One of the many highlights of Hands Off 2011 was brought to us by master theremin engineer Thierry Frenkel.
This is his three step plan to improving the range, linearity and sound of your Moog Etherwave Standard or Plus...
1. Professional Tweaking.
Thierry has a technique for adjusting the internal presets of the etherwave which adds one and a half octaves in the upper register. For the sonic explorer (experimentalist/avant-garde player/call it what you will) this gives access to ear piercing frequencies. For the classical or precision player, it moves the useful higher notes away from the pitch rod, and into a more linear region of the playing field. (The notes are most compressed very close to the pitch rod.)
This adjustment requires the use of electronic equipment that most players do not have, so this requires sending the instrument to Thierry.
2. The "Bass Mod"
This is NOT a modification. It is an IMPROVEMENT. Thierry has devised a small circuit which extends the range of the etherwave right down into the subsonic.
This is why: As the two radio frequency oscillators of a theremin's pitch circuit come close to each other (making low notes) they try to synchronise, creating the "zero beat" region of the playing field. This "coupling" restricts the theremin's ability to play very low notes, and makes the achievable low notes sound rather rough and unpleasant. This roughness is perceptible in the octaves above the zero beat zone. It is one of the reasons that many players are not fond of the etherwave's timbre.
Thierry's improvement prevents oscillator coupling. The zero beat zone becomes tiny and the etherwave tone remains silky smooth throughout the range.
It is rather wonderful to play that deep, rich bass. I love it!
(Classical players will probably want to make the field very large and stand inside it to have a reasonable spacing between notes, and step back to play the low notes.)
3. Tuning for linearity.
This is the final step - understanding the operation of the pitch knob on your theremin.
Here is the trick - turning the knob has a very small effect on the high register of your theremin and a big effect in the low register. Try it. Put your hand very near the antenna and turn the pitch knob a bit. Then move your hand away from the pitch rod and turn the pitch knob the same amount as before. Do you see? The knob stretches or contracts the field most at the low end and least at the high end.
So... first make a course tuning by playing an interval in the high register and turning the knob until your hand movement produces the required change in pitch.
Then go down to the middle register and adjust the tuning until the same hand movement produces the same interval as before. This will require a smaller adjustment of the pitch knob, and will not change the interval in the high register very much at all.
Finally go down into a low register and repeat the process a third time. Again, an even smaller adjustment of the pitch knob will be all that is required, the effect on the middle register will be small, and utterly negligible in the high register.
This procedure will give the largest achievable playable range for the instrument.
(Yes, I know that theremins do not have registers in the strict sense, but hopefully you know what I mean...)
We may not all be able to afford or have access to an RCA or an ePro or a tVox or an ethervox, but with these three steps in place I am assured by no less a player than Thorwald Jorgensen that the humble etherwave can be suitable for professional use. (Of course, having Thorwald's amazing skills undoubtedly helps too. :-) )
This is his three step plan to improving the range, linearity and sound of your Moog Etherwave Standard or Plus...
1. Professional Tweaking.
Thierry has a technique for adjusting the internal presets of the etherwave which adds one and a half octaves in the upper register. For the sonic explorer (experimentalist/avant-garde player/call it what you will) this gives access to ear piercing frequencies. For the classical or precision player, it moves the useful higher notes away from the pitch rod, and into a more linear region of the playing field. (The notes are most compressed very close to the pitch rod.)
This adjustment requires the use of electronic equipment that most players do not have, so this requires sending the instrument to Thierry.
2. The "Bass Mod"
This is NOT a modification. It is an IMPROVEMENT. Thierry has devised a small circuit which extends the range of the etherwave right down into the subsonic.
This is why: As the two radio frequency oscillators of a theremin's pitch circuit come close to each other (making low notes) they try to synchronise, creating the "zero beat" region of the playing field. This "coupling" restricts the theremin's ability to play very low notes, and makes the achievable low notes sound rather rough and unpleasant. This roughness is perceptible in the octaves above the zero beat zone. It is one of the reasons that many players are not fond of the etherwave's timbre.
Thierry's improvement prevents oscillator coupling. The zero beat zone becomes tiny and the etherwave tone remains silky smooth throughout the range.
It is rather wonderful to play that deep, rich bass. I love it!
(Classical players will probably want to make the field very large and stand inside it to have a reasonable spacing between notes, and step back to play the low notes.)
3. Tuning for linearity.
This is the final step - understanding the operation of the pitch knob on your theremin.
Here is the trick - turning the knob has a very small effect on the high register of your theremin and a big effect in the low register. Try it. Put your hand very near the antenna and turn the pitch knob a bit. Then move your hand away from the pitch rod and turn the pitch knob the same amount as before. Do you see? The knob stretches or contracts the field most at the low end and least at the high end.
So... first make a course tuning by playing an interval in the high register and turning the knob until your hand movement produces the required change in pitch.
Then go down to the middle register and adjust the tuning until the same hand movement produces the same interval as before. This will require a smaller adjustment of the pitch knob, and will not change the interval in the high register very much at all.
Finally go down into a low register and repeat the process a third time. Again, an even smaller adjustment of the pitch knob will be all that is required, the effect on the middle register will be small, and utterly negligible in the high register.
This procedure will give the largest achievable playable range for the instrument.
(Yes, I know that theremins do not have registers in the strict sense, but hopefully you know what I mean...)
We may not all be able to afford or have access to an RCA or an ePro or a tVox or an ethervox, but with these three steps in place I am assured by no less a player than Thorwald Jorgensen that the humble etherwave can be suitable for professional use. (Of course, having Thorwald's amazing skills undoubtedly helps too. :-) )
