How many Theremin players Worldwide?

Have been wondering of recent times how many Theremin players worldwide there are out there?

By this I mean professional players like Lydia K, Caroline E, Peter P, Thomas G and the like but also those who have Theremins who are playing them with a view to learning to improve their virtuosity on them, either in the ‘classical’ or ‘avant-garde’ fields.

I’m not including those who have seen the Big Bang Theory and want to be like Sheldon.

Happened to be at a workshop in Oxford in August where familiar names kept cropping up: made me think that the Theremin world isn’t so big.

... Well ... At least I know overhere in the Netherlands 2 good ones ... Fay Lovsky and Thorwald J. ;-) Of course we shouldn't forget Wilco Botermans! And I know Jamie O'Callaghan ... Well ... And myself, but it's not to decide for myself if I'm good or not :D

I am here... but I don't count. I am just a wanna be, and I am damn good in my mind :)

Yeapsystar, after watching your video that you posted on another thread, I'd say you'd definitely be counted as a Theremin player, as would you Amethyste, despite being damn good in your mind :-)

The type of people that would be included are those 'wanna be(s)' who don't just have a theremin in a cupboard that they might look at once in a while but those who at least can make a half decent effort at playing a tune or are learning to be at that stage. Or those who use one for avant-garde purposes.

Like for example, someone who has taken up the fiddle and can only screetch out Twinkle Twinkle Little Star but at least they are taking measures to improve, all the way up to those like Nigel Kennedy who really know their way around a fiddle.

Not after a compendium, just a rough guess for a question inspired by a rainy day!

Mariella and Amy......you are both too modest!   ;^)

Yeapsystar, after watching your video that you posted on another thread, I'd say you'd definitely be counted as a Theremin player, as would you Amethyste, despite being damn good in your mind :-)

The type of people that would be included are those 'wanna be(s)' who don't just have a theremin in a cupboard that they might look at once in a while but those who at least can make a half decent effort at playing a tune or are learning to be at that stage. Or those who use one for avant-garde purposes.

Like for example, someone who has taken up the fiddle and can only screetch out Twinkle Twinkle Little Star but at least they are taking measures to improve, all the way up to those like Nigel Kennedy who really know their way around a fiddle.

Not after a compendium, just a rough guess for a question inspired by a rainy day!

You have ABSOLUTELY some good points there! In that way ... Yes, I should love to play more and even to play more live too, but I guess I live in the wrong part of the world to do that, until sofar ...

I've always been a quie easy learner (ESPECIALLY by hearing, NOT by reading sheet music LOL! I've had 12 years piano lessons, but still I'm quie a sheet music dyslectic) and often - no matter what I'm touching or not touching, I can learn melodies, parties & chords quite easily, AS I always like to try new instruments (I once joked about that in the way that it seems I'm a bit like King Midas ... If he touches a thing, it turs to gold, but when I touch a musical instrument, I can get sound out of it and not long after some music, haha!) ...

BUT ... There's some thing ... 1. I don't think you'll never stop learning when you start to play the theremin as it always is kinda journey ;-) 2. I don't like to compare people to each others, nor I'd like them to compare with me, NOT I'd like to compare myself to par example Peter P. or Thorwald J. ... Besides that everyone has a different way and style of playing, some people do learn fast, others don't, and for some people it can be a milestone when they actually reach the fact t hat they can play simple songs like "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" and "Mary Has A Little Lamb" within approximately 2 years or so, but I think that the most important thing which counts is the ENTHOUSIASM ...

Nevertheless, I know what you mean ... There still are enough people who buy musical instruments (wether it's a theremin or a keyboard or a guitar) and in the beginning they are enthousiastic and they learn some stuff, mostly simple melodies, but than they get tired of their instruments and it stays in the closet for quite some while after they sell their musical instruments again ... I'm not THAT kinda type either LOL!

Love,

Marielle & Clan :D

"There still are enough people who buy musical instruments (wether it's a theremin or a keyboard or a guitar) and in the beginning they are enthousiastic and they learn some stuff, mostly simple melodies, but than they get tired of their instruments and it stays in the closet for quite some while after they sell their musical instruments again .." - Marielle

Hi Marielle,

I think this loss of enthusiasm often happens because people try to play simple boring tunes, and lose interest - those who dont follow this route, who dont get bogged down with practicing scales or playing perfect renditions of some boring piece, but plough into dischordantly creating their own stuff, are the ones who possibly survive the early stages best..

Oh, im sure there are those with enough dedication to persevere practicing "tunes" - But these people are, I think, far more likely to have had some musical training / background with another instrument - and through this learned the discipline and dont expect instant gratification..

For electronic musical instruments like theremins and synthesisers though, I do not think one "needs" to go the "difficult" route - they provide enough source of interest in their own right, even if one isnt "playing" them in any conventional musical sense.. And through this "playing" one can learn to "really play music" - albeit if one wants to progress to precision playing in some genre which requires this, one probably needs to take lessons and learn some music theory if one does not pick this up during your "journey" with the instrument.

IMO, the great thing about electronics applied to musical instruments and recording, is that it really enabled ANYONE with "music in their soul" (not a phrase I like using, cause I think its nonsense! ;-) to access this inner creativity - they may never be performers - but the revolution IMO was when the instrument/s and the recording "studio" merged into one large composite "musical instrument" and then got reduced in size and cost  down to a level where almost any solo artist could obtain this - less than £200 will buy a multitrack recorder with effects.. I remember nearly needing a mortgage to buy my first 4 track 1/4" reel-reel recorder... and still have my Sansui WSX-1 6 track cassette "studio" I bought for £700 - can only record one track on a chrome C90 'cause the tape is whissing bye so fast! ;-)

Fred.

I am extremely interested in the title of this thread - Interested to know how many high-end theremins (RCA,E-PRO,E-Vox,TVOX etc) and mid ( EW etc) there are in the world - I suspect that if one counted the high-end total one may get close to the answer to this threads question (not saying those who play "mid" theremins arent players or whatever - but one could probably only count a small percentage of these as "active" in any tally).

Fred, I think you are pretty much right with what you say regarding the routes that people take as they ‘get into’ playing music or learning an instrument.

‘I suspect that if one counted the high-end total one may get close to the answer to this threads question (not saying those who play "mid" theremins arent players or whatever - but one could probably only count a small percentage of these as "active" in any tally).’ – Fred

This is also a fairly logical way to view the question given that those who own these levels of instruments are probably going to be ‘doing things’ with them rather than just making silly noises.

For reasons I have never understood, you simply have to own a theremin in order to qualify as a thereminist. No one would suggest that someone who owns a piano is a pianist, or someone who owns a fiddle is a violinist, but if you own a theremin SURPRISE! 

You're a THEREMINIST!

There are a couple of people I can think of who have represented themselves as the world's greatest theremin players who don't play the instrument at all (the name Ke$ha comes to mind).

Thanks Peter.....I never heard of Ke$ha before......I watched some of her videos and now I feel like a total failure in life...LOL!   I am particularly jealous of this talent: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2528797/Pop-star-Ke-ha-reveals-writes-songs-boobs.html