Progress Report #2.
Well, it's been about a month since my first progress report and I think I'm starting to see a glimmer of hope for me and this wacky instrument. After the past two weeks basically practicing simple scalar pieces I wrote, most within a fifth, on a lark I took out the arrangement I wrote a week ago for theremin and strings of Elgar's Nimrod (from the Enigma Variations - one of my favorite pieces) and played in a version. This is it. This is the first shot after one practice run. No pitch correction or pitch preview used (though I kind of think you'll hear that). So a month an a half in or so this is where I stand. Added a lot more vibrato this time around to help get on pitch. Unfortunately, I ran out of distance and could not get to the high note - man I really wanted that high note!
I was flabbergasted how much better my intonation was. A long, long, long way to go, but I see I'm going to be playing this thing till I die now. Sure, I'm pitch fishing a lot in there, but there are a lot of nice jumps on my own as well. I'm kind of just feeling where I have to put my hand in that ether. Surprising after playing nothing but scales within a fifth for most of the past two weeks I'm able to work my way around here in a piece that is almost totally disjunct (jumps as opposed to scalar motion).
I wonder how this would sound reworking with my recent pitch correction experiments. Think I'll use this as another test case and see how I can get it to sound. At least I can get that high climax note back in there.
I realize now, this instrument is like a fine guitar or violin. You need to let it warm up and acclimate. That instrument I'm talking about here is not the theremin - it's your EAR! The Theremin is just your voice. You need to train that voice with your ear.
Rich