Turn an iPhone Into a Pocket Theremin

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Turn an iPhone Into a Pocket Theremin

Posted by timothy on Saturday September 20, 2008 @06:38AM from the extremely-happy-to-see-you dept.

Earyauteur writes "The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) is running a story on an interesting motion-controlled iPhone application which uses the iPhone's 3-axis accelerometer to control a digital synthesizer. The musical instrument is played much like a theremin with the added ability to perform music using different musical scales. TUAW also links to a YouTube video which shows a performer demonstrating the iPhone instrument."

6 of 31 comments (clear)

Min score:

Reason:

Sort:

Fun, but not a theremin by theefer · 2008-09-20 06:53 · Score: 5, Informative

The musical instrument is played much like a theremin [...]
Clearly whoever wrote this has never seen, let alone played a theremin.
You don't play a theremin by rotating a mobile phone (or anything) in your hand. There is no notion of angle, since you play with your bare hands, only distance. The distance to the vertical antenna determines the pitch, whereas the distance to the horizontal circular antenna controls the volume. The whole point is the expressiveness of playing music with your whole body.
If you want a small silly toy theremin, you should order Vol. 17 of Japanese magazine Otona no kagaku (the whole thing is in Japanese, but easy enough to build). You can only control the pitch, the sound is pretty awful, and you cannot place calls with it, but at least it's a theremin.

--
theefer
1. Re:Fun, but not a theremin by Earyauteur · 2008-09-20 07:15 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  The musical instrument is played much like a theremin [...]
  Clearly whoever wrote this has never seen, let alone played a theremin.
  Actually I have built a Theremin from a kit. It worked when I was done soldering -- so I have both seen and played a Theremin if it matters to any one here besides the pedant trolls. I included a link to the theremin in my submission so without knowing anything about me you might have noticed that I at least knew what Leon Theremin and his instrument looked like.
Another YouTube video of Cosmovox by Earyauteur · 2008-09-20 07:18 · Score: 3, Informative

Someone uploaded this recently: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDvoW68x9no
If you have to touch the iphone... by Anonymous Coward · 2008-09-20 08:00 · Score: 1, Informative

then it's not a theremin. I wish people would stop using false wording to try and get more attention. The fact that the sound output is close to a theremin does not make it a "pocket theremin".
Re:Not a theremin by paulthomas · 2008-09-20 08:00 · Score: 2, Informative

Cosmovox owes some of its inspiration to the Theremin, an early 20th century electronic music instrument which is played by moving your hands near an antenna. Cosmovox can convincingly imitate the sound of the Theremin, and other similar electronic instruments which haunt pulp sci-fi movies, yet Cosmovox uses the computing power of your iPhone to do far more.
From the app developer's web site: About Cosmovox.
Re:And use your iPhone as a pocket dictionary by NeverVotedBush · 2008-09-20 08:12 · Score: 4, Informative

I would mod you up if I had mod points.
The video is pretty cool, and so is the application (apparently now available at the Apple Store), but the comparison to a Theremin is a bit off.
All the tilts were from front to back. Maybe if they add side to side (if the iPhone has those accelerometers as well), then it would be more Theremin-like with both pitch and volume instead of just pitch.
How to play a Theremin:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cd4jvtAr8JM