If you have a moment in between daytime panels and presentations, make sure to stop by the lobby at Pack Place. You’re likely to see people with headphones on, deep in concentration, with their hands hovering purposefully in the air. They aren’t wizards, and they aren’t crazy. They’re playing the theremin as part of the Odd Harmonics sounds installation. Join them.
In between performances and panels, you, too, can play one of the earliest electronic musical instruments. Theremins are a strange and even eerie instrument — in part because of its outer space-like sound, but also because that sound is controlled without touch. Instead, metal antennae sense the position of the player’s hands, which generate electric signals that are then amplified. There are an array of theremins to experiment with at the Odd Harmonics sound installation from the UM Project — each with it’s own personality. All of the instruments were made by François Chambard.
The interactive installation will be open throughout the festival in the lobby at Pack Place. Don’t be shy — you’re allowed to play. But if you would rather hang back and leave it to the experts, definitely stick around for theremin wizard Dorit Chrysler. She will show you how incredible this instrument can really be with daily performances at the installation site.
See more Xpress photos of the installation here.
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