivalent ground plane (or counterpoise ). Monopoles, which are one-half the size of a dipole, are common for long-wavelength radio signals where a dipole would be impractically large. Another common design is the folded dipole which consists of two (or more) half-wave dipoles placed side by side and connected at their ends but only one of which is driven. The standing wave forms with this desired pattern at
16385-495: The other. The electric signals from the theremin are amplified and sent to a loudspeaker . The sound of the instrument is often associated with eerie situations. The theremin has been used in movie soundtracks such as Miklós Rózsa 's Spellbound and The Lost Weekend , Bernard Herrmann 's The Day the Earth Stood Still , and Justin Hurwitz 's First Man , as well as in theme songs for television shows such as
16530-401: The others present a high impedance. Another solution uses traps , parallel resonant circuits which are strategically placed in breaks created in long antenna elements. When used at the trap's particular resonant frequency the trap presents a very high impedance (parallel resonance) effectively truncating the element at the location of the trap; if positioned correctly, the truncated element makes
16675-465: The phases applied to each element the radiation pattern can be shifted without physically moving the antenna elements. Another common array antenna is the log-periodic dipole array which has an appearance similar to the Yagi (with a number of parallel elements along a boom) but is totally dissimilar in operation as all elements are connected electrically to the adjacent element with a phase reversal; using
16820-568: The pitch antenna. Louder notes are played by moving the hand away from the volume antenna. Most frequently, the right hand controls the pitch and the left controls the volume, although some performers reverse this arrangement. Some low-cost theremins use a conventional, knob-operated volume control and have only the pitch antenna. The theremin uses the heterodyne principle to generate an audio signal. The instrument's pitch circuitry includes two radio frequency oscillators set below 500 kHz to minimize radio interference. One oscillator operates at
16965-488: The power that would be received by an antenna of a specified gain, as illustrated by the above example. The radiation pattern of an antenna is a plot of the relative field strength of the radio waves emitted by the antenna at different angles in the far field. It is typically represented by a three-dimensional graph, or polar plots of the horizontal and vertical cross sections. The pattern of an ideal isotropic antenna , which radiates equally in all directions, would look like
17110-444: The radiation pattern (and feedpoint impedance) of the element electrically connected to the transmitter. Antenna elements used in this way are known as passive radiators . A Yagi–Uda array uses passive elements to greatly increase gain in one direction (at the expense of other directions). A number of parallel approximately half-wave elements (of very specific lengths) are situated parallel to each other, at specific positions, along
17255-421: The radiation resistance plummets (approximately according to the square of the antenna length), so that the mismatch due to a net reactance away from the electrical resonance worsens. Or one could as well say that the equivalent resonant circuit of the antenna system has a higher Q factor and thus a reduced bandwidth, which can even become inadequate for the transmitted signal's spectrum. Resistive losses due to
17400-480: The radio waves into a beam or other desired radiation pattern . Strong directivity and good efficiency when transmitting are hard to achieve with antennas with dimensions that are much smaller than a half wavelength . The first antennas were built in 1888 by German physicist Heinrich Hertz in his pioneering experiments to prove the existence of electromagnetic waves predicted by the 1867 electromagnetic theory of James Clerk Maxwell . Hertz placed dipole antennas at
17545-399: The receiver or transmitter. Antennas can be designed to transmit and receive radio waves in all horizontal directions equally ( omnidirectional antennas ), or preferentially in a particular direction ( directional , or high-gain, or "beam" antennas). An antenna may include components not connected to the transmitter, parabolic reflectors , horns , or parasitic elements , which serve to direct
17690-441: The reflector's weight and wind load . Specular reflection of radio waves is also employed in a parabolic reflector antenna, in which a curved reflecting surface effects focussing of an incoming wave toward a so-called feed antenna ; this results in an antenna system with an effective area comparable to the size of the reflector itself. Other concepts from geometrical optics are also employed in antenna technology, such as with
17835-523: The revived Moog Music. He died at the age of 71 in Asheville from a brain tumor. Robert Moog was born at Flushing Hospital in New York City on May 23, 1934. His father was George Conrad Moog, of German descent. His mother was Shirley (Jacobs) Moog, of Polish-Jewish descent. He was raised in Flushing , Queens . When he was a boy, Moog's mother forced him to study the piano. He was active in
17980-458: The same axis (or collinear ), each feeding one side of a two-conductor transmission wire. The physical arrangement of the two elements places them 180 degrees out of phase, which means that at any given instant one of the elements is driving current into the transmission line while the other is pulling it out. The monopole antenna is essentially one half of the half-wave dipole, a single 1 / 4 wavelength element with
18125-425: The same whether the antenna is transmitting or receiving . For example, the "receiving pattern" (sensitivity to incoming signals as a function of direction) of an antenna when used for reception is identical to the radiation pattern of the antenna when it is driven and functions as a radiator, even though the current and voltage distributions on the antenna itself are different for receiving and sending. This
18270-432: The same. Electrically this appears to be a very high impedance. The antenna and transmission line no longer have the same impedance, and the signal will be reflected back into the antenna, reducing output. This could be addressed by changing the matching system between the antenna and transmission line, but that solution only works well at the new design frequency. The result is that the resonant antenna will efficiently feed
18415-469: The signal's instantaneous field. When the resulting current reaches the end of the conductor, it reflects, which is equivalent to a 180 degree change in phase. If the conductor is 1 / 4 of a wavelength long, current from the feed point will undergo 90 degree phase change by the time it reaches the end of the conductor, reflect through 180 degrees, and then another 90 degrees as it travels back. That means it has undergone
18560-434: The simplest designs, the antenna is directly coupled to the tuned circuit of the oscillator and the 'pitch field', that is the change of note with distance, is highly nonlinear, as the capacitance change with distance is far greater near the antenna. In such systems, when the antenna is removed, the oscillator moves up in frequency. To partly linearise the pitch field, the antenna may be wired in series with an inductor to form
18705-530: The single prompted an unexpected revival in theremins and increased the awareness of analog synthesizers . In response to requests by the band, Moog Music began producing its own brand of ribbon-controlled instruments which would mimic the sound of a theremin. Frank Zappa also included the theremin on the albums Freak Out! (1966) and We're Only in It for the Money (1967). Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin used
18850-521: The so-called Moogtonium for the composer Max Brand. It is still operational and exhibited in the Langenzersdorf_Museum near Vienna (Austria). Moog described himself as a toolmaker designing things for his users, not himself. His development was driven by requests and suggestions from various musicians, including Deutsch (who devised the instrument's keyboard interface), Richard Teitelbaum , Vladimir Ussachevsky (credited with devising
18995-594: The sound of the theremin as "[a] cello lost in a dense fog, crying because it does not know how to get home." The first orchestral composition written for theremin was Andrei Pashchenko's Symphonic Mystery , which premiered in 1924. However, most of the sheet music was lost after its second performance. Other concert composers who have written for theremin include Bohuslav Martinů , Percy Grainger , Christian Wolff , Joseph Schillinger , Moritz Eggert , Iraida Yusupova , Jorge Antunes , Vladimir Komarov, Anis Fuleihan , and Fazıl Say . Another large-scale theremin concerto
19140-566: The theremin". In 2019 in Kobe, Japan, the Matryomin ensemble, a group of 289 theremin players that included Natasha Theremin, Masha Theremin and Peter Theremin, the daughter, granddaughter and great-grandson of the inventor, achieved a Guinness world record as the largest ensemble of the instrument. The name Matryomin is a portmanteau by its inventor of the words matryoshka and theremin . The theremin concerto "Dancefloor With Pulsing" by
19285-414: The theremin. Theremin's original design included audio frequency series/parallel LC formant filters as well as a 3-winding variable-saturation transformer to control or induce harmonics in the audio output. Modern circuit designs often simplify this circuit and avoid the complexity of two heterodyne oscillators by having a single pitch oscillator, akin to the original theremin's volume circuit. This approach
19430-408: The thereminist must "play the rests, as well as the notes", as Clara Rockmore observed. If the pitch hand is moved between notes, without first lowering the volume hand, the result is a "swooping" sound akin to a swanee whistle or a glissando played on the violin . Small flutters of the pitch hand can be used to produce a vibrato effect. To produce distinct notes requires a pecking action with
19575-421: The time, synthesizers were enormous, room-filling instruments; Moog hoped to build a more compact synthesizer that would appeal to musicians. He believed that practicality and affordability were the most important parameters. In 1964, Moog began creating the Moog modular synthesizer. It was composed of separate modules that created and shaped sounds, connected by patch cords . Previous synthesizers, such as
19720-407: The tone circuit, the distance between the performer's hand and the volume control antenna determines the capacitance and hence natural resonant frequency of an LC circuit inductively coupled to another fixed LC oscillator circuit operating at a slightly higher resonant frequency. When a hand approaches the antenna, the natural frequency of that circuit is lowered by the extra capacitance, which detunes
19865-533: The volume hand to mute the volume while the pitch hand moves between positions. Thereminists such as Carolina Eyck use a fixed arm position per octave, and use fixed positions of the fingers to create the notes within the octave, allowing very fast transitions between adjacent notes. Although volume technique is less developed than pitch technique, some thereminists have worked to extend it, especially Pamelia Kurstin with her " walking bass " technique and Rupert Chappelle. The critic Harold C. Schonberg described
20010-560: The word antenna relative to wireless apparatus is attributed to Italian radio pioneer Guglielmo Marconi . In the summer of 1895, Marconi began testing his wireless system outdoors on his father's estate near Bologna and soon began to experiment with long wire "aerials" suspended from a pole. In Italian a tent pole is known as l'antenna centrale , and the pole with the wire was simply called l'antenna . Until then wireless radiating transmitting and receiving elements were known simply as "terminals". Because of his prominence, Marconi's use of
20155-548: The word antenna spread among wireless researchers and enthusiasts, and later to the general public. Antenna may refer broadly to an entire assembly including support structure, enclosure (if any), etc., in addition to the actual RF current-carrying components. A receiving antenna may include not only the passive metal receiving elements, but also an integrated preamplifier or mixer , especially at and above microwave frequencies. Antennas are required by any radio receiver or transmitter to couple its electrical connection to
20300-513: Was its envelope , which controls how notes swell and fade. According to the Guardian , Moog's 1964 paper Voltage-Controlled Music Modules , in which he proposed the Moog synthesizer modules, invented the modern concept of the analog synthesizer . Moog debuted the instrument at the 1964 Audio Engineering Society convention in New York. It was much smaller than other synthesizers, such as
20445-472: Was not used for the soundtrack of Forbidden Planet , for which Bebe and Louis Barron built disposable oscillator circuits and a ring modulator to create the electronic tonalities used in the film. Los Angeles–based thereminist Charles Richard Lester is featured on the soundtrack of Monster House and has performed the US premiere of Gavriil Popov's 1932 score for Komsomol – Patron of Electrification with
20590-645: Was survived by his second wife Ileana, four children, one stepdaughter and five grandchildren. Moog has had a lasting influence on music. The BBC describes him as a pioneer of synthesized sound. According to the Guardian , his inventions "changed the complexion of the pop and classical music worlds." Moog's name became so associated with electronic music that it was sometimes used as a generic term for any synthesizer. Moog's awards include honorary doctorates from Polytechnic Institute of New York University ( New York City ), Lycoming College ( Williamsport, Pennsylvania ) and Berklee College of Music . He received
20735-634: Was taken from his New York City apartment by NKVD agents (preceding the KGB ), taken back to the Soviet Union and made to work in a sharashka laboratory prison camp at Magadan, Siberia. He reappeared 30 years later. In his 2000 biography of the inventor, Theremin: Ether Music and Espionage , Albert Glinsky suggested he had fled to escape crushing personal debts, and was then caught up in Stalin's political purges. In any case, Theremin did not return to
20880-578: Was the founder of the synthesizer manufacturer Moog Music and the inventor of the first commercial synthesizer , the Moog synthesizer , which debuted in 1964. In 1970, Moog released a more portable model, the Minimoog , described as the most famous and influential synthesizer in history. Among Moog's honors are a Technical Grammy Award , received in 2002, and an induction into the National Inventors Hall of Fame . By 1963, Moog had been designing and selling theremins for several years while working toward
21025-579: Was the product of Soviet government-sponsored research into proximity sensors . The instrument was invented in October 1920 by the Russian physicist Lev Sergeyevich Termen, known in the West as Leon Theremin . After a lengthy tour of Europe, during which time he demonstrated his invention to packed houses, Theremin moved to the United States, where he patented his invention in 1928. Subsequently, Theremin granted commercial production rights to RCA . Although
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