1 00:00:14,230 --> 00:00:17,028 The very first thing 2 00:00:17,234 --> 00:00:21,603 that I saw, it was in my mother's womb. 3 00:00:22,173 --> 00:00:24,573 It was very... 4 00:00:25,708 --> 00:00:27,768 There was no life. 5 00:00:28,411 --> 00:00:32,973 I was pulled in this direction, 6 00:00:34,551 --> 00:00:37,918 through this opening, 7 00:00:37,987 --> 00:00:41,389 outside my mother. 8 00:00:42,058 --> 00:00:47,691 In those days, I had a voice, 9 00:00:49,265 --> 00:00:54,203 but there was a very 10 00:00:55,805 --> 00:00:59,673 bad influence of light on my voice. 11 00:01:00,774 --> 00:01:02,575 12 00:01:11,322 --> 00:01:14,620 THEREMIN - THE ELECTRONIC ODYSSEY 13 00:01:16,593 --> 00:01:18,528 - Where's Mike? - Here. 14 00:01:18,629 --> 00:01:20,893 I want you to tell me. 15 00:01:21,165 --> 00:01:23,531 Did you get the sound? 16 00:01:24,768 --> 00:01:26,793 You only tried like this. 17 00:01:26,971 --> 00:01:31,998 Let no one stay near me, otherwise I cannot tune the instrument. 18 00:01:32,108 --> 00:01:34,805 It's a crazy instrument, it's not your fault. 19 00:01:34,944 --> 00:01:38,311 When I played with the symphony orchestra... 20 00:01:38,382 --> 00:01:40,748 I am not in communion at all... 21 00:01:40,850 --> 00:01:42,442 How to say? 22 00:01:42,585 --> 00:01:46,215 I said to the first ones: “Go away.” 23 00:01:46,322 --> 00:01:49,621 I need space. You are in the space control zone. 24 00:01:49,692 --> 00:01:52,218 Do not come any closer. 25 00:02:05,409 --> 00:02:08,343 I remember very well that they brought me 26 00:02:08,611 --> 00:02:11,638 at the Plaza Hotel 27 00:02:11,915 --> 00:02:14,544 to meet the great professor Theremin 28 00:02:14,717 --> 00:02:17,277 and see his invention. 29 00:02:17,454 --> 00:02:21,584 I remember going there with Dr. Vilnegradf, 30 00:02:21,792 --> 00:02:25,728 having met this fascinating man 31 00:02:25,862 --> 00:02:29,093 and heard these ethereal sounds 32 00:02:29,165 --> 00:02:32,431 and celestial coming from the atmosphere. 33 00:03:35,366 --> 00:03:37,765 The Theremin in particular, 34 00:03:37,901 --> 00:03:40,562 and the work of Leon Theremin in general, 35 00:03:40,770 --> 00:03:43,432 are the most important cornerstone 36 00:03:44,074 --> 00:03:46,269 all electronic music. 37 00:03:46,342 --> 00:03:47,866 That’s where it started. 38 00:03:48,012 --> 00:03:50,343 At first, Theremin did more 39 00:03:50,413 --> 00:03:54,782 to promote the idea electronic music 40 00:03:54,884 --> 00:03:57,353 and electronic instruments, than anyone else. 41 00:03:57,420 --> 00:04:02,085 Very few people realize that musical instruments are mechanical. 42 00:04:02,725 --> 00:04:07,992 Electricity begins to reveal amazing musical possibilities 43 00:04:08,198 --> 00:04:13,396 which will ultimately be achieved thanks to to the use of electrical instruments. 44 00:04:13,503 --> 00:04:16,701 Here is a curious instrument, the Theremin Victor, 45 00:04:16,774 --> 00:04:19,334 which we play without even touching it. 46 00:05:07,257 --> 00:05:08,848 I met him 47 00:05:09,125 --> 00:05:11,754 in 1927. 48 00:05:12,161 --> 00:05:16,427 When he arrived in this country, I was already fascinated 49 00:05:16,766 --> 00:05:20,668 by mechanics 50 00:05:21,237 --> 00:05:25,334 which underlies the construction music. 51 00:05:28,444 --> 00:05:33,279 We could compose music, create it, make it 52 00:05:33,617 --> 00:05:37,485 through purely technical means, preferably electronic. 53 00:05:37,687 --> 00:05:40,952 At this time, needless to say 54 00:05:41,057 --> 00:05:44,459 that electronics was in its infancy. 55 00:05:44,595 --> 00:05:46,927 It was something completely new. 56 00:05:47,029 --> 00:05:52,365 Electric lighting existed, of course, as well as the metro, and that sort of thing. 57 00:05:52,502 --> 00:05:56,666 But there was no application, 58 00:05:56,740 --> 00:06:00,403 not even the radio. 59 00:06:00,476 --> 00:06:03,411 It was the very beginning of radio. 60 00:06:04,680 --> 00:06:06,807 Television did not exist, 61 00:06:06,884 --> 00:06:10,877 there was no connection between sound and image. 62 00:06:11,187 --> 00:06:17,149 For me, he was the prophet of the future of music. 63 00:06:50,093 --> 00:06:52,084 Could we try some jazz? 64 00:06:52,528 --> 00:06:55,497 My mother had read in a newspaper 65 00:06:55,632 --> 00:07:00,660 that the Wurlitzer company sponsored a tour of the United States 66 00:07:00,838 --> 00:07:02,533 by Mr. Theremin 67 00:07:03,040 --> 00:07:07,305 to demonstrate this new and, at the time, quite remarkable 68 00:07:07,411 --> 00:07:09,208 electronic instrument. 69 00:07:09,545 --> 00:07:14,745 Mr. Theremin opened the back of the instrument and showed me these great ones 70 00:07:15,319 --> 00:07:19,778 windings, which seem primitive today. 71 00:07:20,257 --> 00:07:24,023 He explained to me that they created a magnetic field 72 00:07:24,327 --> 00:07:27,728 around the metal rods out of the box. 73 00:07:27,898 --> 00:07:33,836 Any object having an electrical capacity, like a hand 74 00:07:33,903 --> 00:07:38,273 or a piece of metal, modifies the magnetic field 75 00:07:38,341 --> 00:07:42,641 and causes modification by the machine frequency and volume. 76 00:07:42,980 --> 00:07:46,711 There is a frequency control there. 77 00:07:47,050 --> 00:07:51,577 You can change the frequency in a range of four and a half octaves. 78 00:07:51,754 --> 00:07:56,249 Here is the volume control. You can control the volume 79 00:07:56,459 --> 00:08:00,122 total inaudibility up to the desired maximum volume. 80 00:08:10,473 --> 00:08:13,932 Height is determined by volume. 81 00:08:14,110 --> 00:08:15,908 The lower it is, 82 00:08:16,913 --> 00:08:19,541 the flatter the curve. 83 00:08:21,184 --> 00:08:24,278 The spacing between these points is determined by frequency. 84 00:08:28,658 --> 00:08:30,559 I can change the stamp 85 00:08:36,033 --> 00:08:37,932 and the shape of the wave. 86 00:08:38,802 --> 00:08:43,033 Note that Leon Theremin did not have oscilloscope 87 00:08:43,173 --> 00:08:45,801 when he designed the initial instrument. 88 00:08:46,009 --> 00:08:49,375 Without any means to see the shape of the wave, 89 00:08:49,712 --> 00:08:54,149 he got a fantastic richness of sound 90 00:08:54,384 --> 00:08:57,443 and accuracy of sound, 91 00:08:58,322 --> 00:09:00,984 using only his ears. 92 00:09:01,124 --> 00:09:02,489 In the same way as 93 00:09:02,826 --> 00:09:07,263 Stradivarius to create violins a few hundred years ago. 94 00:09:07,965 --> 00:09:10,933 He organized a concert at Carnegie Hall. 95 00:09:11,100 --> 00:09:14,730 Of course, Theremin was 96 00:09:15,272 --> 00:09:18,331 the master of the situation and played. 97 00:09:18,908 --> 00:09:23,778 We selected ten Theremin for this concert. 98 00:09:24,147 --> 00:09:26,910 A semicircle 99 00:09:27,116 --> 00:09:29,984 of Theremin on stage. 100 00:09:30,153 --> 00:09:34,179 I was at the end, because I was the only one left-handed Theremin player 101 00:09:34,256 --> 00:09:36,589 and there, I had a good effect. 102 00:09:36,826 --> 00:09:40,263 We simply had to play in turn. 103 00:09:41,298 --> 00:09:42,525 Instead of... 104 00:09:43,399 --> 00:09:45,197 My part was only... 105 00:09:48,038 --> 00:09:49,903 And he played between. 106 00:09:49,972 --> 00:09:54,875 So it seemed like only one person played the whole piece. 107 00:09:55,711 --> 00:09:57,201 I told Theremin 108 00:09:57,313 --> 00:10:01,307 during rehearsals: 109 00:10:01,684 --> 00:10:06,587 "Seven times out of ten it's good, but the other three collapsed. 110 00:10:07,090 --> 00:10:09,923 "I would hate for that to happen at Carnegie Hall.” 111 00:10:10,626 --> 00:10:14,586 He answered me: "You are men and I know it will work. 112 00:10:15,264 --> 00:10:16,754 “For you are men.” 113 00:10:16,832 --> 00:10:21,235 It was a bit mysogynistic, but it was his way of encouraging us. 114 00:10:22,905 --> 00:10:28,538 When we played, he came that we become women in his eyes, 115 00:10:29,111 --> 00:10:32,376 because it was falling apart. 116 00:10:32,883 --> 00:10:34,908 But that didn't make him unhappy, 117 00:10:34,985 --> 00:10:38,511 because he only wanted show this audience... 118 00:10:38,654 --> 00:10:42,056 The room was packed. I'm not talking about the concert hall. 119 00:10:42,158 --> 00:10:46,458 I'm talking about Carnegie Hall, all of it. 120 00:10:46,897 --> 00:10:49,626 'THE SOVIET EDISON' MAKE MUSIC WITH AIR 121 00:10:49,966 --> 00:10:52,730 Produced by free movement hands in the air 122 00:10:56,472 --> 00:10:58,498 Music from an air device at the Metropolitan 123 00:10:58,575 --> 00:11:00,941 Theremin improves his musical technique 124 00:11:04,980 --> 00:11:06,778 A melody from the air 125 00:11:07,484 --> 00:11:09,782 10,000 SPECTATORS FOR ELECTRICAL WONDERS 126 00:11:10,886 --> 00:11:17,485 A wave of the hand creates music from air 127 00:11:22,466 --> 00:11:24,865 music like no one has ever played it 128 00:11:25,201 --> 00:11:27,830 The harmonies of the ether in the concert hall 129 00:11:28,471 --> 00:11:29,700 130 00:11:29,905 --> 00:11:32,135 131 00:11:32,274 --> 00:11:34,708 132 00:11:35,278 --> 00:11:38,371 HANDS CREATE ELECTRIC MUSIC 133 00:12:36,740 --> 00:12:40,801 Of course, Clara Rockmore was the best of us. 134 00:12:42,412 --> 00:12:46,576 I know Theremin was crazy about it. He loved her very much. 135 00:12:46,682 --> 00:12:48,446 She was a beautiful woman. 136 00:12:48,684 --> 00:12:52,279 At that time, he was courting me. 137 00:12:52,389 --> 00:12:56,654 He gave me a wonderful surprise 138 00:12:56,725 --> 00:12:58,990 for my 18th birthday. 139 00:12:59,663 --> 00:13:02,860 It was in my room. 140 00:13:02,999 --> 00:13:06,058 It was in my room. 141 00:13:06,202 --> 00:13:10,832 to organize a birthday cake which he had not prepared himself. 142 00:13:11,073 --> 00:13:12,938 I already said 143 00:13:13,176 --> 00:13:17,168 what genius he was. He had not prepared the cake, but he brought it 144 00:13:17,246 --> 00:13:21,649 and installed it on a small table, with a device 145 00:13:21,784 --> 00:13:26,721 which, when I approached the cake, worked according to the Theremin principle. 146 00:13:27,123 --> 00:13:32,527 The candle, which was of course electric, 147 00:13:32,761 --> 00:13:37,130 lit up and the cake moved slowly. 148 00:13:37,200 --> 00:13:41,830 Just as I approached. Everything stopped when I walked away. 149 00:13:41,937 --> 00:13:45,374 It was magical in my room for my birthday. 150 00:13:48,110 --> 00:13:52,138 We went to the classiest places. 151 00:13:52,282 --> 00:13:55,011 We were still in evening wear. 152 00:13:55,184 --> 00:13:58,381 It was another era, very romantic. 153 00:14:00,724 --> 00:14:03,658 He lived on 54th Street, 154 00:14:03,893 --> 00:14:07,794 in an old sandstone house that had given him 155 00:14:08,063 --> 00:14:10,225 his kind neighbors, 156 00:14:11,368 --> 00:14:14,860 patrons Lucy Rosen and her husband, 157 00:14:15,038 --> 00:14:18,006 who had left him the use of the house. 158 00:14:18,475 --> 00:14:20,773 There was a studio downstairs 159 00:14:20,844 --> 00:14:23,870 where Goldberg, who was already with him 160 00:14:23,980 --> 00:14:28,883 in Europe, worked on his electronic instruments. 161 00:14:29,818 --> 00:14:33,220 In the basement. This is where all the technical work 162 00:14:33,722 --> 00:14:35,315 took place. 163 00:14:35,725 --> 00:14:37,283 There was 164 00:14:39,995 --> 00:14:42,590 tables everywhere 165 00:14:42,731 --> 00:14:46,030 and all kinds of electronic cables, 166 00:14:46,201 --> 00:14:49,967 capacitors, hits and God knows what, everywhere. 167 00:14:50,206 --> 00:14:52,697 And on top of all that, there was also 168 00:14:53,109 --> 00:14:56,806 Professor Theremin, still in his white suit. 169 00:14:56,879 --> 00:15:02,250 We had the whole group of people there like Slaminsky and Schillinger. 170 00:15:03,320 --> 00:15:06,812 Various people interested by the news... 171 00:15:06,990 --> 00:15:10,426 He had many different instruments. 172 00:15:10,527 --> 00:15:14,360 The Theremin cello, which he called cello. 173 00:15:14,464 --> 00:15:19,730 We held him between the knees and we shook the handle. 174 00:15:19,836 --> 00:15:22,464 It gave a low sound, close to the sound of a cello. 175 00:15:22,538 --> 00:15:26,942 Imagine a key like on a cello, but without strings. 176 00:15:27,110 --> 00:15:30,636 Instead, some kind of plastic material. 177 00:15:30,947 --> 00:15:34,279 Instead, some kind of plastic material. 178 00:15:34,951 --> 00:15:38,250 we can play that fast than on a cello. 179 00:15:38,421 --> 00:15:42,288 But there is only the equivalent of a rope. 180 00:15:42,591 --> 00:15:46,823 He had the Rythmicon, which fascinated people like Schillinger. 181 00:15:46,962 --> 00:15:51,092 Musicians with a very academic mind. 182 00:15:55,739 --> 00:16:00,767 I will try a demonstration imperfect of the Rythmicon. 183 00:16:00,976 --> 00:16:04,003 It is an extraordinary instrument 184 00:16:04,214 --> 00:16:08,980 who is not satisfied to give 16 harmonics. 185 00:16:09,284 --> 00:16:14,221 Furthermore, each harmonic has a number of beats 186 00:16:14,390 --> 00:16:19,327 corresponding to its place in the range. 187 00:16:19,662 --> 00:16:23,927 For example, here is number one. 188 00:16:26,769 --> 00:16:28,431 Every two seconds. 189 00:16:28,538 --> 00:16:33,339 Number two, the first harmonic, an octave. 190 00:16:35,211 --> 00:16:36,576 Two per time. 191 00:16:38,014 --> 00:16:39,640 Number three. 192 00:16:41,518 --> 00:16:42,815 Three per time. 193 00:16:43,153 --> 00:16:44,643 Number four. 194 00:16:46,589 --> 00:16:48,056 Four per time. 195 00:16:48,258 --> 00:16:49,657 Four per time. 196 00:16:51,794 --> 00:16:53,091 Number six. 197 00:16:55,697 --> 00:16:57,164 Number seven. 198 00:16:58,835 --> 00:17:00,769 Number eight. 199 00:17:01,703 --> 00:17:03,933 Faster and faster. 200 00:17:05,340 --> 00:17:07,332 Then we hear this. 201 00:17:11,280 --> 00:17:13,840 Higher, faster sounds. 202 00:17:32,469 --> 00:17:33,834 Four. 203 00:17:40,375 --> 00:17:42,309 Six, and so on. 204 00:17:48,817 --> 00:17:52,446 someone spoke to me 205 00:17:52,521 --> 00:17:55,218 from Theremin in Russia, 206 00:17:55,491 --> 00:18:00,087 when one of his close assistants, 207 00:18:00,329 --> 00:18:05,289 died in the early 1920s. 208 00:18:06,201 --> 00:18:09,932 It was a terrible shock for everyone, 209 00:18:10,272 --> 00:18:14,334 because she was part of the group. 210 00:18:14,443 --> 00:18:18,505 They also worked together on several electrical inventions. 211 00:18:18,780 --> 00:18:23,444 Theremin said: "We must not cry 212 00:18:23,720 --> 00:18:26,450 "on the lifeless body of our assistant. 213 00:18:26,556 --> 00:18:30,184 "You have to get started right away 214 00:18:30,326 --> 00:18:33,317 "to the creation of an instrument 215 00:18:33,462 --> 00:18:37,422 “capable of bringing a corpse back to life 216 00:18:37,700 --> 00:18:41,727 "and not consider death as an end." 217 00:18:42,638 --> 00:18:45,038 It was a den of mad researchers. 218 00:18:45,441 --> 00:18:50,002 In fact, I sometimes thought he was crazy, when he spoke to me 219 00:18:50,747 --> 00:18:55,308 of his idea of removing all the bridges 220 00:18:55,585 --> 00:18:58,748 to ensure that automobiles 221 00:18:58,988 --> 00:19:04,255 are transported electronically above the rivers. 222 00:19:04,394 --> 00:19:06,624 “What would the cost be?” I asked. 223 00:19:06,695 --> 00:19:08,596 He said, “How much does a bridge cost?” 224 00:19:09,298 --> 00:19:13,234 It never stopped. He was inventing at that time. 225 00:19:13,836 --> 00:19:18,102 It was after the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby, I think so. 226 00:19:18,340 --> 00:19:22,606 In his studio, I saw a cradle with a doll. 227 00:19:22,711 --> 00:19:26,010 I wanted to know why he had these items. 228 00:19:26,348 --> 00:19:30,444 He was working on an invention which he developed, I believe. 229 00:19:30,653 --> 00:19:36,215 If anyone leaned over a cradle to steal or kidnap a baby, 230 00:19:36,291 --> 00:19:40,854 a signal was emitted without the kidnapper knowing. 231 00:19:41,263 --> 00:19:45,962 He had wired the walls of Sing Sing. If a prisoner wanted to escape 232 00:19:46,702 --> 00:19:50,069 and approached the wall to get over it, 233 00:19:50,239 --> 00:19:53,766 he entered the field and a signal went off. 234 00:19:54,376 --> 00:19:56,674 I forgot to mention 235 00:19:57,713 --> 00:20:01,707 one of his inventions of the time 236 00:20:02,818 --> 00:20:07,619 which I did, with reluctance, the demonstration at Carnegie Hall. 237 00:20:08,023 --> 00:20:11,016 The idea of this invention was, 238 00:20:11,126 --> 00:20:15,153 the human body still playing the role electrical conductor, 239 00:20:15,298 --> 00:20:19,632 that all movements translate immediately in sounds. 240 00:20:20,135 --> 00:20:24,266 To play it, 241 00:20:24,539 --> 00:20:28,101 we did dance moves, obviously 242 00:20:28,176 --> 00:20:32,840 much wider just the little gestures of the fingers. 243 00:20:33,048 --> 00:20:38,180 Dancers from famous schools have tried, 244 00:20:38,421 --> 00:20:40,752 and although they are fascinated, 245 00:20:40,823 --> 00:20:44,223 they couldn't make music. 246 00:20:44,493 --> 00:20:47,759 Five of us, 247 00:20:47,963 --> 00:20:52,263 from von Grona's group, were retained to study Thereminics. 248 00:20:53,001 --> 00:20:58,440 The teacher demonstrated from the machine to the studio. 249 00:20:58,941 --> 00:21:03,605 We had to take a piece of music 250 00:21:03,846 --> 00:21:09,785 and try to create the melody using our bodies. 251 00:21:10,086 --> 00:21:14,785 It was very fun, the sound changed if you moved a finger. 252 00:21:14,891 --> 00:21:16,518 We couldn't avoid it. 253 00:21:16,592 --> 00:21:20,550 It was difficult, to try to work, to dance, 254 00:21:20,896 --> 00:21:23,832 while retaining the melody. 255 00:21:24,634 --> 00:21:27,500 His eyes struck me. 256 00:21:27,769 --> 00:21:29,601 He had fascinating eyes. 257 00:21:29,672 --> 00:21:32,903 Light blue. He looked straight in the eye. 258 00:21:32,974 --> 00:21:35,170 It was like he saw right through you. 259 00:21:35,611 --> 00:21:39,273 I went there twice a week, roughly. 260 00:21:39,615 --> 00:21:42,981 At that time, I said: “This stuff is driving me crazy.” 261 00:21:43,086 --> 00:21:45,554 It's very 262 00:21:46,588 --> 00:21:47,782 frustrating. 263 00:21:48,057 --> 00:21:50,355 We want to produce, 264 00:21:50,692 --> 00:21:54,492 but we are constantly frustrated 265 00:21:54,596 --> 00:21:58,965 by complications inherent to the machine. 266 00:21:59,067 --> 00:22:01,262 I remember being fascinated. 267 00:22:01,503 --> 00:22:05,565 Being in a prayer position gave me an excuse. 268 00:22:05,674 --> 00:22:07,608 I was on my knees 269 00:22:07,777 --> 00:22:12,680 and I could move my hands, shoulders and head. 270 00:22:12,848 --> 00:22:15,942 What I wanted. It was a lot of fun choosing. 271 00:22:16,018 --> 00:22:18,987 If we want to do a 5th degree, we can do it like this, 272 00:22:19,055 --> 00:22:22,148 you can lower your head or raise it. 273 00:22:22,357 --> 00:22:23,619 We had a choice. 274 00:22:23,759 --> 00:22:29,288 We worked in the air to spontaneously create music 275 00:22:29,632 --> 00:22:32,795 I was working then with an African-American ballet troupe. 276 00:22:32,902 --> 00:22:35,894 We called him the “First Negro American Ballet”. 277 00:22:36,538 --> 00:22:39,303 This was before Alvin Ailey, before the Harlem Dancers. 278 00:22:39,407 --> 00:22:42,900 It was the very first troop black dance of the country. 279 00:22:43,278 --> 00:22:48,375 They were dancing The Firebird by Stravinsky and this type of work. 280 00:22:51,253 --> 00:22:54,848 Our star dancer 281 00:22:55,223 --> 00:22:58,352 was Lavinia Williams. 282 00:23:00,229 --> 00:23:02,628 Theremin fell in love with her 283 00:23:02,964 --> 00:23:05,558 and ended up marrying him. 284 00:23:05,902 --> 00:23:08,734 We knew instinctively 285 00:23:09,305 --> 00:23:14,140 that society would not accept this kind of relationship. 286 00:23:14,410 --> 00:23:17,038 She would not accept that she, at her level, 287 00:23:17,212 --> 00:23:21,411 either with him, at his level, or racially. 288 00:23:21,884 --> 00:23:23,875 It was a time when 289 00:23:25,354 --> 00:23:27,753 this kind of marriage was 290 00:23:29,424 --> 00:23:32,451 disapproved by so many people. 291 00:23:32,662 --> 00:23:36,257 His friends abandoned him, Lavinia told me. 292 00:23:36,632 --> 00:23:39,362 They did not approve of this marriage. 293 00:23:39,535 --> 00:23:41,230 "What was doing 294 00:23:41,737 --> 00:23:45,673 "the famous professor Theremin 295 00:23:45,740 --> 00:23:47,867 "with a young black dancer?" 296 00:23:49,345 --> 00:23:53,280 We were told to come up on the second floor. 297 00:23:54,150 --> 00:23:59,679 There we saw a kind of box against the wall. 298 00:24:00,556 --> 00:24:04,219 It seemed to me to measure about 50 centimeters, 299 00:24:06,962 --> 00:24:09,760 or a little more, I forgot. 300 00:24:12,167 --> 00:24:15,261 To our great astonishment, we saw, 301 00:24:15,605 --> 00:24:20,974 on the television screen, because that was it, 302 00:24:21,943 --> 00:24:26,676 what was happening in the basement of this laboratory. 303 00:24:27,083 --> 00:24:29,482 And we saw it in color. 304 00:24:29,618 --> 00:24:32,712 In color, at that time! 305 00:24:33,722 --> 00:24:37,625 At that moment, I still had to prove to the world 306 00:24:37,792 --> 00:24:40,454 that the Theremin was more 307 00:24:40,528 --> 00:24:43,895 just a magic toy and a wonderful gadget: 308 00:24:44,066 --> 00:24:47,467 A serious musical instrument. 309 00:24:47,636 --> 00:24:50,799 Taken seriously by people 310 00:24:50,906 --> 00:24:54,307 who hired me to play with the Philadelphia Orchestra. 311 00:24:54,477 --> 00:24:58,709 I could pretend to play at home, in privacy. 312 00:24:59,048 --> 00:25:01,982 But I had to have proof, not for me 313 00:25:02,050 --> 00:25:06,384 but to put the Theremin at the professional level he was at. 314 00:26:04,880 --> 00:26:07,404 With NADIA REISENBERG on piano 315 00:26:07,549 --> 00:26:09,381 TOWN HALL - Thursday evening 316 00:26:19,961 --> 00:26:24,160 She called me in tears, hysterical, to tell me 317 00:26:24,299 --> 00:26:27,826 that the professor had been kidnapped in his studio. 318 00:26:28,203 --> 00:26:30,763 Russians had entered. 319 00:26:30,905 --> 00:26:33,965 It was incredible. How was this possible? 320 00:26:34,210 --> 00:26:37,838 But she said yes. They had taken him away by force. 321 00:26:37,913 --> 00:26:40,143 - Was she there? - Yes. 322 00:26:40,682 --> 00:26:42,412 They took him away. 323 00:26:42,817 --> 00:26:46,048 She had no idea what was happening, 324 00:26:46,154 --> 00:26:49,385 but she felt that he was being made to leave the country. 325 00:26:49,692 --> 00:26:53,252 I'm sure he wouldn't have gone 326 00:26:53,729 --> 00:26:57,357 without a good reason. 327 00:26:58,034 --> 00:27:00,969 The only good reason I can find 328 00:27:01,037 --> 00:27:03,971 is that he had a gun in his back. 329 00:27:04,539 --> 00:27:07,099 We were all so shocked. 330 00:27:07,175 --> 00:27:09,440 Let something like this happen in America. 331 00:27:09,545 --> 00:27:13,571 I refused to believe in the intervention of a foreign government. 332 00:27:13,749 --> 00:27:18,709 For me, he was a citizen, living here gave him status. 333 00:27:18,854 --> 00:27:22,517 I didn't understand how people could come in broad daylight, 334 00:27:22,590 --> 00:27:27,392 any time, to kidnap someone from their home. 335 00:27:27,695 --> 00:27:30,528 We know there was a political reason 336 00:27:30,732 --> 00:27:32,928 to his removal from the country. 337 00:27:33,001 --> 00:27:34,765 It was not intentional. 338 00:27:35,304 --> 00:27:39,763 Maybe he wasn't cooperating or 339 00:27:40,542 --> 00:27:43,010 was he frowned upon there. 340 00:27:43,078 --> 00:27:46,276 At that time, anything could happen. 341 00:27:46,648 --> 00:27:50,449 Whatever the reasons, it was a long time ago 342 00:27:50,586 --> 00:27:55,250 and I forgot the details, but she had reason to believe 343 00:27:55,423 --> 00:27:57,721 that he was no longer alive. 344 00:27:59,561 --> 00:28:04,328 We never stopped looking for him, 345 00:28:04,532 --> 00:28:06,898 thanks to different 346 00:28:08,336 --> 00:28:11,396 relations, in Washington, 347 00:28:11,574 --> 00:28:15,942 with powerful people 348 00:28:16,010 --> 00:28:18,069 or at least allowed. 349 00:28:18,247 --> 00:28:20,510 Without any results. 350 00:28:20,682 --> 00:28:24,949 In fact it was as if a loved one, 351 00:28:25,019 --> 00:28:28,147 to whom we were related, had disappeared. 352 00:28:30,492 --> 00:28:32,221 Completely. 353 00:28:32,294 --> 00:28:34,693 We didn't know if he was alive or dead. 354 00:28:34,797 --> 00:28:37,391 or what had happened to him. 355 00:29:48,770 --> 00:29:50,761 - What is it? - It's not you. 356 00:29:51,105 --> 00:29:53,131 This is your dress. 357 00:29:53,608 --> 00:29:55,804 My dress? I don't understand. 358 00:29:57,613 --> 00:30:00,137 Excuse me. One thing struck me. 359 00:30:01,349 --> 00:30:03,442 I've been very nervous lately. 360 00:30:03,586 --> 00:30:06,419 Your dress, the dark stripes... 361 00:30:06,588 --> 00:30:08,181 But you are sick! 362 00:30:08,691 --> 00:30:10,556 No, it'll be fine. 363 00:30:15,431 --> 00:30:18,627 When I was a child, eight or ten years old, 364 00:30:18,901 --> 00:30:21,961 I built with my father simple electronics projects. 365 00:30:22,403 --> 00:30:24,929 To build a simple project, 366 00:30:25,007 --> 00:30:28,635 we subscribed to an amateur magazine which explained how to do it. 367 00:30:29,411 --> 00:30:33,507 At 14, I built the Theremin from a magazine article, 368 00:30:33,615 --> 00:30:35,242 and it all went from there. 369 00:30:35,317 --> 00:30:38,376 In high school, I couldn't stop to build Theremin. 370 00:30:38,453 --> 00:30:41,183 I was interested, that's all. 371 00:30:41,522 --> 00:30:44,583 At 18, 372 00:30:46,894 --> 00:30:50,261 I played the Theremin in front of an audience, in high school. 373 00:30:51,834 --> 00:30:56,395 I had a very large instrument which looked like a coffin. 374 00:30:56,571 --> 00:31:00,405 My science teacher, who was not the friendly type, 375 00:31:00,576 --> 00:31:03,703 said to me: "Moog, that's damn good." 376 00:31:05,580 --> 00:31:10,211 At 19, I wrote my first article for the same amateur magazine, 377 00:31:10,618 --> 00:31:14,419 on the construction of a Theremin. There, I designed it myself. 378 00:31:48,057 --> 00:31:49,854 In Hollywood, 379 00:31:49,924 --> 00:31:54,294 we just wanted produce strange noises. 380 00:31:55,029 --> 00:31:59,729 Spectrals. The sounds were meant scare you, and all that. 381 00:31:59,835 --> 00:32:03,430 That's not what I wanted to do. 382 00:32:04,873 --> 00:32:08,775 I wanted to be a serious musician, play Bach! 383 00:32:08,876 --> 00:32:11,868 Stokowski came to tell me: “Play me some Bach.” 384 00:32:12,013 --> 00:32:13,310 It's a compliment. 385 00:32:51,920 --> 00:32:54,820 NEW TRIUMPH WITH STOKOWSKI AND THE NEW YORK SYMPHONY 386 00:32:59,060 --> 00:33:03,122 This concerto for Theremin and orchestra was written especially for 387 00:33:03,365 --> 00:33:06,299 Clara Rockmore, which is now making its debut. 388 00:33:06,367 --> 00:33:10,429 She is going to play for the first time, with the orchestra conducted by Stokowski, 389 00:33:10,506 --> 00:33:13,998 the Concerto for Theremin and orchestra by Anis Fuleihan. 390 00:33:20,982 --> 00:33:23,076 391 00:33:23,251 --> 00:33:28,383 A German book 392 00:33:28,490 --> 00:33:32,789 on modern music quoted Theremin. 393 00:33:32,861 --> 00:33:37,093 He said Theremin had been executed after his return to Russia. 394 00:33:37,865 --> 00:33:40,835 There was reason to believe that 395 00:33:41,103 --> 00:33:43,537 something had happened to Theremin. 396 00:33:45,039 --> 00:33:47,030 We weren't sure of anything. 397 00:33:47,175 --> 00:33:51,635 There was an article in the Soviet magazine 398 00:33:51,779 --> 00:33:54,714 on electronic instruments 399 00:33:55,116 --> 00:33:58,143 and Theremin was not even mentioned. 400 00:33:58,220 --> 00:34:00,653 It was extraordinary. 401 00:34:00,823 --> 00:34:05,782 The article was published around 1951 or 1952, 402 00:34:06,094 --> 00:34:09,530 at the worst time of relationships 403 00:34:09,597 --> 00:34:12,362 between America and Russia. 404 00:34:56,978 --> 00:35:00,539 The music of the film The day the Earth stood still 405 00:35:00,715 --> 00:35:03,708 was going to be composed by Bernard Herrmann. 406 00:35:03,918 --> 00:35:05,943 He wanted to compose, 407 00:35:06,021 --> 00:35:10,481 in addition to other instruments, for two Theremin. 408 00:35:10,958 --> 00:35:15,760 No one else was playing it around here. 409 00:35:17,398 --> 00:35:19,992 I told them spontaneously 410 00:35:20,101 --> 00:35:24,367 that I had been in contact with this instrument in my childhood, 411 00:35:24,572 --> 00:35:28,668 what if they could find or rent one, 412 00:35:28,844 --> 00:35:32,802 I would be happy to repeat to try to play. 413 00:36:12,286 --> 00:36:16,690 When the robot's sight was raised, we heard this kind of noise... 414 00:36:43,552 --> 00:36:46,782 My husband and I went to Russia. 415 00:36:46,989 --> 00:36:49,684 It had nothing to do with Theremin search. 416 00:36:49,791 --> 00:36:54,626 My husband was curious to finally see 417 00:36:54,762 --> 00:36:57,561 where did the strange animal that I was come from. 418 00:36:57,666 --> 00:36:59,394 We arrived there at midnight. 419 00:36:59,467 --> 00:37:04,963 A lot of people were waiting the dubious pleasure of meeting us. 420 00:37:05,172 --> 00:37:08,869 At midnight, when we arrived, 421 00:37:09,043 --> 00:37:15,005 everyone greeted me, my husband hit a man who was leaving. 422 00:37:15,182 --> 00:37:17,548 He spoke English. 423 00:37:18,019 --> 00:37:21,012 He said: "I am a scientist." 424 00:37:21,188 --> 00:37:24,487 He spoke about his profession. 425 00:37:24,559 --> 00:37:28,255 At that moment, my husband had the reflex to say: 426 00:37:28,396 --> 00:37:34,097 "So maybe you know something on Professor Theremin." 427 00:37:34,802 --> 00:37:39,637 “I had lunch with him today,” he replied, and left. 428 00:37:39,840 --> 00:37:44,277 It was a very strong moment, after searching for seven years, 429 00:37:44,378 --> 00:37:49,338 meet a man who leaves, and who says: “I had lunch with him today.” 430 00:37:49,717 --> 00:37:52,117 That’s how we found Theremin. 431 00:38:27,289 --> 00:38:31,918 He arranged a meeting between my husband, me and him 432 00:38:32,327 --> 00:38:34,760 in a metro station. 433 00:38:37,164 --> 00:38:40,065 I knew it wasn't necessary ask questions. 434 00:38:40,402 --> 00:38:43,166 We met in the metro station, 435 00:38:43,438 --> 00:38:46,099 amid the din 436 00:38:46,273 --> 00:38:48,639 which was the real reason for this choice, 437 00:38:48,710 --> 00:38:52,907 so that we can talk 438 00:38:53,081 --> 00:38:56,811 without being listened to or followed. 439 00:38:57,385 --> 00:39:02,789 There was visibly constant surveillance of people 440 00:39:02,958 --> 00:39:06,052 which were not supposed meet strangers. 441 00:39:06,128 --> 00:39:08,755 Not foreigners, Americans. 442 00:39:12,233 --> 00:39:15,567 We were holding hands, sitting there 443 00:39:17,038 --> 00:39:19,632 trying to talk to us. 444 00:39:20,541 --> 00:39:23,806 He had spent seven years in prison. 445 00:39:26,014 --> 00:39:27,503 In life, 446 00:39:27,681 --> 00:39:30,981 if someone steals something, 447 00:39:31,585 --> 00:39:34,384 we send it to a place. 448 00:39:35,891 --> 00:39:38,416 You know the name of this place. 449 00:39:38,994 --> 00:39:40,824 Magadan. It was like 450 00:39:42,864 --> 00:39:45,923 Leningrad, Moscow, Magadan. 451 00:39:47,936 --> 00:39:50,097 A large group of people 452 00:39:50,204 --> 00:39:54,471 built the way to go 453 00:39:54,543 --> 00:39:56,806 from one place to another. 454 00:40:02,384 --> 00:40:03,976 I was not free. 455 00:40:07,856 --> 00:40:13,157 I was in prison. 456 00:40:15,996 --> 00:40:18,487 It was impossible to get out. 457 00:40:18,733 --> 00:40:21,132 Not because I said anything. 458 00:40:25,172 --> 00:40:29,108 A lot of people were relegated at that time. 459 00:40:29,244 --> 00:40:32,269 Some of them 460 00:40:35,182 --> 00:40:38,914 had flown before 461 00:40:39,054 --> 00:40:42,614 or did something wrong. 462 00:40:42,757 --> 00:40:46,215 Others were just different politically. 463 00:40:53,934 --> 00:40:58,496 It wasn't really about me, 464 00:40:58,907 --> 00:41:01,670 but it was possible 465 00:41:01,742 --> 00:41:05,338 to use my work. 466 00:41:07,449 --> 00:41:12,250 I worked in an institution 467 00:41:12,320 --> 00:41:17,121 on different types of electronics 468 00:41:17,626 --> 00:41:21,460 and then on aviation, 469 00:41:21,528 --> 00:41:25,362 street construction 470 00:41:30,304 --> 00:41:35,139 and electronics again. 471 00:41:36,043 --> 00:41:41,242 I had to work on many bad things. 472 00:41:41,449 --> 00:41:44,543 I worked in this organization 473 00:41:46,855 --> 00:41:48,686 almost 474 00:41:55,563 --> 00:41:57,463 from the age of 42 475 00:41:58,032 --> 00:42:01,331 up to 67 years old. 476 00:42:03,538 --> 00:42:06,371 I will explain to you. 477 00:42:09,610 --> 00:42:13,307 There are two high frequency oscillators. 478 00:42:13,514 --> 00:42:18,474 Inside, we have the difference between the two frequencies. 479 00:42:18,552 --> 00:42:22,045 We hear the corresponding sound unlike 480 00:42:22,157 --> 00:42:23,385 frequencies. 481 00:42:23,458 --> 00:42:26,358 A frequency passes through this lamp, 482 00:42:26,460 --> 00:42:28,793 the other by this one. 483 00:42:28,929 --> 00:42:33,458 The lamps amplify it, 484 00:42:33,635 --> 00:42:36,695 and these lamps 485 00:42:37,771 --> 00:42:40,172 modify the sound power 486 00:42:40,641 --> 00:42:46,273 and control the sound that comes out. 487 00:43:05,032 --> 00:43:06,295 Mr. Crow? 488 00:44:12,000 --> 00:44:14,797 "If you dance rock and roll while doing this thing 489 00:44:15,070 --> 00:44:17,538 "Ground dog, ground dog rock and roll 490 00:44:17,605 --> 00:44:20,130 "You ground-dog swings you ground dog roll 491 00:44:20,208 --> 00:44:23,177 “You roll and you swing” 492 00:44:23,244 --> 00:44:24,835 Hello, Mr. Crow. 493 00:44:25,380 --> 00:44:28,577 Please excuse me, I was playing your broom. 494 00:44:28,650 --> 00:44:30,378 This is my Theremin. 495 00:44:31,018 --> 00:44:32,418 Your what? 496 00:44:32,586 --> 00:44:34,248 You wanted to see it, right? 497 00:44:34,322 --> 00:44:36,619 - It's a very beautiful Theremin. - Not that! 498 00:44:37,025 --> 00:44:38,925 You see what I mean. 499 00:44:40,161 --> 00:44:44,655 Theremin even performed in front of Lenin. 500 00:44:44,898 --> 00:44:48,356 Lenin said that communism, this is socialism 501 00:44:48,702 --> 00:44:50,864 plus electrification. 502 00:44:51,072 --> 00:44:54,268 At this time, electrification was new. 503 00:44:54,842 --> 00:44:58,744 Oh, Lenin. I didn't understand. 504 00:44:58,880 --> 00:45:00,905 It's Lenin. 505 00:45:01,081 --> 00:45:04,449 I demonstrated it to him in 1922. 506 00:45:04,751 --> 00:45:08,313 He loved music and had a certain musical sense. 507 00:45:09,724 --> 00:45:14,786 He tried to play my instrument. With good results. 508 00:45:15,463 --> 00:45:20,126 Clara gave an interview and a concert on the radio, on WQXR. 509 00:45:20,235 --> 00:45:23,931 Someone recorded it and sent me the tape. 510 00:45:24,038 --> 00:45:25,505 Thought I would be interested. 511 00:45:25,572 --> 00:45:29,065 This is how I discovered Clara Rockmore. I didn't know her. 512 00:45:29,244 --> 00:45:34,271 She was the distant goddess who did these wonderful things, 513 00:45:34,382 --> 00:45:37,476 at or before the time of my birth. 514 00:45:37,818 --> 00:45:42,552 It is one of the last instruments of this form that I made. 515 00:45:42,923 --> 00:45:47,588 It was called the Vanguard, because it was a buzzword. 516 00:45:48,028 --> 00:45:51,726 There are maybe 50 or 60 instruments of this type, in all. 517 00:45:51,833 --> 00:45:56,998 Often with vacuum tubes, but the last ones are transistorized. 518 00:45:57,338 --> 00:45:59,202 He was in talks with 519 00:45:59,907 --> 00:46:04,971 the Schirmer publishing house, a very famous music publisher. 520 00:46:05,413 --> 00:46:08,108 They had an agreement with him: 521 00:46:08,315 --> 00:46:14,255 If Clara Rockmore played from his Theremin during his concerts, 522 00:46:14,956 --> 00:46:17,083 they would make it. 523 00:46:18,293 --> 00:46:20,056 It was important. 524 00:46:20,161 --> 00:46:24,893 Maybe it's a shame that we did not accept. 525 00:46:25,032 --> 00:46:28,161 There might be today thousands of Theremin. 526 00:46:28,268 --> 00:46:32,568 And hundreds of Clara Rockmores. I don't know. 527 00:46:32,639 --> 00:46:34,335 But the fact is 528 00:46:36,244 --> 00:46:41,510 that I couldn't sign something I wouldn't do. 529 00:46:41,815 --> 00:46:46,480 My instrument, the second that Theremin made, was better. 530 00:46:47,255 --> 00:46:49,246 Furthermore, 531 00:46:49,456 --> 00:46:52,449 I had so much respect 532 00:46:52,760 --> 00:46:57,663 and feelings for Theremin that even if this had not been the case, 533 00:46:59,701 --> 00:47:04,034 I wouldn't have wanted to stop suddenly to play the Theremin. 534 00:47:04,304 --> 00:47:09,936 I met Shostakovich who was from passage. I asked him innocently: 535 00:47:10,510 --> 00:47:15,447 “What happened to Theremin? Why his name 536 00:47:16,416 --> 00:47:20,045 "isn't it mentioned in specialized articles?" 537 00:47:20,454 --> 00:47:25,414 Shostakovich never used the Theremin in his compositions. 538 00:47:25,592 --> 00:47:29,255 He replied, with a sort of reluctance: 539 00:47:29,329 --> 00:47:33,027 "I can't say anything about Theremin." 540 00:47:33,668 --> 00:47:36,329 It looked like 541 00:47:36,771 --> 00:47:39,170 that it was better that he said nothing. 542 00:47:39,373 --> 00:47:42,365 In other words, Theremin was a minefield. 543 00:47:42,510 --> 00:47:46,570 He had not necessarily been executed, but it was a minefield. 544 00:47:47,081 --> 00:47:48,547 The KGB. 545 00:47:50,150 --> 00:47:52,050 You don't know the KGB? 546 00:47:52,420 --> 00:47:55,947 I was officially working 547 00:47:56,023 --> 00:47:59,585 in a particular ministry. 548 00:48:05,465 --> 00:48:08,333 In Russia it is called: 549 00:48:08,568 --> 00:48:12,130 “State Security Committee”. The KGB. 550 00:48:15,543 --> 00:48:19,342 They organize 551 00:48:19,414 --> 00:48:23,248 different kinds 552 00:48:26,286 --> 00:48:31,554 political investigations, 553 00:48:34,362 --> 00:48:38,559 monitor changes. 554 00:48:38,666 --> 00:48:42,431 It was this kind of organization: 555 00:48:42,503 --> 00:48:46,268 The Ministry of the Interior. 556 00:48:46,807 --> 00:48:51,643 The Ministry of the Interior matters. 557 00:48:52,780 --> 00:48:56,579 When a recording wasn't good enough 558 00:48:56,650 --> 00:49:00,485 so that it can be heard clearly, 559 00:49:03,458 --> 00:49:07,952 it had to be cleaned, acoustically. 560 00:49:08,528 --> 00:49:11,726 It was my specialty. 561 00:49:17,003 --> 00:49:21,907 LISTENING TO THE KREMLIN 562 00:49:29,951 --> 00:49:33,909 Buran, the snitch. 563 00:49:34,956 --> 00:49:39,052 That was the name of the invention. 564 00:49:39,460 --> 00:49:41,257 It was top secret. 565 00:49:41,996 --> 00:49:47,865 They weren't just listening to Stalin, but others too. 566 00:49:48,001 --> 00:49:52,905 Stalin knew about it. He thought it was very important. 567 00:49:53,106 --> 00:49:56,634 At the time of the Stalin trophies, 568 00:49:56,744 --> 00:50:01,840 the most prestigious in the USSR, 569 00:50:03,016 --> 00:50:07,215 Stalin saw that Theremin had 570 00:50:07,288 --> 00:50:11,519 second prize. 571 00:50:11,793 --> 00:50:16,059 He crossed it out, wrote "first prize" and signed. 572 00:50:16,431 --> 00:50:18,922 LYDIA KAVINA - Grandniece of Theremin 573 00:50:19,233 --> 00:50:21,326 Where is this document today? 574 00:50:22,603 --> 00:50:24,934 It's a secret document. 575 00:50:26,407 --> 00:50:31,208 With KGB methods, 576 00:50:31,311 --> 00:50:34,577 he is still locked up 577 00:50:34,648 --> 00:50:37,914 in its most secret cellars. 578 00:51:16,389 --> 00:51:19,985 Alas, Lavinia is dead about two years ago. 579 00:51:20,293 --> 00:51:24,059 A rather sudden and mysterious death, in Haiti. 580 00:51:24,398 --> 00:51:27,594 She had eaten at the restaurant 581 00:51:27,902 --> 00:51:30,735 and was sick after the meal. 582 00:51:31,338 --> 00:51:35,639 We took her to the hospital and she never recovered. 583 00:51:35,742 --> 00:51:38,302 It was some kind of poisoning. 584 00:52:00,568 --> 00:52:06,005 You have to put a piece of metal here 585 00:52:06,106 --> 00:52:09,838 to get the exact correction. 586 00:52:13,246 --> 00:52:17,148 We were having coffee when I asked him: 587 00:52:17,318 --> 00:52:20,913 "How did you create the Theremin?" 588 00:52:21,255 --> 00:52:24,315 "I worked on a radio", he replied, 589 00:52:24,958 --> 00:52:27,655 "and suddenly I heard a sound 590 00:52:27,728 --> 00:52:30,753 "which, I knew, did not come from a radio program. 591 00:52:30,931 --> 00:52:33,798 "This sound came from the radio itself." 592 00:52:34,068 --> 00:52:38,402 He said: “I was interested what produced it. 593 00:52:39,239 --> 00:52:43,835 "Little by little, I learned to control it." 594 00:52:45,045 --> 00:52:50,347 Today, engineers are used to it complex, sophisticated electronics. 595 00:52:50,550 --> 00:52:53,748 In a modern electronic organ or a synthesizer, 596 00:52:53,853 --> 00:52:58,313 there are hundreds of pieces, all extremely complex. 597 00:52:58,391 --> 00:53:03,021 In one of the initial instruments from Theremin, there is nothing. 598 00:53:04,264 --> 00:53:09,202 They are only intelligence and highly efficient design. 599 00:53:11,137 --> 00:53:14,039 It’s something we don’t do anymore. 600 00:53:14,175 --> 00:53:17,007 We can't do it anymore. We lost the thing. 601 00:53:36,291 --> 00:53:38,019 All my work 602 00:53:38,994 --> 00:53:42,588 design and construction Theremin has trained my ear. 603 00:53:42,664 --> 00:53:46,260 I ended up knowing how to play in tune and perform a correct vibrato. 604 00:53:46,402 --> 00:53:48,028 And phrase correctly. 605 00:53:48,369 --> 00:53:50,634 In my work on synthesizers, 606 00:53:50,706 --> 00:53:53,038 I understood what made a good sound 607 00:53:53,307 --> 00:53:55,867 and what musicians found useful. 608 00:53:56,277 --> 00:54:01,681 The period of 1965 or 66 until 1970 or 71 609 00:54:02,418 --> 00:54:03,679 was 610 00:54:05,054 --> 00:54:08,023 the most incredible half decade 611 00:54:09,090 --> 00:54:12,548 and terrible changes in the way of producing music 612 00:54:12,628 --> 00:54:14,619 and in the type of music played. 613 00:54:14,697 --> 00:54:18,427 It was a tumultuous time. 614 00:54:18,701 --> 00:54:23,228 From 1965. It was the beginning of rock and roll. 615 00:54:25,239 --> 00:54:28,902 Synthesizers were still experimental devices. 616 00:54:29,210 --> 00:54:32,907 Enter Switched-On Bach, with Wendy Carlos. 617 00:54:33,047 --> 00:54:37,211 The Grateful Dead arrive, the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. 618 00:54:37,385 --> 00:54:41,413 Comes the civil rights movement 619 00:54:41,556 --> 00:54:45,550 and all socio-cultural factors 620 00:54:45,927 --> 00:54:48,795 that psychedelic culture is brewing. 621 00:54:48,864 --> 00:54:54,097 The media brewed this incredible mixture, and what came out 622 00:54:54,670 --> 00:54:56,864 no longer had any of the original components. 623 00:54:56,938 --> 00:55:00,898 In the case of the Theremin, the components were Clara Rockmore 624 00:55:01,275 --> 00:55:03,574 and Dr. Samuel Hoffman. 625 00:55:03,711 --> 00:55:07,545 Out came Paul Conley by Lothar and The Hand People 626 00:55:09,050 --> 00:55:10,677 and Brian Wilson. 627 00:55:55,230 --> 00:55:59,826 In fact, it started when I was a child, at eight years old. 628 00:56:00,034 --> 00:56:04,199 My parents took me at one of their friends 629 00:56:04,373 --> 00:56:06,204 which had a Theremin. 630 00:56:06,775 --> 00:56:10,710 The guy was playing it and the sound scared me. 631 00:56:10,945 --> 00:56:12,846 I was really scared. 632 00:56:14,382 --> 00:56:17,909 I didn't want to hear that sound. That Theremin sound... 633 00:56:20,155 --> 00:56:21,485 This sound. 634 00:56:21,989 --> 00:56:25,789 It looked like one of those horrible horror films where... 635 00:56:26,360 --> 00:56:29,693 A strange trip. Strange facial expressions. 636 00:56:30,065 --> 00:56:31,657 It's almost sexual. 637 00:56:31,766 --> 00:56:33,563 - Are you okay? - Yes. 638 00:56:35,204 --> 00:56:36,603 I'll take you back. 639 00:56:37,873 --> 00:56:39,271 Take me to the mine. 640 00:56:40,809 --> 00:56:43,436 Please no. 641 00:56:54,623 --> 00:56:59,356 Because I thought: “I’m picking up on good vibes.” 642 00:56:59,460 --> 00:57:00,791 I said to myself: 643 00:57:01,463 --> 00:57:03,590 “We could hear the cello.” 644 00:57:03,798 --> 00:57:07,929 I said: "Since today we are doing something strange 645 00:57:08,237 --> 00:57:11,103 "why not put a Theremin in it? 646 00:57:11,172 --> 00:57:13,266 “The height I need is…” 647 00:57:15,143 --> 00:57:17,610 When we put the Theremin on it, 648 00:57:17,679 --> 00:57:21,114 we put it there so that people understand 649 00:57:21,182 --> 00:57:23,378 the legitimacy of the Theremin. 650 00:57:23,518 --> 00:57:26,112 Its musical legitimacy, more precisely. 651 00:57:26,188 --> 00:57:28,349 I'm not talking about... 652 00:57:28,523 --> 00:57:31,686 You understand me. In terms of written music. 653 00:57:31,860 --> 00:57:34,760 But in a sense it had an unwritten sound. 654 00:57:34,896 --> 00:57:36,989 As if the music wasn't written. 655 00:57:38,032 --> 00:57:40,797 Good Vibrations is probably 656 00:57:41,036 --> 00:57:45,097 the best combination of instruments of all Beach Boys records. 657 00:57:45,172 --> 00:57:48,869 The most unique way to take conventional instruments, 658 00:57:50,077 --> 00:57:54,981 which had only been associated with adults. 659 00:57:55,317 --> 00:57:56,614 The children... 660 00:57:56,751 --> 00:58:00,210 Children of 21 years old, 25 years old. 661 00:58:01,856 --> 00:58:05,657 Children of God are around twenty years old. 662 00:58:05,860 --> 00:58:08,795 They are around twenty years old. 663 00:58:08,931 --> 00:58:13,094 And are in no hurry at all to reach thirty years. 664 00:58:13,302 --> 00:58:17,864 In there, people of 25 or 26 years old... 665 00:58:20,141 --> 00:58:23,269 young adults, not quite adults, but 666 00:58:23,711 --> 00:58:26,612 quite flamboyant, a little 667 00:58:26,914 --> 00:58:28,882 fanciful. 668 00:58:28,951 --> 00:58:33,547 Whimsical personalities. A whimsical sense of humor. 669 00:58:33,755 --> 00:58:37,246 With Good Vibrations... 670 00:58:37,425 --> 00:58:41,226 It wasn't a funny record. He didn't make me laugh. 671 00:58:41,596 --> 00:58:45,157 It made me cry because I had seen... 672 00:58:45,634 --> 00:58:47,362 I had seen... 673 00:58:47,536 --> 00:58:53,168 I was sure straight away to have grasped the idea 674 00:58:53,342 --> 00:58:55,969 that, when we take classical instruments, 675 00:58:56,143 --> 00:59:00,012 to place them in a rock environment, 676 00:59:00,148 --> 00:59:02,047 we refine the music. 677 00:59:02,150 --> 00:59:05,516 We elevate rock and roll. 678 00:59:05,721 --> 00:59:10,521 It's funny, no one has ever qualified Good Vibrations rock record. 679 00:59:10,625 --> 00:59:13,958 It was a rock record. It was rocking, huh? 680 00:59:14,028 --> 00:59:15,393 Really. 681 00:59:24,472 --> 00:59:26,498 That's the melody. 682 01:00:11,820 --> 01:00:13,913 I didn't know it would be a hit. 683 01:00:13,989 --> 01:00:18,255 We didn't even think about releasing it, it was so weird. 684 01:00:18,393 --> 01:00:20,987 - A double bass and a Theremin... - Weird. 685 01:00:21,063 --> 01:00:24,226 Capitol Records, our record company, said: 686 01:00:25,766 --> 01:00:29,827 “It’s too long.” It lasted three minutes thirty-five. 687 01:00:30,038 --> 01:00:33,201 Three minutes thirty-five seconds. 688 01:00:35,943 --> 01:00:40,744 Capitol Records wanted to release Help Me, Rhonda. 689 01:00:40,849 --> 01:00:44,876 No, that's the name of the disc. They wanted to release Barbara Ann. 690 01:00:44,985 --> 01:00:48,512 But we wanted to convince them by the logic that this disk... 691 01:00:48,623 --> 01:00:53,525 People came to listen to him at our place. 692 01:00:53,661 --> 01:00:58,065 They were excited and said: “It’s a mega great record, man!” 693 01:00:58,333 --> 01:01:00,460 Me: “Capitol doesn’t want to release it.” 694 01:01:00,534 --> 01:01:04,335 “Don’t listen to them,” they said. “Make them do it.” 695 01:01:04,806 --> 01:01:08,036 This fucking record is out and was number one in the country. 696 01:01:08,143 --> 01:01:09,804 Throughout the country. 697 01:01:12,179 --> 01:01:14,943 Thanks to this Theremin and the cello. 698 01:01:17,219 --> 01:01:20,119 I would rather not be alone in doing this. 699 01:01:34,369 --> 01:01:35,960 I can't go that high. 700 01:01:36,570 --> 01:01:39,266 After the KGB, 701 01:01:39,541 --> 01:01:44,137 Theremin worked at Moscow Conservatory of Music. 702 01:01:44,880 --> 01:01:49,943 In his laboratory, he built Theremin, 703 01:01:52,086 --> 01:01:55,784 electronic cellos, 704 01:01:56,123 --> 01:02:01,686 and even some Terpsitone. 705 01:02:01,762 --> 01:02:04,789 He worked there for ten years. 706 01:02:04,965 --> 01:02:07,661 He was popular among students. 707 01:02:14,476 --> 01:02:16,568 They loved him. 708 01:02:16,677 --> 01:02:20,273 One day, a visitor came to the Conservatory. 709 01:02:20,382 --> 01:02:25,751 While he was being shown around, 710 01:02:25,954 --> 01:02:28,547 he recognized Theremin. 711 01:02:28,789 --> 01:02:32,590 He was a correspondent from the New York Times. 712 01:02:33,929 --> 01:02:38,559 He was very surprised to see Theremin. 713 01:02:38,632 --> 01:02:40,623 “You’re alive!” he said. 714 01:02:40,702 --> 01:02:45,900 “Yes, I am alive,” Theremin replied. “I work at the Conservatory.” 715 01:02:47,608 --> 01:02:52,773 An article on Theremin 716 01:02:52,880 --> 01:02:56,873 caused a lot of commotion. 717 01:02:56,952 --> 01:03:01,012 The vice-president of the Conservatory said: 718 01:03:01,590 --> 01:03:07,085 "People don't need electronic music. 719 01:03:07,695 --> 01:03:12,998 "Electricity is used to execute traitors in the electric chair." 720 01:03:14,235 --> 01:03:15,726 Theremin was fired. 721 01:03:15,804 --> 01:03:18,931 His laboratory was closed, 722 01:03:19,106 --> 01:03:22,838 his instruments were dragged outside 723 01:03:23,143 --> 01:03:26,601 and destroyed with an axe. 724 01:04:19,333 --> 01:04:21,824 On behalf of Stanford University, 725 01:04:21,969 --> 01:04:24,996 I have the honor to offer you, Professor Theremin, 726 01:04:25,106 --> 01:04:27,199 the centenary medal. 727 01:04:27,342 --> 01:04:30,505 I will just read the quote: 728 01:04:30,679 --> 01:04:34,672 "In appreciation of his distinguished participation 729 01:04:34,748 --> 01:04:39,742 "at the celebration of the centenary of Stanford University, October 1..." 730 01:04:39,987 --> 01:04:41,956 We are a little early. 731 01:04:42,157 --> 01:04:45,387 "...1991. Leon Theremin." 732 01:06:11,512 --> 01:06:13,481 What is the address here? 733 01:06:13,648 --> 01:06:16,913 My address was 37 West 54th Street. 734 01:06:17,117 --> 01:06:18,675 Did you also live here? 735 01:06:19,086 --> 01:06:23,148 On the fourth. It was my home. 736 01:06:23,425 --> 01:06:29,385 On the other floors, there were dance studios, 737 01:06:29,563 --> 01:06:34,626 music and also mechanical engineering. 738 01:06:35,202 --> 01:06:38,639 Albert Einstein, yes. He was a theoretician. 739 01:06:38,806 --> 01:06:43,539 He first came with his wife. 740 01:06:43,811 --> 01:06:48,806 She was a violinist and also played the piano. 741 01:06:49,250 --> 01:06:52,548 He saw me playing the instrument 742 01:06:52,653 --> 01:06:54,952 and attempted to play himself. 743 01:06:55,222 --> 01:06:57,987 He didn't have a very good ear. but nevertheless 744 01:06:58,126 --> 01:07:03,324 he played my instrument, my Theremin. 745 01:07:18,045 --> 01:07:21,277 If I saw him today, after all these years, 746 01:07:21,382 --> 01:07:23,713 I don't know if that would be a good thing. 747 01:07:23,918 --> 01:07:28,878 Sometimes it's good to live with his memories, not to try... 748 01:07:33,094 --> 01:07:36,427 We are no longer the same, it's obvious. 749 01:07:37,065 --> 01:07:41,195 The last time, when I saw him in Moscow, 750 01:07:41,302 --> 01:07:44,532 he told me that, for him, I was not 751 01:07:44,639 --> 01:07:46,630 not a reality. 752 01:07:46,773 --> 01:07:48,900 He said, "You were a dream." 753 01:07:50,077 --> 01:07:53,275 Already then, he had seen so much 754 01:07:53,414 --> 01:07:56,713 that this part of his life seemed like a dream. 755 01:13:41,529 --> 01:13:43,724 Lev Sergeivich! 756 01:13:48,970 --> 01:13:51,301 I'm so happy to see you! 757 01:13:51,538 --> 01:13:56,100 Give me your hat. 758 01:13:59,447 --> 01:14:03,109 You are like a dream come true. 759 01:14:03,283 --> 01:14:08,278 What a pleasure to see us in our old days! 760 01:14:08,421 --> 01:14:10,855 What old days? 761 01:14:13,327 --> 01:14:18,162 Do you recognize me? I changed my hairstyle. 762 01:14:18,231 --> 01:14:19,721 You are bigger. 763 01:14:19,934 --> 01:14:22,128 I grew up! 764 01:14:26,340 --> 01:14:31,403 Here is the first Theremin that you gave me. I still have it. 765 01:14:34,981 --> 01:14:40,648 The standard RCA model. 766 01:14:40,954 --> 01:14:44,322 When they became rare, 767 01:14:44,391 --> 01:14:47,792 people often wanted to buy it from me, 768 01:14:47,929 --> 01:14:52,059 but I would never sell 769 01:14:52,132 --> 01:14:56,262 my darling little Theremin! 770 01:14:56,970 --> 01:15:00,805 Here is a photo of my sister Nadia, 771 01:15:01,141 --> 01:15:05,203 and photos by Lev Sergeivich Termen. 772 01:15:05,578 --> 01:15:10,243 I always keep them in the place of honor. 773 01:15:10,350 --> 01:15:13,411 I don't have my glasses. 774 01:15:17,024 --> 01:15:19,685 And here is my portrait. 775 01:16:15,682 --> 01:16:18,810 The sound is still good. 776 01:16:19,086 --> 01:16:23,954 When I needed with a faster left hand, 777 01:16:25,826 --> 01:16:29,091 to be able, in addition to the glissando, 778 01:16:29,162 --> 01:16:32,962 play a staccato. 779 01:16:39,539 --> 01:16:43,168 I have described my musical needs to you. 780 01:16:43,243 --> 01:16:45,872 And you built it for me. 781 01:16:46,146 --> 01:16:49,014 I may have inspired you, 782 01:16:49,115 --> 01:16:52,516 but you deserve all the credit, you are the genius who created it. 783 01:16:53,020 --> 01:16:55,579 That's enough. 784 01:16:57,257 --> 01:17:00,954 That's not what you came for. 785 01:17:01,694 --> 01:17:04,960 Let's sit quietly, 786 01:17:05,065 --> 01:17:09,560 let's have tea and talk. 787 01:17:09,970 --> 01:17:11,528 Cut.