The Theremin received a lot of love this month, as did the UDP setups. The Leap Motion connects and works far more reliably, and has a ton more functionality, and the UDP setups have been moved to a master patch, meaning that send and receive objects are all that are needed as opposed to UDPsends everywhere. There is also now the possibility for other group members to automatically change the Theremin’s key and tempo from their transport, as it is also a standalone instrument now.

The sound of the instrument has been altered as well, with the addition of Sawtooth waves, and comb filtered noise to choose from! The wah with the left hand has also been tweaked for more a better and more responsive sound. It can also now be toggled as an option from the UI or a key shortcut. Delay is activated by rotating the right hand, and moving left and right with both hands to change the delay time and amount. Vibrato is also controlled in this manner.

If used in a group, it would be great to have a separate PC for the theremin, as the new keybindings make it such a more fluid experience than having to use a mouse all the time. The bigger UI also gives the benefit of showing which notes are being used on a stave display, and the key is indicated by the keyboard’s display on the screen. A large reason for these changes was to give the performer much more nuance and control over what they sound like, as well as giving the theremin a more standardised approach in a collaborative situation, as now people can play in a key together.

Video of the performance at Fruit should be available soon, I’ll update if and when I can upload it to YouTube.

Future updates:

• Integrate a Jitter patch I made with crossfading videos, chromakeying (green screen), and other effects.
• Fix a nagging issue with Bruce’s matrix where occasionally notes are overwritten, and regulate the transport at the top (maybe separate that into its own object).
• I hoped to have a webcam equivalent to the Leap Motion, where some functionality could be achieved without the Leap Motion. A cut down version could make it into a future update.
• More effects!
• Add in the ability to use multi-channel outputs and pan each instrument.

Once it’s in a state I’m with, I plan to upload the whole thing!