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Theremin Sounds from Outer Space & Classic Film

What is that… THING?

Why, it’s the theremin!

This week on “Picture Perfect,” thrill to the distinctive extraterrestrial timbre of this whooping, whistling, wailing electronic instrument invented by Leon Theremin in 1928. The theremin may be unique of its kind in that it is played without actual physical contact. Pitch and volume are determined by the proximity of a player’s hands to two antennae. You won’t find any frets on this one!

That said, it can certainly generate fret. Brace yourself for eerie, at times otherworldly selections from “The Thing” by Dimitri Tiomkin (great music for cooking carrots), “Ed Wood” by Howard Shore (Tim Burton’s love letter to the director of “Plan 9 from Outer Space”), “Rocketship X-M” by Ferde Grofé (composer of the “Grand Canyon Suite”), and, one week after the death of Rhonda Fleming, Alfred Hitchcock’s “Spellbound” (with Academy Award winning music by Miklós Rózsa).

If you’ve got a THING for theremins, you’ll want to be on “hand” (or maybe not). I hope you’ll join me for madness, monsters, and Martians, on “Picture Perfect,” this Saturday evening at 6:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.

PEOPLE OF EARTH: WWFM is in the midst of its fall fundraiser. If, like me, you find great film music to be out of this world, please consider supporting it. Your donation online at wwfm.org allows us to continue to bring you stellar specialty programs like “Picture Perfect.” Thank you for your part in maintaining quality film music on the astral airwaves!

October 24, 2020
Theremin in Film A Halloween Soundscape

We all know the sound. That crazy, trilled electronic whistle that dips into a whoop. Or it starts in a trough and shoots up into the super stratosphere. It’s the sound of UFOs and mad science. It’s the sound of the theremin.

This week on “Picture Perfect,” we anticipate a hands-off Halloween with selections from four films enhanced by Leon Theremin’s visionary instrument.

“The Thing from Another World” was one of two seminal science fiction scores written in 1951. (The other was Bernard Herrmann’s “The Day the Earth Stood Still.”) On the soundtrack, the theremin acts as a musical counterpart to James Arness’ rampaging humanoid carrot. This was unquestionably composer Dimitri Tiomkin’s wildest hour; he never wrote anything like it again.

“The Thing” and “The Day the Earth Stood Still” may have been the most influential, but “Rocketship X-M” was the first. The film was rushed into production to beat George Pal’s “Destination Moon” to theaters in 1950. It was shot in just 18 days! The unlikely plot has the crew of a moon expedition blown off course to Mars. Interestingly, the composer was none other than Ferde Grofé – he of the “Grand Canyon Suite” fame.

Far more reputable, but still not wholly comfortable with its science, is Alfred Hitchcock’s “Spellbound,” from 1945. Gregory Peck plays an amnesiac, who may or may not have committed murder, and Ingrid Bergman is the psychoanalyst who falls in love with him. The film is of greatest interest for its production design, which features dream sequences conceived by Salvador Dali, and for its score, by Miklós Rózsa.

Hitchcock disliked the music – he thought it got in the way of his direction – but Academy voters disagreed, and the score earned Rózsa the first of his three Academy Awards.

Closer to our own time, Howard Shore incorporated the theremin into his Mancini-esque music for “Ed Wood,” released in 1991. The film is Tim Burton’s love letter to the grade-Z director of “Plan 9 from Outer Space.” “Plan 9” is widely regarded as the worst movie ever made (worse even than “Rocketship X-M”).

Make contact with the theremin – its distinctive, extraterrestrial timbre, you’ll recall, conjured without physical touch – on “Picture Perfect,” music for the movies, THIS SATURDAY EVENING AT 6:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.

Children of the night… what music they make! WWFM is in the midst of its fall fundraiser. If you’re a fan of “Picture Perfect,” please support it by making a contribution at 1-888-232-1212, or by donating online at wwfm.org. Thank you for your part in keeping the legacy of classic film music ALIVE!

October 23, 2020
WWFM Classical Music Home During Challenging Times

At a time when mobility has been limited for a great many of us, music is still common ground. It unites us, it comforts us, and it creates a sense of home. We at The Classical Network have persevered during these challenging times in doing our part to maintain an environment of stability and cheer.

WWFM is home to some of your favorite specialty shows: “The Dress Circle,” “The Piano Matters,” “Sounds Choral,” “Between the Keys,” “The Sunday Opera,” “Bach at One,” “The Lyric Stage,” “Half Past,” “Curtis Calls,” “Inside Music,” “Cadenza,” “A Tempo,” and of course “Picture Perfect” and “The Lost Chord.” These are all still produced, more or less, in-house.

For some of us, this home has been a virtual one since the arrival of COVID, but we’ve all worked hard to see to it that classical music programing remains available to you in a 24/7 format. Please help support it. Call us today at 1-888-232-1212, or make a donation online at wwfm.org.

There’s no place like music. From our home to yours, thank you for your support of WWFM – The Classical Network!

October 23, 2020
Lost Worlds Movie Music on WWFM

As the days grow shorter, it’s easy to get lost. Be sure then to have your radio, tablet, or phone handy, so as not to miss a heart-pounding second of “Picture Perfect” and music from movies about lost worlds.

Thrill to selections from “King Kong” (Max Steiner), “Journey to the Center of the Earth” (Bernard Herrmann), “One Million Years B.C.” (Mario Nascimbene), and “Jurassic Park” (John Williams).

Tie a string around your finger for “Lands That Time Forgot.” It will be a show to remember, this Saturday evening at 6:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.

October 17, 2020
Rediscovering American Composers Hadley & Sowerby

This Sunday night on “The Lost Chord,” lend a little color to your weekend, with seasonal evocations by two American composers.

Henry Hadley (1871-1937) studied at home with George Whitefield Chadwick and in Vienna with Eusebius Mandyczewski. In Europe, he befriended Richard Strauss and conducted the Berlin Philharmonic in his own Symphony No. 3. He was assistant conductor at the Mainz Opera, later music director of the Seattle Symphony, and became the first conductor of the San Francisco Symphony. One of his operas, “Cleopatra’s Night,” was performed at New York’s Metropolitan Opera. He served a stint as assistant conductor of the New York Philharmonic, he founded the National Association of Composers and Conductors, and he was instrumental in establishing the Berkshire Music Festival at Tanglewood. He guest conducted orchestras from Buenos Aires to Tokyo. Why then do so few remember him?

We’ll dig deep into the leaf pile of music history to revive Hadley’s Symphony No. 2, from 1901, subtitled “The Four Seasons.” The work begins with an evocation of a turbulent winter storm, followed by “Spring,” then “Summer.” The symphony concludes with a melancholy portrait of autumn, enlivened by the appearance of some rollicking hunting horns.

Toward the end of the hour, we’ll have just enough time for music by Leo Sowerby (1895-1968), sometimes called “the Dean of American Church Music.” Sowerby was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1946 for his cantata “Canticle to the Sun.” As antidote to the reflective nature of Hadley’s “Autumn,” we’ll conclude with the exuberant “Comes Autumn Time,” an uplifting work for solo organ.

I hope you’ll join me for “Well-Seasoned” – American composers of experience celebrate autumn – this Sunday night at 10:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.

October 11, 2020

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