- Electro-Theremin
The Electro-Theremin, often called the Tannerin, is an
electronic musical instrument developed by trombonistPaul Tanner and amateurinventor Bob Whitsell in the late 1950s to produce a sound to mimic that of thetheremin . The instrument features a tone andportamento similar to that of the theremin (or thereminvox), but with a different control mechanism. It was basically a wire wrapped around the frequency control of an audio oscillator and a slider to hold.The instrument was custom-built at Tanner's request. Tanner appreciated the theremin's sound, but wanted greater control of pitch and attack. The Electro-Theremin uses mechanical controls, a long slide bar for the pitch (analogous to the slide of the trombone that was Tanner's main instrument) and a knob to adjust volume. This contrasts with the hand movements in space that was the original theremin's signal feature. The Electro-Theremin also produces a slightly less complex timbre than the original. This is not due to the nature of the instrument, but due to Dr. Theremin's intentional harmonic generation in the output of the Theremin -which Tanner did not do.
Tanner played the instrument on several
television and movie soundtracks and on an LP entitled "Music from Outer Space". Most famously, Tanner played his Electro-Theremin on three tracks byThe Beach Boys : "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times," "Good Vibrations ", and "Wild Honey."Tanner's prototype Electro-Theremin appears to have been the only one made. Tanner sold the instrument in the 1960s because he believed that newer synthesizers made it obsolete.
In
1999 , Tom Polk reconstructed a version of the Electro-Theremin. He called it the "Tannerin," a name that musician Peter Pringle suggested.In
2004 , Mike Beauchamp started making Electro-Theremins under the name "Therevox".External links
* [http://www.electrotheremin.com/PTE-TPage.html The Paul Tanner Electro-Theremin Home Page]
* [http://www.tompolk.com/Tannerin/Tannerin.html Tannerin 2004]
* [http://www.therevox.com Therevox - Custom Made Electro-Theremins]
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