Plate antennae vs. pole and loop

A music store near me has a Harrison Instruments theremin with plate antennae. Any opinions on whether this is a good instrument for a beginner? I want ultimately play tunes. The unconventional design makes me hesitate because all of the lessons/DVDs seem oriented towards the traditional models.

I fiddled with it yesterday and found it difficult to find pitch, but this may have been my naive belief that playing it would be easy, the store was busy and loud, plus it wasn't warmed up. 

Any opinions welcome. Thanks.

Art Harrison is a nice individual but I think his approach to theremin design will damage your path to becoming a fine thereminist. I think his volume motion is the reversed direction from standard which some people like but you will never be able to instinctively play another fine instrument. A future instrument may have a direction reversal switch. The human arm moves more naturally toward a vertical antenna. Aerial fingering which is crucial to theremin play does not happen with a horizontal pitch plate. Art does get a nice sound.

The best theremins are a collection of very simple principles which are very difficult to deviate from. The theremin for me is reaching into the past when electronics were the combination of little pieces. I always liked the colors.

IMHO

Hey, what can I say.. ?!

Here is a posting from Christopher (RS Theremin) where we agree completely - not even the slightest hint of cause for an "arm wrestle" LOL!

Christopher has said it all.. It is also my opinion that you are probably well advised to stay away from the vertical action plate antenna system..

But neither Christopher or I are musicians - so we shouldnt even be showing our faces on this thread!

LOL - ;-) I did find cause for an arm wrestle!!

Welcome to TW, MaryW !

Make that three of us in agreement.

My theremin has a plate on the volume side but a vertical for pitch.

It can be played as if it were a loop, but it's a bit awkward. As soon as I can figure out a way to put a loop on it and retain it's meager collector value, I will.

Also, If memory serves, Art's instruments don't have any way to linearize the pitch field.

Rob.

Plate antennas are great for people who want to play FX, aleatoric, avant garde and experimental theremin music. If your goal is to play precision theremin (i.e. repeatable melodies) plates are not a good idea because you have to fight GRAVITY all the way.

Bob Moog experimented extensively with plate antennas in his early years of theremin making but he ultimately abandoned them in favor of the traditional rod & ring.

When you are playing vertically, up and down, toward and away from a horizontal pitch plate, you are having to lift and drop your entire forearm and hand to articulate the notes. This is cumbersome and fatiguing for a precision player. A traditional vertical rod offers you a number of different and much more relaxed hand/arm positions from which to choose. 

"The most important thing for a beginner thereminist, is to know where you want to go, where you want to end up, before you start out". Clara Rockmore

Thanks for the quick replies! My goal is to be able to play repeatable melodies, so I'll pass on the Harrison. This store is also a Moog dealer and the manager said he'd work with me to get whatever I decided on.

"Plate antennas are great for people who want to play FX, aleatoric, avant garde and experimental theremin music. If your goal is to play precision theremin (i.e. repeatable melodies) plates are not a good idea because you have to fight GRAVITY all the way."

...whereas experimental thereminists are immune to the effects of gravity, because they play with levity.

Gordon,

"Levity" eh?

I always suspected that the music of experimental thereminists was a joke! 

Most non-experimentalists tolerate experimental music strictly because it is the politically correct thing to do. Uncle Howie notwithstanding.

I would rather a little levity than a surplus of gravitas.

Nonetheless, to clarify, levity in the sense of light-heartedness rather than lack of seriousness.

"I would rather a little levity than a surplus of gravitas." - GordonC

ROFL ;-) - Brilliant reply Gordon! 

The "Gravitas" problem could be counteracted by adding even more "levity" - And could have a side effect of making performance even more entertaining..

;-)

Please note the use of anti-gravitas devices..

Any similarity of the above person to any real or fictional person, or to any member or ex-member of Levnet or TW, is entirely unintentional!  ;-)

"Most non-experimentalists tolerate experimental music strictly because it is the politically correct thing to do." - Coalport

I cannot stay silent on this - but its not a fight I want to engage in, simply because, as a probably non-existant entity, I dont see the point.. ;-)

I think you have the bloody "right" to say " I tolerate experimental music strictly because it is the politically correct thing to do." or " I dont tolerate experimental music strictly because it is the politically incorrect thing to do." or "I like experimental music" or  "I dislike experimental music"..

But to say "Most non-experimentalists .. blah blah " is outrageously presumptuous - What, anyway, is a "non-experimentalist" ? -- Well, thinking about what might be a shorter word which is synonomous, "bore" comes to mind.

I like some "classical" I like some "pop" and I like some "experimental" - likewise I dislike some of each .. (but that, of course, is utterly and entirely irrelevant.. ;-)

I really doubt that "political correctness" has much, if anything to do with proclaimed "likes" or "dislikes" - Perhaps a small minority of geeks have this influencing them (and by geek here, I am also talking about those suit+tie opera goers without a musical neurone between their ears, as much as the poor brain-dead wanna-be who sits listening to some appalling experimental noise... But at least the geek subjected to the experimental noise is more likely to be partially anaethesised by mind altering substances..... Or am I here showing my ignorance about what actually goes on among opera devotees ?  ;-) .. But I dont believe "most" people are these kind of "geeks".

Then again, that is also entirely irreklevant (or whatever) as I dont believe anything..

Fred