Wisconsin Life

ghostly theremin music

Charles Collins

I started fixing musical instruments, amplifiers, and stereo equipment 35 years ago for a local store. That had to go somewhere. My name's Charles Collins, and I build theremins.

sci-fi outer space theremin

Charles Collins

The theremin is a musical instrument that you can play without touching it.

theremin oscillates eerily

Charles Collins

You don't find the theremin; the theremin finds you.

quivering high-pitched opera-like theremin

Charles Collins

A person named Leon Theremin invented it back in about 1919, 1920.

film reel static

frightening theremin, heavy breathing

Charles Collins

It's just a creepy sound that every B-movie had back in the '50s.

ominous theremin

Charles Collins

When the monster comes out, he always had a theremin.

Actor

It's unbelievable.

intimidating breathing

Actor

You listen to that, you gotta have one.

heavy breathing

Actor

I was able to find one at a swap meet, and the guy thought it was a burglar alarm that didn't work very well. It was fascinating, and I thought, "You know, other people would like this. Maybe I could make a cheap one." And it took off from there.

futuristic squawking

Actor

There's the monster. I've sold over 10,000 in 25 years. It operates with two radio frequency oscillators mixing together to form a third frequency, which is an audio tone.

ascending notes, then siren

Theremin has two circuits

one being the pitch circuit and the other is the volume. This is the pitch antenna, and the note gets higher as your hand comes nearer to it.

high-pitched saxophone-like sound

Theremin has two circuits

This is the volume antenna, and as your hand gets nearer to that, the pitch gets quieter until you can't hear it.

sound waivers between audible and silent

Theremin has two circuits

It's essentially a pretty simple circuit. It's still challenging-- It can be-- When things don't work quite right, there's a reason, and sometimes that reason can be very elusive.

theremin sounds like a needle scratching a record

Theremin has two circuits

I started 25 years ago. I didn't want to work in a factory, so I essentially made my own factory. I haven't gone mad.

funky music

Theremin has two circuits

There could be other worse things to do. You're finally done making one, and it works, and it's going in the box and being sent out to the person. That is the best feeling.