Buchholz, Barbara / Kavina, Lydia

Touch! Don't Touch! Music For Theremin

Label: Wergo Country: Germany

New recordings from 2005, featuring premiers of various compositions for Theremin, as performed by the world renowned Lydia Kavina & Barbara Buchholz. "The Theremin, invented by Russian Leon Theremin, is one of the earliest fully electronic musical instruments. It is unusual in that it requires no physical contact in order to produce music and was, in fact, the first musical instrument designed to be played without being touched. The instrument consists of an array of circuitry including two antennas around which the user moves his or her hands to play. After a flurry of interest in America following the end of the Second World War, the Theremin soon fell into disuse with serious musicians, mainly because newer electronic instruments were introduced that were easier to play. Since the release of the film Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey in 1994, the instrument has enjoyed a resurgence in interest and has become more widely used by contemporary classical and popular musicians. On Touch! Don't Touch! Barbara Buchholz and Lydia Kavina pick up the thread of Theremin history with new compositions. The disc features works by eight German and Russian composers who were commissioned to write pieces for two Theremins and instrumental ensemble."