Theremin vs. Haken Continuum

So I broke down and got the small version of the Haken Continuum and the CV converter to hook it up to my modular.

I really didn’t know what to expect. It’s a very strange and wonderful instrument that has a tactile feel like no other I’ve ever played. I was expecting a harder feel. It's totally pliable and soft and almost effortless with incredible response.  You can articulate easily but you also can effortlessly glide your fingers lightly over the fingerboard to emulate a more dynamic pitch style very similar to the theremin applying all sorts of portamento  and natural vibrato – only you are playing on a 2-D plane in a 3-D space (X=pitch, Y=Volume and Z=configurable based on the sound – perhaps opening up a filter as you move your hand forward, etc). All of these can actually be configured, but this is the most common setting. So that 2-D plane makes it much more manageable to hit notes as your hand position can stay more or less fixed as you learn the note spacings - and of course you can apply any kind of tonal inflection you want.

This may be even better than the theremin sample library to do mockups of theremin pieces I write - as after an hour I can play better in tune than after a year playing the theremin. I need to work on creating a few theremin patches for the thing as the canned sounds don’t have too many of what I would term traditionally “beautiful” sounds – there is a lot of electronica. The EaganMatrix synthsizer onboard is deep and complicated (at least quite differently programmed than most other synths using a graphical matrix applying the buildup of "formulas" and routings of various sorts using a set of predefined oscillators, filters, waveshapes, etc. - all that can map in different ways to the three dimensions of the fingerboard) That will require a lot of time. I'm wondering if there is a good forum for sharing Continuum stuff like there is here for theremins (I only see a Yahoo forum of limited user discussion). I'll continue to add to this thread for now as I know there are a number of Continuum users here if Jason does not mind - and will bring theremin into the discussion where applicable.

Now I need to see how it works with the modular and connecting it as a MIDI controller to Omnisphere and other sample libraries (though some of those are not really geared for the continuous output of the continuum).

To give you an idea, I revisited my Pavanish.

Here’s my original version after close to a year of Theremin practice (admittedly not as rigorous as it should have been).

Pavanish - Theremin Version

Here's after an hour of Continuum playing (still a few missed pitches but I am sure a year+ of playing theremin has really helped me play this instrument). I tried to add a considerable amount of portamento to emulate a more theremin-like style: 

Pavanish - Haken Continuum Version

To be sure this instrument is not easy to play. It’s not a keyboard, and I’m trying to just forget about piano and think about a fixed dynamic pitch plane instead – think if you played the theremin on a fixed plane and it was totally linear.  I can see playing polyphonically is going to be quite a challenge – especially left hand that I am not used to creating vibrato with. I haven't scratched the surface of the Continuum yet but I can see it's going to be a fun ride.

But on the flip side, the theremin is still untouchable in terms of freedom of motion. Now I have to see how I can write something for both instruments. There is no experience quite like playing the theremin.

When people post out-of-the-box performances on a new musical instrument they have just acquired, it’s always hard to know whether they want sincere comments and suggestions (which may or may not be useful) or whether they are just fishin’ fer kompliments & kudos.

Ennyhoo……..

Although the theremin and Continuum have been provided with exquisitely sensitive volume control, what strikes me about both versions of PAVANISH is that, for the most part, the melody is being played mezzo forte throughout. For me, this tends to make what ought to be a poignant little dance, sound a bit cold, mechanical and expressionless. This is an approach that worked for the oom-pa-pa, carnival organ grinder feel of the MIDSOMER MURDERS theme but, IMNSHO, it lacks the necessary element of sorrow that a mournful little composition like PAVANISH cries out for.

One of the things that distinguishes the Continuum is that, unlike the theremin, it is provided with subtle, in-performance timbre control (the forward and backward “Y” movement on the fingerpad) but I’m not hearing any use of this feature in the Continuum version of PAVANISH. I don’t know whether this is due to an artistic decision or to unfamiliarity with a new instrument, but I can’t help feeling that timbre variation could have added so much more pathos, warmth and soul to the melody line. 

On the other hand, WTF do I know!

I don't really want comments on the performance as neither of these is an acceptable performance.

I'm just showing that its going to be a lot easier to get up to speed playing in pitch on the continuum versus the theremin. The problem with the Pavanish is that the background is way too loud to hear delicate phrasing possible on the continuum and the theremin version was a Theremini so that has little volume nuance to begin with. And it has some compression on it that I would otherwise remove.

This is just using the sine wave. Not all patches on the continuum have Y axis control and the sine wave overmodulates past volume=50 so I need to use the EaganMatrix to get a much more refined theremin-like sound. The manual is giving me a headache.

Playing polyphonically on this thing is nasty business right now for me. But I'm glad I got he 1/2 model as I'm most interested in using this monophonically right now to try and get more nuance to MIDI playing.

What are your favorite continuum patches? Have you downloaded any interesting ones from somewhere? I'm trying to figure out if I can import sounds through the AES interface to manipulate with EaganMatrix. Not sure I can do that. I can see a huge time sink ahead for me here. 

Rich

Well I did a lot of experimenting today. First, the CV controller works well. Just set it to Polyphony 1 or else it will send the gate, X, Y and Z data to the four ports in succession - which should make for some very interesting effects - but most of the time you will want a single set of CV outs to be connected to some modular inputs. This is truly continuous data (not MIDI) so this will be a great adjunct to getting more sounds until I can better figure out the EaganMatrix - and as they say - don't fool around changing program parameters without turning down the gain because some setting can blow your ears out if you are not careful. I also mixed some modular synth outputs with Continuum outputs and got some interesting sounds that way too and also was able to reinforce some of the continuum sounds that way. 

So then it was on to try and play MIDI plug-ins on my computer using the continuum. I was hoping I could connect it up to the Ondes Martenot and Theremin sample sets I have and may use it as a more natural way to play those samples. The continuum will retrigger the closest MIDI note to where you press, and you can easily set the Z parameter (pressure) to CC11 which will let you control volume in a continuous manner that some plugins let you set for better expression (and the sequencer will record these CC so they are maintained with your MIDI performance). However it's the X axis portamento/pitch bend that causes the problem. I can't seem to set a representative pitch bend on the continuum that maps to the plugin the way it does for continuum sounds. This I have to work on a bit more as there are a lot of MIDI settings to go over.

rkram rote: “I don't really want comments on the performance as neither of these is an acceptable performance.

I'm just showing that its going to be a lot easier to get up to speed playing in pitch on the continuum versus the theremin.

Oh…sorry…..on what aspect of the recording would you have appreciated comments? 

As far as difficulty is concerned, the Continuum is a piece o’ cake compared to the theremin! 

“The theremin is the most difficult of ALL musical instruments. It is much harder than the violin which I played for years.” Clara Rockmore

Have you fiddled with the sounds at all? My big issue with the continuum is that there are only like 5-8 built-in sounds that are useful in a purely melodic setting against orchestral stuff I do and one of the main reasons I got this was to inject more expression into melodies I write. I can see that I'm going to have to learn the EaganMatrix to develop some more expressive sounds for melodic use. I wonder if there are a group of people sharing patches out there?

The continuum will not replace the theremin for the pure joy that comes with its freedom of expression. But its wonderful to play vibrato on the continuum. 

Rich / Peter: can you feel the individual bars under the mousepad material?  If so, do the bars or those colored stripes on top give you any kind of tactile feedback?  

Rich: Interesting that you say the touch is light.  From the videos I got the impression it might not be.

Dewster,

You can't feel rods. And the one thing you never, ever do is take the top off or all those bars will fly out and you will be crying for days.

The touch is extremely light and there is a light setting that I'm not using now. The bars are just stenciled on the neoprene. Same difference playing if you order it with or without the guides. Imagine a thick neoprene surface on a firm pillow that you can depress about 1/2 inch until you feel a constant resistance. That's the feel. You barely have to touch it to get a very soft note out. Totally fluid. So its a totally flat surface with no tactile guides for hitting notes (other than the stencil if you have that - which is only a visual guide).

I just think the internal sounds are too limiting and it's much too flexible (i.e. continuous) an instrument to use to its full effect as a MIDI controller unless you use CV controlled synths which I do and it's absolutely great for that - and where I will likely head to get a more varied sound set that can be manipulated to the fingerboard's full effect. Unfortunately its not programmed like any synth I've ever used so there is a big learning curve there for me - but I have to get a larger sound set.  

Listen to Richard Lainhart (a pioneer in the use of the Haken Continuum with synthesizer control among many other things - who died way too soon). His discussion of the Continuum starts about minute 23.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5C6-489bWGE

I do believe I can figure out how to play the Theremini with this thing. I'll report on how that goes (just so I can keep something on the theremin side in the discussion).

Rich

rkram rote:  “And the one thing you never, ever do is take the top off or all those bars will fly out and you will be crying for days.”

That ain’t necessarily so.

I’ve removed the neoprene fingerboard surface many times, and I set up a webpage showing people how to do it safely and efficiently. The newest Continuum models are provided with an inner metal rail that keeps the rods and springs from popping out accidentally (old models like mine don’t have this) but if you ever have to remove a single rod, this is a way to do it. For simple mechanical repairs this can save you time and $$.

http://www.peterpringle.com/continuum.html

Last week Edmund Eagan posted the following video to VIMEO showing control of the MIDI Ethervox theremin via the Haken Continuum.

https://vimeo.com/147131872

Fascinating videos, thanks both!

In the Lainhart video he says the Continuum flute voice is a "physical model."  From my (exceedingly slight) understanding of the Continuum sound engine that perhaps isn't the case?  I don't think of physical modeling synthesis as subtractive, or FM, or granular, or PCM, or etc. - but more as a resonant structure that interacts in complex ways with the stimulus, usually involving a digital waveguide (fancy comb filter).