"Ghost Sonata" Original Theremin Composition Scott Marshall

[ZachoMax]

Sounds like the Chris Vreena score of American McGee's Alice

[HODGExPODGE]

Amazing! I have a question, I am an aspiring thereminist and want to preform this for my music history class at the University of Maine at Farmington, is there anyway I can get an mp3 of the backing music without the theremin?

[dougiemac14]

@HODGExPODGE My boy Fingahsss!

[MrTooljello]

Very well composed piece, and a very fitting title for the composition aswell! I can see this as a halloween special theme song of some sort for sure :)

I showed this to a musician friend of mine, and he just loved your video. He wants to get his hands on a theramin now lol.

Bravo!

[DJTacoStand]

4 people are gonna be haunted by a ghost for the reast of their lives

[HoundofDarkness]

There's something very Mr. Hyde about this song.

[Realrpg]

Sounds like the music for Fable one. Is it??

[MisterScott99]

@Realrpg Never heard Fable One before. Listening to it right now. It's very different except for the first 3 notes. Ghost Sonata was written a year before Fable One came out. Fable Two I'm hearing the music box form, but musically not that similar.

[Realrpg]

@MisterScott99

Yeah I know you've created this song before the game which is very intriguing.

But the first thing I thought of was Fable, I'll try and find the song that sounds like it.

[SirMcDan]

You should work for Tim Burton

[MisterScott99]

@SirMcDan That would be fun. Tim has very capable composer Danny Elfman for his scores, and Lydia Kavina, grand neice of Dr. Theremin himself, play this instrument for his movies (the only one I know of is Ed Wood). Keyboard Synthesizers are more practical for movie Theremin scores (used for Mars Attacks).

[ParagonPerfumes]

 BRILLIANT!

[TheLeastDiseased]

Oh please tell me you're available to do funerals, Mr. Scott, please. I'll let you know when I get sick. (very nice work)

[MisterScott99]

@TheLeastDiseased Actually, I no longer play theremin. It's a completed project. Glad you like this!

[TheLeastDiseased]

@MisterScott99 Hey Mr. Scott...the only part of my post that was serious was that you do very nice work. Seems like kind of a creepy sound and a spooky song (Ghost Sonata) to play at a funeral ;) I'd love it, though!!

Sorry you no longer play. I make everyone I know listen to this piece and they love it ;)

[MisterScott99]

@TheLeastDiseased Oh wow, that's nice to hear. Thanks!

[MisterScott99]

@TheLeastDiseased Actually, I no longer play theremin. It's a completed project. Glad you like this!

[unpodimusica1]

This is amazing! One of the most difficult instruments, so I'm told. Beautiful and atmospheric, well done!

[AnaThema010110]

eerie, good. my new fave instrument

[hobbesdream]

Holy crap, Theremin are amazing!

[crashland1961]

Bravo, sir.

[mrnack]

Not to mention your obvious skill as a performer :)

[mrnack]

Oh wow! You composed this yourself? It's lovely!!

[MisterScott99]

@mrnack Thanks so much! I've composed lots of music, including several video game scores. This piece I created just for theremin. Glad you like it.

[vilchen]

This is great!!

[vilchen]

This is great!

[Machinegun0arg]

Must be hard to play, after all you don't have much references but the sound it makes, you don't have black and white notes or markers under a string, it's just thin air *o*

Impressive

[MisterScott99]

@Machinegun0arg Thanks! Yes, and the trombone, slide whistle, and violin are similar that way. They also use muscle memory to hit particular notes, though constant pitch correction by ear is still needed. For me, Theremin playing is very much like whistling. I think it uses some of the same brain circuits. However, it's the inconsistency that makes the Theremin most difficult. Temperature, humidity, environment, even by own breathing all change where notes are found in the air.

[TheLemonPeals]

Frighteningly beautiful.

[MrGGFluffy]

sweeeet

[noseeye1]

where do you get these things, and if you cant buy em, are there any build your own online instructions, ive always wanted one of these, that is amazing, how does it work? awesome dude, play on!!!

[MisterScott99]

@noseeye1 My kit is from zzsounds.com. It works with 2 high frequency oscillators with their resonant capacitors attached to an antenna. The tall antenna's creates a tone by mixing its oscillator with a fixed frequency oscillator. The beat frequency is the output pitch. The one connected to the side loop goes to a resonant circuit which is at max output when my hand is far from the antenna. This output is integrated and goes 2 a voltage controlled amp that set the volume. I don't play anymore.

[NitzaaanKatz]

you are ABSOLUTELY brilliant !!

[MisterScott99]

@NitzaaanKatz Thanks!

[GodsentHellraiser]

God I want one.....

I'm working on a concept music project where the theremin is playing the role of a singing Frankenstein monster :]

[TengoUnOboe]

AMAZING

[ChapterPi]

This is just too cool. I am so envious!!!

[drfoxcourt]

Ahhh a composition made for theramin.

I like remakes of stuff not made for theramin (Theramin killd the radio star, Crazy by Gnarls Barkley, Clar de Lune...etc), but there just isn't enough stuff written for theramin.

Thanks

[squizophrenic49]

No jodan! Esta poca madre, yo quiero tocar así (:

[Phourist]

this is awesome

[MisterScott99]

@Phourist Thanks!

[tezassss]

man u r genius congratulations

[MisterScott99]

@tezassss Sorry, I accidentally removed your request for Swan Lake. My conclusion after playing theremin for a few years is it's an artistic dead end. I try not to play familiar favorites like Swan Lake because I don't want to spoil them for people. Original works like Ghost Sonata are what I'd rather do -- pieces that use the instrument's strengths instead of fighting it's weaknesses. Thanks for the compliments!

[tezassss]

crazy

[CubensisAtiv4Strings]

is it expensive?

[LordNapalm]

I absolutly LOVE this song. I notice you put a copyright notice on it. Would you mind if I made an MP3 for personal use?

I ordered a B3 Delux and can't wait to try my hand at the mystical art of the theremin.

[Ghashlord]

u made sound the theremin perfectly!

[colossusngem]

this is a truly spooky song

[MisterScott99]

Thanks!

[DaZhongGuoNo1]

what actually is this???

[carlos00700700]

I want one of those...

[MisterScott99]

They are nasty hard to play. I'm selling mine.

[Doliath]

I have been thinking about picking up the theremin as a hobby. As someone who has played (and played it well), what are your thoughts about this? Does it require more practice than a hobbyist can devote? Is it just too difficult? You're selling yours for a reason, I suppose.

[MisterScott99]

It's too difficult, and few people like the sound, even from the most expert players. The 90 year legacy of the theremin is that it's an artistic dead end, and that is not likely to change. Even its definitive use as the sound of aliens, ghosts, and madness is better served by synthesizers, though the novely of a live performance, can still stun and amazing for a fleeting moment.

[neilpt19]

imagen finding one in the attic lol

[MisterScott99]

People do! There's one in the attic in a Simpsons Halloween episode, too.

[Icyryan007]

what a skill!

[komorzoltan]

One of my favourite theremin songs of all time. Simply amazing, wonderfull job! :)

[xxAsteriskxx]

I hate when musicians that are good still make the instrument control them and compose music that strictly follows how the instrument is commonly played. Only a handful of people really have surpassed the boundaries of their instruments (Steve Vai or Franz Liszt can be examples). Now this is what I call using an instrument's timbre and way you have to play it to your advantage! So you're on the list now ha ha. The composition was absolutely amazing and dynamic contrast was spot on.

[RadioZonde]

wow....

dude, incredible

[cobra1466]

awesome...

[michaeljetfire]

i've heard that the theremin fits this kind of style for music... the whole eerie and dark kind... and now i believe it.

[tctebsrules]

llol!

[xenotoxette]

d00d.

This is so epic it's not even phunny.

[Fizland]

Wow.. who composed this? is there an mp3.. Does sound very much like a computer game song but I can't think what.. :S More like this

[Fizland]

oh sorry I used the internet to answer my questions.. is nice to see it performed thou makes the theremin look easy.. I want one :)

[MisterScott99]

Hey, thanks. The theremin is incredibly difficult (to play well). Watch the youtube video "State of the Arts Interviews Scott Marshall" to learn more about me and the theremin.

[weskoki]

What kind of Theremin is it? You'r great!

[TubeZoogy]

Mesmerizing. :)

[PrincetonTV]

Wow you should be on TV. Or better yet you should be on the elusive .... Cable Access Television. Maybe some type of variety show. And the Host should be called ...... Tom.

Good to see you on the tube , you.

[MisterScott99]

Hah! Hi Tom! Yes, you interviewed me on your cable access show! That was fun.

[mrkattobi]

Wow man....amazing

i knew the intrument by a friend of mine but i never seen nobody play that way!!!

5 Stars man...amazing!!! sorry about the bad english!

[Thereminstrel]

Enjoyable composition and performance! Great atmospheric sound; it could be a theme from a Tim Burton movie!

[zapphireee]

Really good playing indeed.

Can't wait untill i get my own theremin, saved money for a long time now, soon i got enough! do you need a special amplifier or does a bass amplifier work?

[omadawn]

Wow, thanks youtube..I never knew about this instrument before..

great playing Scott!

[sborges433]

I have heard that this is an extremely difficult instrument to master, yet you make it seem incredibly simple. Awe-inspiring to say the least!

[MisterScott99]

Appreciate the comment! I never quite mastered it, but I think I got good enough so that it was worth putting it up so people could see/hear what I was able to do. You wouldn't believe how hard it is just to play a single note in pitch. Even players much better then me have trouble nailing it.

[sborges433]

Just out of curiosity (and not wanting to be too nosy) - how long did it take to be able to play the theremin? Are you a professional musician? And if so, what instruments did you play before handling a theremin (a violin, or similar, most likely)? You probably have perfect pitch to be able to nail the notes with such precision.

[MisterScott99]

I explain more about the theremin and my playing methods in my youtube clip "Scott Marshall Theremin." I'd been playing about three years before the clips on YouTube. I was good enough to perform in public after about a year. My main instrument is the piano. I've had many paying piano gigs and night bars, restaurants, and parties, and I've composed scores for many video games. I have good relative pitch but poor absolute pitch.

[sborges433]

Thanks for your reply, Scott. I will definitively check your site. I'm amazed that you were just playing the theremin for three years - the way you nail those notes and your incredibly subtle hand movements, I thought you had played it all your life! I must say, I'm still very, very impressed! I fooled around with one of these and couldn't do anything with it!!!

[OniBy]

waht is he using?!?!

[MisterScott99]

Using...using...what do you mean? Explain your question and I'll be happy to answer.

[AnDyPCLAM]

this is possibly the best thing that's ever happened to me.

[MisterScott99]

Wow! Exactly what do you mean by that?

[AnDyPCLAM]

well you know, hyperbole and all that, but i thought it was extremely cool. that must be one of the hardest instruments in the world to play.

[sexydrummerdookie]

peccato per il theremin giallo orrendo perche la composizione e fantastica!

[MisterScott99]

I read "It's a sin for such a ghastly yellow theremin to play such a fantastic composition." No one's complained about the color 'til now. I first wanted red, but another player had a red one. The color doesn't come across on video. It's about ten coats of "caution yellow," the neon yellow color for paint dangerous stuff, +ten more of lacquer. It had to stand out from far away, make people say "What's that?" Better in person. Thanks for the compliment about the composition!

[sexydrummerdookie]

well my theremin has a terrible color too...light wood...ikea haha...your theremin looks like a big piece of cheese!

[MisterScott99]

On video, yes, but in person it's not a cheese color. It's brilliant neon yellow, not cheesy at all. Originally it was, indeed, Ikea light wood. I finished another Etherwave in chestnut, as a spare, and it looked really nice. Sold it on ebay.

[sexydrummerdookie]

by the way...this composition is very cool...i'm gonna study it!

[MisterScott99]

Good, I'm eager to real your analysis. Let me know if there are any harmonies I can help explained.

[primordialoddity]

I learnt it by watching the video, getting it stuck in my head and playing it by ear. Fun.

[lilcluelessme]

great composition!

[MisterScott99]

Just want you all to know I read your comments and really appreciate them. Thanks!

[Jackobryan]

Dude you rock.

[carport888]

Very cool! This is great!

[thecamraman]

I agree with Thomas on this one!

[thecamraman]

Very Nice!!!

[ThomasGrillo]

I really like this piece!