Hi Levizion,
I watched your video of the BACHIANAS this morning, before I read your post to Theremin World, and I was very impressed with it. Not bad after only 7 months! I have some suggestions for you which you can take or leave.
1. The BACHIANAS is a difficult composition to play on the theremin. Teachers of traditional instruments always insist that their students NOT attempt to play pieces that are too difficult for their individual level of accomplishment because it tends to reinforce bad habits rather than cultivating good ones. Personally, I would prefer to hear you play a very simple piece perfectly, rather than a massively difficult piece that may be a little beyond your technical ability to play accurately.
2. The technique you are using to play is the "swinging door" method. This is a technique in which all four fingers open and close as a single unit rather than "fanning" with the 5th finger (the little finger) leading the way which is what we see Clara Rockmore doing. This makes intonation more difficult because it does not distribute the task of locating the note. Your fingers are locked, and operating as a single block all the time. I suggest that you carefully study Clara's videos and learn to "fan" your fingers so each one can operate independently. Get yourself a small 5 string kantele and practice picking the strings in different rhythms and configurations. It's lots of fun, and it will help you to develop a manual skill you can transfer to the theremin.
3. One of the problems with playing along with a CD of someone else's finished version of a composition is that it tends to highlight pitch inconsistencies. Your accompaniment is not enhancing your performance. On the contrary, your playing is masking a performance that is vastly superior to your own (something you already noted in your description). This can only serve to emphasize your shortcomings! As thereminists, we have only our ears to tell us where we are in relation to the correct pitch. If we are playing along with a recording where another soloist is already hitting the same note we are aiming for, it can confuse the ear. In your case, you are hearing Branford at the same time you are trying to hear yourself, and your ear has to sort out who's who in the space of a millisecond. Playing the theremin is already difficult enough without that.
You're doing really well, and I am surprised that your version of the piece is good as it is. It's difficult learning to play the theremin in a vacuum but that is what most of us have had to do. I hope you do not feel discouraged by any of my remarks, and that they will be of some value to you on your theremin journey.
