How would you mimic the sound of a theramin?

R

RAMI

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On a guitar? I want put in a theremin-like sound (like in "Good Vibrations") for about 5 seconds in a song without having to go buy one and learn how to use it. How would you try to do it on a guitar?

I'm thinking.....use a slide. Maybe play the part an octave lower than I want it and pitch it up an octave, to give it more "slippery" sound? I'm going to try all kinds of stuff, but I was hoping someone already tried this.
 
RAMI said:
On a guitar? I want put in a theremin-like sound (like in "Good Vibrations") for about 5 seconds in a song without having to go buy one and learn how to use it. How would you try to do it on a guitar?

I'm thinking.....use a slide. Maybe play the part an octave lower than I want it and pitch it up an octave, to give it more "slippery" sound? I'm going to try all kinds of stuff, but I was hoping someone already tried this.
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Bowed handsaw. Never done it myself. Saw the Music Tapes open last month and the guy was playing bowed saw on a couple numbers. I would have sworn to gott it was a theramin.

Musical saw - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Can't think of anything close on guitar.
 
Just use a synth. Even GV used an electro-theremin, not the real thing.

One of these days I gotta go back and finish my phantom-powered theremin . . .
 
Hey thanx for all the suggestions so far, guys. I'll try all of them. Don't have a synth, but I figure that would be the easiest way. The hand saw thing scares the crap out of me because, knowing me, I'll end up having to do Def Leppard drum covers for the rest of my life if I try that. :)
 
The synth and handsaw are good ideas. I think the voice is probably the easiest though.

Idk if your voice lends itself to that kind of thing but if you can get a real pure oooh goin on and a reverb overdose is cool, it might just work.
 
Steenamaroo said:
The synth and handsaw are good ideas. I think the voice is probably the easiest though.

Idk if your voice lends itself to that kind of thing but if you can get a real pure oooh goin on and a reverb overdose is cool, it might just work.
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I can do it. Some backing vocals that I did once as described made me say *Hey that sounds like a theremin*
 
It may be more work than you want for 5 seconds, but sample tank 2 FREE is cool and has some synths that will work pretty well I think. I even think there is a theramin preset in one of the free moog synths that comes with the program...I'm not 100% sure though. And, again not 100% sure, but I think you can play a guitar part and load it into the sampler and play it with the theramin moog effect.
 
Synth would be the easiest way i believe. You should try some softsynths if you dont own any hardware one. The slide on the guitar and the pitch shifter sounds nice too! Try it. Perhaps it wont sound exactly as a theremin but i think the result could be really interesting
 
Yeah, a slide would get you half way there...and if you then vari-speed the part to taste, it should sound close enough...plus vary the amplitude too.
Instead of a slide, what about using an E-Bow...?
 
miroslav said:
Yeah, a slide would get you half way there...and if you then vari-speed the part to taste, it should sound close enough...plus vary the amplitude too.
Instead of a slide, what about using an E-Bow...?
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Or an eBow with a slide...

*cue Dr Who theme*
 
Why mimic it? Build yourself a THEREMIN!

I bought this kit and built one for my wife a couple of Christmases back and it works quite well. It was also a fun build over a few afternoons--the hardest bit was tuning it at the end but even that was fine once the gift had been opened and I could approach it with two sets of hands...wife playing and me tweaking.
 
What about a tea kettle? Not the same sound by any means, but similar.

If you have an old metal one with a hinged lid on the spout, I think opening and closing the lid can alter the pitch. Maybe throw some effects on it and it could get close...
 
I'd go with the guitar option if that's what you have kicking around. If you get the slide up past the 12th fret and give it loads of vibrato whilst 'violining' with the volume knob (or just automate in your DAW) that comes pretty close in sound. There's theremin sounds on Captain Beefheart records that are done like that (as well as real theremins).
 
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