"Good Vibrations" was actually recorded using an Electro-Theremin [1] (emphasis mine). It was essentially the same but sported more traditional knob controls. Also if you ever hear a Theremin-esque noise in an Elmer Bernstein soundtrack like "Heavy Metal" it was actually an Ondes Martenot [2] which is distinct from and less similar to the classic Theremin.
There are still several companies who build it. Get one from Doepfer (German Manufacturer) here and connect it to a modular system or a semi-modular synth like a mini moog.
As a now inactive theremin player (but I will go back at some point!) I'm sad to learn that Moog isn't making real theremins anymore (the theremini isn't one).
The Moog Etherwave (Standard/Plus) wasn't the best theremin, but it was always extremely solid in terms of bang for the buck, a standard, easy to set up, reliable option with lots of other players you could ask for help, accessories (carry bag, mods, etc.) so it was the most logical recommendation for most newcomers.
There were (and probably still are) great choices from smaller makers as well, in fact I own one in addition to my Moog, but they were more adventurous choices that didn't offer the reliability and newbie-friendliness of the Moog at a comparable price. Many players would have their pet underdog theremin that they would personally use and prefer to the Moog, but would still recommend the Moog to newcomers because you just couldn't go wrong with it, and others were either expensive, fickle, unsupported, inconsistent quality, difficult to set up, difficult to source, etc. I don't know if newer options will have changed this.
"The Thing" Requires a mandatory mention [0]. Same principles and same designer.
It was a very sophisticated covert listening device (bug) for its time that went undetected for a long time. It did not have a conventional power source such as a battery or mains connection.
My first intro to this was the fascinating book The SpyCatcher.
From the headline I kind of expected it to be about some more contrived apparatus, something that was built ad hoc and is constantly close to self-disassembling from being used, like Wintergatan's Marble Machine:
Those are on the marble machine video, Eyck has a comparably puny 11 million. I think she deserves more, though.
Theremin is something of a niche instrument however. Around the same time as the Morricone cover was released I also stumbled on this syrian rap song, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxah0kE4cwU, and over the months after it was released I was surprised at how fast it was getting views. Apparently it found a broader audience despite being kind of niche as well.
Do you know if there are any affordable "theremin" like MIDI control devices that enable free assignment of parameters to the antennas? For example, I could have both antennas control pitch, independently of each other, and amplitude would be set to a fixed value via a knob or on a device that the "theremin" sends its output to.
The D-Lev has a fairly extensive MIDI implementation, and you can control any CC with the volume hand (7 or 14 bits), so perhaps something like this would be possible if the synth it's driving is flexible enough.
There are 50 or so kits spread out all over the world, some in the hands of the world's best Thereminists, which has been quite gratifying. But the project has been in a bit of a hiatus while I do more R&D, and the current tariff situation isn't exactly filling me with enthusiasm. Enclosures and antennas have been a burden for some, a wine box build is probably your best bet. I don't mind supplying hand-wound coils and any guidance you may need. My contact info is on the support page.
Rob Scallon did a video with Carolina a few years ago, where they go into a bit of detail about how you play the thing and how it words. If you’re interested in the theremin, it’s a pretty good watch.
Watching one of her videos, you can see that her theremin has a pitch display, showing pitch on a hex grid of LEDs. It must make accurate pitch a lot easier (although in no way "easy").
AFAIK Carolina only uses the D-Lev pitch circle for coming in on pitch, not for active playing. That's pretty typical for players who have learned on an analog Theremin, where they have necessarily been guided only by fingering techniques and their ears. Many Thereminists plug a guitar tuner or similar into their Theremin for this, but those sorts of tuners are rather sluggish. When you have a highly responsive tuner, then playing turns into an almost "paint by numbers" experience, and you are much more aware of the key and other song structure.
It was designed in 1920, before digital computers, and is made using a very small number of electronic components. So, they couldn't have made it sound like whatever they wanted, at the time.
To me it does sound unpleasant, like out of tune in a bad way (and I love untuned, atonal, experimental electronic music and use my own modular synth often, as a point of reference). Like the OP, I never understood the appeal of a theremin.
This is timely, I've been listening to Carolina Eyck a lot during the past few weeks! I've been building a virtual theremin for the Meta Quest, hoping to make this instrument more accessible and flexible by leveraging the powers of visual overlays and motion controllers. Here's a basic walkthrough: https://youtu.be/m8xFstjNxUo?si=ss2wSk1SIG90OWCM
I've been stuck waiting for Meta to verify my identity. Shortly after that happens, it'll be available on the Quest store.
I think I saw her around 1999 or 2000 w an electronic group Arling & Cameron w a wind player. Lots of sound from a four piece. There is a different player on the album but they billed her as a world champion theremin player.
I built a theremin in the early 80s for a school project. Had to get the local library to obtain books and other printed resources on it so I could make one. Sadly no pictures survive, and the device itself is long gone. Didn't think to document it at the time, beyond the hand in materials for the project. I was 14. I have wondered about getting a modern one though. They're so cool.
I recently watched her live, introducing to the Theremin "for families", with a pianist. It was ok but too verbose and dumbed down (probably not by her, by her hosts). I'd try to attend her shows for grown ups instead, even with kids.
This was a case where the novelty of the instrument stood in the way of the performance.
What stood out to me most is how personal the instrument is. The idea that the theremin tunes to your body and environment - that you become part of the instrument - feels almost mystical
From the articale ....With its sci-fi antennae bristling left and right, Russian physicist Leon Theremin’s novel invention of 1919 remains the only musical instrument you play without touching anything. “Aerial fingering” was the technique devised by the inventor’s original Lithuanian prodigy, Clara Rockmore, in the 1930s.
You could make the case that he has to "touch" (there's a physical interaction where his hand/glove blocks the light) the laser to trigger the note. I'm not even sure it would be that pedantic - there's a definite physicality to it that the theremin doesn't have.
