AETHERPHON, global theremin family

The excercise that Kip shared here is really great.  Besides being  
relaxing and fun, you may find yourself playing passages that you  
wouldn't think to try otherwise.

For me, traditional practice and excercises are like building a statue  
by gluing little pieces together.  Kip's method is more akin to  
building a statue by starting with a stone and carving away at it.   
(Hope this makes sense.)

When I do the excercise below, I personally like to play my Theremin  
thru effects: thick reverbs, echos, phases, whatever.  The effects  
help me to "forget everything". In fact, last night while combining  
Kip's excercise with my effects units, I stumbled on to some ideas  
that I may incorporate into some free-form style music.

The breathing is VERY important at the beginning of the excercise. And  
to identify stress points is also important.  Often in performing  
traditional music, we are so focused on hitting the notes that we  
don't notice stiffness in the neck, shoulders, arms, etc.  So, to  
simply make sound (noise) with the Therein while identifying stress  
points is very valuable.  As a result, I never feel particularly  
worn-out after playing -- and my practice sessions can easily run  
three to five hours.

Playing the Theremin with eyes closed is very valuable advice.  I find  
that when I play with my eyes closed, I still visualize the position  
of the pitches anyway.  btw -- I never look at the Theremin or my  
hands while playing -- I trained myself not to do this because this is  
standard on any instrument.  After all, if one has to read music or  
watch for cues, one can't be looking at one's instrument.

Anyway, I just wanted to share some of my results with this excercise  
and would encourage you, the reader, to give it a try!  It won't hurt  
a bit and you'll probably have a great time.

-- Kevin

Quoting brickblad <kr@...>:

>> Do tell us more!  I'd love to hear how to do some of your
> exercises.>
>
> Okay. This appeared on Thereminworld quite some time ago. I usually
> introduce it around the fourth lesson because people are so focused
> on their initial excitement and desire for results that they find it
> hard to really let go until they've had a chance to try some
> conventioanl things first. Though it seems absurdly basic, it is an
> exercise I advocate for players at ALL levels. After eight years of
> playing, I STILL do this regularly:
>
> Try this for just fifteen minutes each time you practice. I refer to
> this as "getting out of your own way." Consciously, we try to do
> what's correct, but unconsciously YOUR BODY ALREADY KNOWS. Sounds a
> little heady, but this works.
>
> a) You've seen lots of people play by now and tried a lot of things.
> For fifteen minutes, FORGET EVERYTHING.
>
> b) Stand where you normally stand and close your eyes, hands at your
> sides. Take ten very deep and slow breaths.
>
> c) Keep your eyes closed. Remain unconcerned about PLAYING MUSIC.
> Once you've completed your tenth breath, exhale completely. Now
> you're ready...
>
> d) Keep your eyes closed. As you inhale again, allow your arms to
> float up in any way THEY want to and just let them float around as
> the theremin begins to respond any way IT wants to. Allow the
> theremin to make sound ONLY AS YOU INHALE. Just breathe in deeply as
> the sound plays and your arms move; become acutely aware of where
> the points of tension are, where things feel relaxed and where
> things feel strained. As you continue to breathe, relax all the
> spots you felt tension in WHILE YOU PLAY. When you feel that tension
> release, THEN exhale, allowing your arms to float back to your
> sides. Do this for at least five more slow, deep breaths. Eyes
> closed the entire time.
>
> e) Think of any melody or song you absolutely love -- one that
> carries all the joy and passion that no other song seems to have.
> Hear it in your head as fully as you can.
>
> f) Know this: whatever energy or combination of energies out there
> in the universe that is required to play a theremin -- it's always
> out there. Move out of your own way and begin to allow a shift in
> your thinking. Allow whatever the universe requires to flow through
> you. Stop thinking of yourself as the solid entity that bends this
> instrument to your will -- rather, think of yourself as the conduit
> and ALLOW THE THEREMIN TO PLAY YOU -- and still with your eyes
> closed, play that song you love. It doesn't matter if you get all
> the notes right or the speed -- JUST PLAY. Your body knows what's
> comfortable. Let it find that place for you.
>
> I promise you, odd as it may sound, this mindset will do more to
> help you as a player than you can imagine. Your body will arrive at
> techniques you would never have conceived of if you'd kept your eyes
> open. We are so visually oriented-- We are LOOKING so hard that we
> disallow the intuition!
>
> I'm never surprised when someone asks "is this a joke?" The fact is,
> it DOES sound silly.
>
> The exercise I described is not solely intended as a relaxation
> technique. It is a way to free oneself of the visual self-
> evealuation a player constantly measures him or herself by (am I
> standing close enough, am I using the right fingering technique, are
> my hands position correctly, etc.) Secondly, closing the eyes allows
> a player to FEEL more acutely where tension, holding of breath, and
> even overthinking may be hindering one's ability.
>
> Ultimately, this process of discovery as one learns to play is very
> intuitive; there will never be only one technique.
>
>
>
>
>
>
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