Competition: Original Work for Theremin and Piano (prize = recording!)

Competition: Original Work for Theremin and Piano (deadline extended)

Current entrants:Tariq, Dead Chicken, Raving Spleen, Virtualshock, Oingo86, EnigmusJ4, EldKatt, goodridge_winners___________________________

(note that registration is not compulsory in order to submit)

Received Entries: Nikolas, Jimmyjuicin, virtualshock, RavingSpleen

Prize for Winning Entry:

To have your work performed and recorded by one of Britain's leading concert thereminists.

Background:

The theremin is an electronic musical instrument controlled without contact by the player. Its sound is controlled by the motions of the player's hands in midair, the precise movements of which elicit a singing, ghostlike tone. Though composers including Martinu and Shostakovich have written for the instrument, there remains a disappointing scarcity of music composed specifically for theremin, partly because of the instrument's relatively recent invention (in 1919), but largely due to the small number of professional players capable of performing repertoire, were it to be composed.

This competition therefore represents a unique opportunity, both to compose (and perhaps to hear performed) music for an instrument that is rarely heard, the original repertoire for which can practically be counted on one's fingers.

Brief:

To compose a work of at least three minutes for theremin and piano, either in the form of a duet or accompanied solo. The work may follow any structure (or dispense with one entirely) and be written in any style or tradition. The work must be submitted as both a clear, traditionally notated .pdf score and audio file. The work should be idiomatically composed, exploiting the theremin's predisposition for song-like passages and leaps approached with daring. Assistance will be offered on this thread or via PM in relation to what is and is not playable on the instrument, though the following should be borne in mind:

-- The theremin's pitching is determined solely by the use of relative pitch; that is to say, the player must, relying on the last tone they produced, predict where the next tone will fall in space. This means that if two tones are separated by more than two octaves, the player must either slide to the next tone, or quietly 'fish' for his or her next note if the time gap is sufficiently long (one or two seconds). For this reason, leaps of over an octave must be used sparingly, call for glissando, or occur with at least a brief rest between.

-- Passages that fall within or just above the range of the female voice occupy the theremin's most aesthetically pleasing register.

-- If the passage can be sung twice as fast, it's almost certainly playable on the theremin.

-- If the passage falls within the combined ranges routinely expected of a cello, violin and soprano, then it will fall within the range of the theremin.

-- Stacatto effects, a wide range of volumes as well as all manner of vibrato can be achieved, though these should be deployed with caution.

-- The instrument's waveform can be altered to produce tones from a sine-wave to square-wave, as well as those vaguely equivalent to a violin, voice or cello.

Audio-Video examples of original compositions and transcriptions for theremin:

YouTube - Martin?: Fantasie

YouTube - Theremin - Clara Rockmore play "The Swan" (Saint-Sa

This sounds awesome! I love the theremin.

Sadly, a month until the deadline is much too short for a slow composer as myself. Composing a piece I can accept in the long term always takes me several months, even including worked-through nights as the deadline draws close. Just thinking about the concept of a piece before writing the first note can take me half a year :P (well, that has only been the case a single time up to now)

I'd LIke to Enter

heck, why not?

Through me in the ring too!

I'll enter as well :)

I would love to enter although I'm not entirely sure if I'll be able to make the deadline.

A couple of questions, if you don't mind (maybe three! :D)

1. Who are the performers? It would be quite useful to know, since they will be judging.

2. How do you expect an audio, if the score for the theramin is graphicly notated? I mean, I really can't see me trying to find synths to match the sound of the theremin in order to produce an audio example.

3. Where do we post/send the scores? I wouldn't necessarily want to share the score (before performance) to the public.

4. where else is this being advertised? I mean you expect 200 entries, or 10?

5. Finally, copyrights of the recording? To both parties? To the performers only? To the composer only?

I'm being kind of a prick, I know, but my time is limited, but I'd like to try it, since it's sounds great fun and very great deal. Without a recording, however, I simply don't have the luxuiry to spend the whole month researching and composing on something that won't have a recording, at least! :)

(the martinu work, sounds brilliant)

OK. To attempt to answer the questions:

1. The judges won't be disclosed until the competition has ended, in an attempt to keep things impartial.

2. I should have mentioned that the theremin is usually written for in standard, clef notation. It can be rendered on the final track as any solo instrument - a flute or ocarina should be suitable. If it's absolutely impossible to encode as MIDI, then concessions can be made.

3. I've created a thread for submissions here: http://www.youngcomposers.com/forum/submission-thread-original-work-theremin-piano-14902.html#post229887, though you could send an entry privately if you wish.

4. The competition is only being advertised here. It's small scale, and I only expect a handful of entries.

5. Copyright would be shared; both parties would have to seek the other's permission if they wished to publish the recording for financial gain.

If there are fewer than five entries, I'll consider extending the deadline.

Brilliant! Thanks for all the replies! Most useful! Time for research now, I think! :D

Sweet. The deadline's stiff, though...

OK. Deadline's been moved. It's now July 20th.

I believe I might have a go

:)

I'll try to come up with something. The theremin's a great instrument - I'm excited to have this sort of opportunity!

-- The instrument's waveform can be altered to produce tones from a sine-wave to square-wave, as well as those vaguely equivalent to a violin, voice or cello.

Would it be possible to change between sound throughout the course of the piece? How much time would a change take?

-- If the passage falls within the combined ranges routinely expected of a cello, violin and soprano, then it will fall within the range of the theremin.

I'll assume something like ... F2 to C7? Anything wrong with that? Can it go higher? Can it not go that low?

--- Would it be possible to change between sound throughout the course of the piece? How much time would a change take?

It's worth saying firstly that not all theremins have tone controls. The original RCA theremins (from the 1930s) had only one, fixed tone. On the instrument used for this performance, a change could be affected, though I don't know of any piece yet composed which calls for one - probably for the above reason. If changes in tone were to be notated, they'd had best be general descriptions of tone colour, since (although most theremins now have tone controls) available palettes differ from instrument to instrument. The Etherwave Pro has six tones which can be selected. These are provided to give a general idea of what's possible (it would be better to notate the sound you imagine, rather than suggeting a number):

1# A custom tone, specified by composer or performer (altered using waveform, filter and brightness dials)

2# A flutey, open tone

3# A square, electric guitar-type tone

4# A vocal tone, with overtones

5# A more string like tone, rich in overtones, verging on buzzy.

6# The traditional RCA tone - very buzzy.

The change would take about a second if practised. A loud click from the dial would result, and the player would lose their pitch-position (so have to 'fish' for the next one audibly, or slide in from the lowest tone)

I'll assume something like ... F2 to C7? Anything wrong with that? Can it go higher? Can it not go that low?

Those ranges are realistic, but it can certainly go higher. I'll check the exact ranges for you.

1# A custom tone, specified by composer or performer (altered using waveform, filter and brightness dials)

I assume, then, (basing my assumption on the Etherwave Pro manual) that you could keep it in this setting, and then alter the waveform, filter or brightness individually--without that loud click? I ask mainly out of curiosity--I don't think I'd dare actually use this without really knowing, for instance, what the filter sounds like. Maybe the waveform, if it's just a case of square/saw.

Well. This interests me, if that's not clear. No guarantees, and I don't think I particularly care if I'm in your list of entrants as I understand it makes no difference anyway... but I've already given myself away here, haven't I. ;)

that you could keep it in this setting, and then alter the waveform, filter or brightness individually--without that loud click?

You could do that, but it would be very difficult to do precisely unless the performer stopped playing for several seconds. The performer would also have to find the next note slightly audibly (a bit like humming under your breath). The click isn't too loud - about the same volume as a finger click. I'll add you to the entrants, but obviously it doesn't bind you to entry. It would be great to have as many entrants as possible.

I would like to enter, but I have entered many comp's on here...and have not entered anything. So really...I would like to show interest. There. Ha.

Did you find out about the pitch...that was something I was wondering too. However, the pitch Enigmus said is large anyway! So yea?

The range is G1 to A6.

"Those ranges are realistic, but it can certainly go higher."

I said C7, but now you just said A6.... guess that's not much of a difference. I was close. :happy:

But GEEZ... I didn't think it could go that low!! G1? Wow.

It'll probably be rather difficult to play down there, but it's a powerful register.

count me in.

by the way, i'm sorry if i missed this somewhere within the thread, but where do we post our completed works for this?

Either send them directly to me, or post them in the thread marked for 'submissions' in the Submissions section of the Competitions Forum. I don't mind how I receive them, provided they come with a score and some sort of audio file. There's just over a fortnight to go.

does the player have dynamic control?

also would the attached midi be playable? just checking......:D

There is nothing that strikes me as impossible in the theremin part - it's nice to hear that you're working on the composition. We should have some great pieces by the deadline. The player has control over the instrument's dynamics (that is, its volume), using the left hand control loop.