#stylusaudio

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One day in 1919, while measuring the density of gas, a young Russian scientist named Leon Theremin happened upon a surprising phenomenon. His body's own electric potential, interacting with the electromagnetic field of the gas meter, could generate a musical pitch, right out of thin air.

From this discovery, Theremin created one of the first electronic instruments—the theremin. You might recognize the sound of the theremin from classic science fiction films. It's that otherworldly ooooeeeeoooooo that's become a defining sonic signifier of the genre. 

But the story behind the theremin—the story of Theremin's life—rivals the plot-line of any film scored with his instrument.

Theremin traveled the world demonstrating his instrument, envisioning that, someday, audiences might listen to entire electronic orchestras. But early commercial failures put a hold on that dream, and Theremin ended up back in the USSR, where he designed the first covert listening devices for the Soviet government—bugs. Brief opportunities to pursue his musical work ended, time and again, in ruin.

Both the inventor and his instrument survived, though neither in the way you'd expect. Join us as we explore the astonishing, science-fiction-like life of Leon Theremin.

Featuring the voices and sounds of Lydia Kavina, theremin virtuosa, Albert Glinsky, composer and author of Theremin: Ether Music and Espionage, Jon Bernhardt, WMBR DJ and thereminist, and Dalit Warshaw, composer, pianist, and thereminst. Also featuring music from The Art of the Theremin by Clara Rockmore and Nadia Reisenberg.

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A sinister melody welcomes viewers into The Twilight Zone, television's skewed version of reality brought to life by screenwriter and actor Rod Serling. It's a well-known intro—four swirling, dissonant notes. They have become a hallmark of all things eerie since The Twilight Zone's second season.

But the 1959 premiere of the first season opened with a different sound—a Bernard Herrmann composition that has been eclipsed in television history by the success of later seasons. Herrmann's score guides viewers into The Twilight Zone with a lilting progression of horns and strings that calls forth the otherworldliness the show became known for.

In the case of either composition, the sounds of The Twilight Zone are not complete without Rod Serling’s own voice: The anchor that locates viewers in an alternate reality, complete with cautionary tales and grand philosophical questions.

In the audio piece above, Stylus explores how the music of each episode, coupled with Serling's narration, set the tone for the series and expressed the mood of a fearful cold war era.

Featuring the voices of Douglas Brode, co-author of Rod Serling and The Twilight Zone: The 50th Anniversary Tribute, and Gabriel McKee, author of The Gospel According to Science Fiction: From the Twilight Zone to the Final Frontier. Produced by Anna Cataldo.

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Ridley Scott’s 1982 film Blade Runner opens on a dystopian version of Los Angeles in 2019. It’s a future replete with the sounds of a cyberpunk street at night—flying cars, buzzing neon signs, and lots and lots of rain. These sounds are underscored by electronic music from the pioneering synthesizer musician Vangelis. 

Altogether, the sound design of Blade Runner is guided by what Joanna Demers, a professor of musicology at USC, calls an “ambient sensibility.” Scott's world doesn’t command the viewer’s attention on any one particular thing; instead, the audience becomes immersed in the noir city’s unique sonic space.

Featuring the voices of Keith Phipps, film critic at The Dissolve and Joanna Demers, professor of musicology at USC's Thornton School of Music.

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In 1963, a science fiction series called Doctor Who premiered on the BBC. Its original theme tune, composed entirely without conventional instrumentation, invited viewers in with its melodic, yet uncanny sounds. Over 50 years later, Doctor Who is still on television, and the theme tune is instantly recognizable by fans both young and old.

While the theme's brief score was provided by Ron Grainer, it was Delia Derbyshire's electronic music savvy that brought the tune to life. Together with sound engineer Dick Mills, Derbyshire rolled out reels of tape and spliced together alien-like sounds for the new TV program about an alien man and his time-traveling adventures.

Today, in Manchester, England, where Derbyshire's archive is held, electronic musician Caro C and others celebrate Delia Derbyshire Day on April 12. "Delia is the godmother of electronic music," Caro C says. In honor of the day, she and others in the field remember Derbyshire's legacy as a female pioneer in the audio piece above. 

Featuring the voices of: Caro C, electronic musician and project manager, Delia Derbyshire Day; David Butler, professor, University of Manchester; Dick Mills, sound engineer, BBC Radiophonic Workshop; Brian Hodgson, sound effects creator, Doctor Who and BBC Radiophonic Workshop Organizer. Music includes the Doctor Who Theme (1963 and 2010), Donna’s Theme (2008), and The Tenth Planet (1966). DD Day image credit: Andrea Pazos. Produced by Deanna Archetto.

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It's not entirely clear how the Austrian composer Gustav Mahler arrived at the title. Having composed a six-part song cycle, Mahler wrote to the conductor Bruno Walter in 1908 and said, “I myself do not know how to express what the whole thing might be called. A beautiful time was granted me, and I believe it is the most beautiful thing I have created.” Mahler's pinnacle work was eventually entitled Das Lied von der Erde — The Song of the Earth.

The earth as a theme runs deep in the history of Western classical music. Pastoral music — music that expresses and idealizes the countryside — flourished in the 19th century. In his Sixth Symphony, for example, the composer Beethoven used music to evoke a scene by a river, imitating the sounds of twittering birds and a bubbling brook through instruments.

But in Das Lied von Der Erde, nature becomes more abstract. Through long, textural passages, Mahler creates a musical space open to the world. And in the last song, a final reckoning with mortality called The Farewell, the listener seems to float above the earth. Here, maybe, Das Lied earns its name.

Featuring the voices of: Benjamin Zander, conductor, Boston Philharmonic; Jane Struss, mezzo soprano and professor at the Longy School of Music of Bard College; Thomas Peattie, professor of musicology and ethnomusicology at Boston University.

Benjamin Zander conducts Mahler's Symphony No. 9 on April 25th at Symphony Hall. Information here.

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In the late 1950s, with the American folk song revival underway, a peculiar type of music started bubbling up in the science fiction and fantasy fan community. In convention hallways and boiler rooms, hotel basements and neighborhood homes, fans gathered in small numbers to sing parodies of their favorite folk songs with sci-fi lyrics replacing the original words. At one convention, a fortuitous program typo — the accidental switching of an "i" for the "o" in folk music — gave name to this music: Filk.

The name stuck, and Filking has since grown into an international practice. Although most of the lyrical content is still drawn from science fiction and fantasy lore, Filk musicians, also known as "Filkers," play everything from rock to jazz to rap. There's a Filk Hall of Fame and annual awards given for best new artists and material. Some of the music is still parody, but there are also heartfelt originals and new classics.

Attending a Filk circle feels a lot like going to a friendly worship service, except, instead of hearing hymns, you're more likely to hear the theme song from the television show Firefly. The community favors inclusivity, but there's also an ongoing debate over what can be called Filk today - and what can't.

Featuring the voices of: Ellen Kranzer, co-founder, MASSFILC; Sally Childs-Helton, percussionist and ethnomusicologist, Butler University. Both are Filk Hall of Fame inductees. Music includes live recordings from Arisia 2014. 

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Sounds fill our world. From the slight rustling of leaves to the dramatic power of a thunderstorm, the sounds produced on our planet — both biological and non-biological in origin — combine to form vast tapestries called soundscapes. These are ever-changing compositions: the songs of the earth.

In this audio piece, we explore one broad component of the soundscape: geophony. The term geophony encompasses all of the wild, non-biological sound sources on earth. Roaring avalanches and crashing ocean waves. Trickling streams and whistling wind. The deafening blasts of volcanic eruptions. The low, almost inaudible rumbling of glaciers.

Geophony was the first sound on earth, and it provides the framework within which all other sound arises.

Featuring the voices of: Bernie Krause, bioacoustician; R. Murray Schafer, composer and writer.

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In 1964, the abstract painter Mark Rothko was commissioned to design a nondenominational chapel in Houston. The building was named Rothko Chapel.

Rothko, an abstract expressionist, rejected the idea that painting had to be representational, and in his late career he painted large, floating fields of color. For this project, Rothko had nearly total control over the aspects of the chapel’s construction and he created 14 canvasses specifically for the environment.

However, Rothko never saw his paintings hung in the chapel. He killed himself in 1970, a year before the dedication.

Rothko’s friend, the avant-garde American composer Morton Feldman, attended the Chapel’s dedication. As Feldman describes it, the building's benefactors asked him to “write a composition as a tribute to Rothko to be performed in the chapel.” Feldman’s tribute to his friend — also called “Rothko Chapel” — took direct inspiration from the building and the artwork within.

“To a large degree, my choice of instruments (in terms of forces used, balance and timbre) was affected by the space of the chapel as well as the paintings,” Feldman writes. “Rothko’s imagery goes right to the edge of his canvas, and I wanted the same effect with the music.”

In this audio piece, we explore how Feldman's music and Rothko's paintings came together in this unique space.

Featuring the voices of: Ryan Vigil, composer, pianist and scholar, University of New Hampshire; Robert Simpson, artistic director, Houston Chamber Choir; Christian Wolff, composer and emeritus professor of Classics, Dartmouth College. Images: Rothko Chapel interior and exterior, wikimedia commons. Produced by Qainat Khan.

Credit for recording: Morton Feldman. "Rothko Chapel." Performed by DaCamera of Houston and the Houston Chamber Choir. Feb. 26, 2011. Used with permission of the Houston Chamber Choir.