The ondes Martenot (IPA: [õd maʀtəno]; French for "Martenot waves"; also known as the ondium Martenot, Martenot and ondes musicales) is an early electronic musical instrument, invented in 1928 by Maurice Martenot and originally very similar in sound to the Theremin. An electronic musical instrument is a Musical instrument that produces its sounds using Electronics. Year 1928 ( MCMXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Maurice Martenot ( October 14, 1898 – October 8, 1980) was a French cellist a radio telegrapher during the first World The sonic capabilities of the instrument were subsequently expanded by the addition of timbral controls and switchable loudspeakers. For the Marty Friedman album see Loudspeaker (album A loudspeaker, speaker, or speaker system is an electroacoustical The instrument is especially known for its eerie wavering notes produced by the thermionic valves that produce oscillating frequencies. This article is about the electronic device not an evacuated pipe used for experiments in Free-fall.
The production of the instrument stopped in 1988 but a few conservatories in France still teach it (e. Year 1988 ( MCMLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar) A university school of music or college of music, or academy of music or conservatoire ( French, but used in British English) &mdash g. Paris, Strasbourg, Boulogne-Billancourt, Evry, Cergy-Pontoise)[1]. The Conservatoire de Paris is an institution of higher education that has played an important role in the development of Music in France and Western Europe Since 1997, the "Ondéa" project strives to create a reimagining of the Ondes Martenot. Since the Martenot name is still under copyright protection, the new instrument is called "Ondéa", but has the playing and operational characteristics of the original Ondes Martenot. In 2001, a completed prototype was used in concerts, and since 2005, these instruments have been in regular use. [2][3]
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In classical music
The ondes Martenot has been used by many composers, most notably Olivier Messiaen. Olivier Messiaen ( December 10 1908 &ndash April 27 1992 was a French Composer, organist and ornithologist. He first used it in the Fête des Belles Eaux for six ondes, written for the 1937 International World's Fair in Paris[4] and then used it in several of his works, including the Turangalîla-Symphonie and Trois Petites Liturgies de la Présence Divine. Year 1937 ( MCMXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne (International Exposition dedicated to Art and Technology in Modern Life was held in 1937 in Paris The Turangalîla-Symphonie is a large-scale piece of Orchestral music by Olivier Messiaen. His opera Saint-François d'Assise requires three of the instruments. The composer's widow, Yvonne Loriod-Messiaen arranged and edited four unpublished Feuillet inedits for ondes Martenot and piano which were published in 2001[5]. Yvonne Loriod (born 20 January 1924, Houilles, Paris, France) is a French Pianist, and the widow of composer
Other composers included Charles Koechlin, Edgard Varèse (as a replacement for two Theremin instruments in his work Ecuatorial), Arthur Honegger, Darius Milhaud, Maurice Jarre, Antoine Tisné, Sylvano Bussotti, Marcel Landowski, Pierre Boulez, Tristan Murail, Henri Tomasi and Frank Zappa. Charles Louis Eugène Koechlin lɯi øˈʒɛn kœˈklɛ̃}} (November 27 1867&ndashDecember 31 1950 was a French Composer, teacher and writer on music WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section --> Edgard Victor Achille Charles Varèse, whose name was also spelled Edgar Varèse Arthur Honegger (March 10 1892 &ndash November 27 1955 was a Swiss Composer, who was born in France and lived a large part of his life in Paris. Darius Milhaud (darjys mijo (September 4 1892 &ndash June 22 1974 was a French Composer and teacher Maurice Jarre (born in Lyon France, September 13 1924). is a French Composer and conductor. Sylvano Bussotti (born 1 October 1931) is an Italian Composer of contemporary music whose work is unusually notated and often brings Marcel Landowski ( 18 February 1915 - 23 December 1999) was a French Composer, Biographer and arts administrator WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Pierre Boulez (pjɛʁ buˈlɛz (b Tristan Murail (born March 11, 1947 in Le Havre, France) is a French composer associated with the " spectral " technique of Henri Tomasi ( August 17, 1901 to January 13, 1971) was a French classical Composer and conductor. Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21 1940 – December 4 1993 was an American Composer, Electric guitarist Record producer and Film director André Jolivet wrote a concerto for it in 1947[6]. André Jolivet (8 August 1905 &ndash 20 December 1974 was a French composer The term Concerto (plural concertos or concerti) usually refers to a three part musical work in which one solo instrument is accompanied by an Orchestra Year 1947 ( MCMXLVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1947 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Bohuslav Martinů authorized the adaptation of his Fantasie to the use of the ondes Martenot when it proved difficult to perform on the Theremin, for which it was originally written. Bohuslav Martinů ( (December 8 1890 – August 28 1959 was a prolific Bohemian Czech Composer, who wrote six symphonies, 15 Operas This is a list of compositions by Bohuslav Martinů by category [7]
Estimates of the number of works written for ondes Martenot vary. Hugh Davies reckoned there to be around 1000 works composed for the instrument[8]. Hugh Seymour Davies ( 23 April 1943 – 1 January 2005) was a musicologist, Composer, and Inventor of Jeanne Loriod's figures are the more widely quoted: she estimated that there were 300 pieces of chamber music, including 14 concertos. Jeanne Loriod ( 13 July 1928 - 3 August 2001) was a French Musician, regarded as the world's leading exponent of the The term Concerto (plural concertos or concerti) usually refers to a three part musical work in which one solo instrument is accompanied by an Orchestra Jacques Tchamkerten's provisional catalogue of works for ondes, included in the current reprinting of Loriod's Technique, lists far fewer works than either of these figures[9].
In cinema and television
Its first use in the cinema was by Honegger for Berthold Bartosch's film The Idea (1930, score added 1934). Berthold Bartosch ( December 29 1893 - November 13 1968) was a film-maker born in Bohemia (now Czech Republic) Events Top grossing films Tom Sawyer Whoopee! Common Clay Check It was extensively used by composer Brian Easdale in the ballet music for The Red Shoes. Brian Easdale ( 10 August 1909 - 30 October 1995) was a British composer born in Manchester, England. This about is about the 1948 film The Red Shoes. For other uses of the term see The Red Shoes. It was frequently used in horror and science fiction movies and television, notably in the 1950s. Events Films of the 1950s were of a wide variety As a result of Television, the studios and companies sought to put audiences back in theaters British composer Barry Gray frequently used it in his scores for Gerry Anderson's television series, and film composer Elmer Bernstein incorporated the instrument into many of his works beginning with Heavy Metal, in 1981. Barry Gray ( July 18, 1908 in Lancashire England - April 26, 1984 in Guernsey, Channel Islands) was a British For a detailed article on collaborations with Sylvia Anderson see Sylvia and Gerry Anderson; the separated strands aren't working - GA is the common thread throughout Elmer Bernstein ( April 4 1922 - 18 August 2004) was an Academy and two-time Golden Globe award winning American Heavy Metal is a 1981 Canadian Animated film from executive producer Leonard Mogel who was also the publisher of Heavy Metal Events January 19 - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer acquires beleaguered concurrent United Artists. It was used to haunting effect by the composer David Fanshawe in the British television series Flambards. David Fanshawe (born 1942 in Devon, England) is an English Composer and ethnomusicologist. Flambards is a Novel by the English author K M Peyton. The book and its three sequels are set just before during and after The only anime composer who have used the instrument is Takashi Harada in the soundtracks of A Tree of Palme (2002) and, later, in Binchō-tan. (anime in Japanese, is a 2002 Japanese Anime Film, written and directed by Takashi Nakamura. (also Binchō-tan is a mascot character created by Mangaka and produced by game goods company Alchemist.
Other film scores using the ondes Martenot include Lawrence of Arabia (1962); Billion Dollar Brain (1967); Doppelgänger (1969); Ghostbusters (1984); A Passage to India (1984); Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988); Rising Sun (1993); Amélie, by Yann Tiersen (2001); Bodysong (2003), "There Will Be Blood" (2007), by Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead; La marche de l'empereur, by Emilie Simon, played by Thomas Bloch (first original version of The Emperor's Journey, or The March of the Penguins, 2005). Lawrence of Arabia is a 1962 Epic film based on the life of T The year 1962 in film involved some significant events Events Dr Billion Dollar Brain is a 1967 Ken Russell film based on the novel Billion-Dollar Brain The year 1971 in film involved some significant events Events February 8 - Bob Dylan 's hour long documentary Doppelgänger is a 1969 British science fiction film directed by Robert Parrish. The year 1969 in film involved some significant events Events Cannes Film Festival opens but closes in support Zuul redirects here For the videogame see Zool. Ghostbusters (titled on-screen as Ghost Busters) is Events The Walt Disney Company founds Touchstone Pictures to release movies with subject matter deemed inappropriate for the Disney name A Passage to India is a 1984 adventure - Drama film directed by David Lean, based on the novel of the same name by Tucker The Man and His Dream is a 1988 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Jeff Bridges which tells the story of Preston Events Michael Jackson 's first film was Moonwalker Top grossing films (U The year 1993 in film involved many significant films (For more about films in foreign languages check sources in those languages Amélie is a 2001 French film directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and starring Audrey Tautou. Guillaume Yann Tiersen (born 23 June 1970) is a French musician and composer known internationally for composing the score to the Jean-Pierre The year 2001 in film involved some significant events (For more about non-English films check sources in those languages Bodysong is a 2003 documentary about human life directed by Simon Pummell. The year 2003 in film involved some significant events Releases of sequels took place with movies like 2 Fast 2 Furious, The Lord of the Rings The Return There Will Be Blood is a 2007 film directed written and produced by Paul Thomas Anderson. 2007 saw major releases such as The Simpsons Movie, National Treasure Book of Secrets, Jonathan Richard Guy Greenwood (born 5 November 1971) is a BAFTA and Grammy -nominated musician and composer-in-residence for the BBC best Radiohead Thomas Bloch (born 1962 in Colmar, France is a prominent classical musician specializing in the rare instruments Ondes Martenot, Glass harmonica, March of the Penguins ( French: La Marche de l'empereur; literally The Emperor's March) is a commercially and critically successful The year 2005 in film involved some significant events Releases of sequels took place with movies like The Devil's Rejects, Cheaper The score of a A Tree of Palme also notably features the ondes Martenot. is a 2002 Japanese Anime Film, written and directed by Takashi Nakamura.
It is not however responsible for the female voice effects in the original Star Trek theme, despite many rumors to the contrary. Star Trek is a Science fiction Television series created by Gene Roddenberry that aired from September 8, 1966 through
In modern music
One of the first integrations of the ondes Martenot into popular music was achieved in the Quebec musical scene. Quebec (kwɨˈbɛk The two most popular Quebecois musical groups of the time, Beau Dommage and Harmonium, made extensive use of this instrument (introduced there by Marie Bernard) in each of their 1975 albums, respectively Où est passée la noce? and Si on avait besoin d'une cinquième saison. Harmonium was one of the most influential Progressive rock bands from Quebec. Events January 2 - New York City US District Court Judge Richard Owen rules that former Beatle John Lennon and his lawyers Si on avait besoin d'une cinquième saison ( If We Needed a Fifth Season) also known as Les Cinq Saisons ( The Five Seasons) is the second album Harmonium later toured with Supertramp and received several reviews of their work by English-speaking musical critics of progressive rock, who noted their use of the ondes Martenot. See also Supertramp (ecology and Alexander Supertramp Supertramp were a British Progressive rock band Progressive rock (often shortened to " progressive " " prog " or " prog rock " is a form of Rock music that evolved
Jonny Greenwood is often credited with bringing the ondes to a larger audience through Radiohead's Kid A (2000), Amnesiac (2001), Hail to the Thief (2003) and In Rainbows (2007) albums. Jonathan Richard Guy Greenwood (born 5 November 1971) is a BAFTA and Grammy -nominated musician and composer-in-residence for the BBC best Radiohead Kid A is the fourth album by the English Alternative rock band Radiohead, released on in the United Kingdom and on in the United States and Canada See also 2000 in music (UK Musical groups established in 2000 Record labels Amnesiac is the fifth studio Album by the English Alternative rock band Radiohead. See also 2001 in music (UK Musical groups established in 2001 Record labels Hail to the Thief (subtitled The Gloaming) is the sixth studio album by English Alternative rock band Radiohead, released on 9 June 2003 See also 2003 in music (UK Musical groups established in 2003 Record labels In Rainbows is the seventh album by the English Alternative rock band Radiohead. This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 2007 Greenwood uses the ondes Martenot often in his solo efforts, and has written a piece for the instrument, entitled Smear. In live concerts, Radiohead have used six ondes for How to Disappear Completely. Kid A is the fourth album by the English Alternative rock band Radiohead, released on in the United Kingdom and on in the United States and Canada [10] The ondes Martenot was also utilized by Bryan Ferry, in 1999, on the album As Time Goes By, and by Joe Jackson on his 1994 album Night Music. Bryan Ferry (born 26 September 1945 in Washington, Sunderland) is an English Singer, Musician, Songwriter and occasional See also 1999 in music (UK Musical groups established in 1999 Record As Time Goes By is an album by Harpers Bizarre. Track listing "Introduction/Cowboy" (Gene Bob Smith " Joe Jackson (born David Ian Jackson, 11 August 1954 Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire) is an English Musician and Singer-songwriter This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1994. Recently, ondist Thomas Bloch has toured in Tom Waits and Bob Wilson's show "The Black Rider" with Marianne Faithfull (2004–2006) and in Gorillaz leader Damon Albarn's show "Monkey: Journey to the West" (2007 onward). Thomas Bloch (born 1962 in Colmar, France is a prominent classical musician specializing in the rare instruments Ondes Martenot, Glass harmonica, Thomas Alan Waits (born 7 December 1949) is an American Singer-songwriter, Composer, and Actor. Bob Wilson is the name of Bob Wilson (footballer (born 30 October 1941 in Chesterfield England a former goalkeeper for Arsenal and broadcaster The Black Rider The Casting of the Magic Bullets is a self-billed "musical fable" in the Avant-garde tradition created through the collaboration of theatre Marianne Faithfull (born December 29 1946) is an English Singer, Songwriter, actress and Diarist whose See also 2004 in music (UK Musical groups established in 2004 Record labels This is a list of notable events in Music that took place in the year 2006. Gorillaz is a Virtual band created in 1998 by Damon Albarn of alternative rock band Blur, and Jamie Hewlett, co-creator of the Comic Damon Albarn, ˈdɛɪmən ˈɔːɫbɑːn (b March 23 1968 in Leytonstone, London) is an English Singer-songwriter who gained fame as the lead Monkey Journey to the West is a stage adaptation of the 16th Century Chinese novel Journey to the West, by Wu Cheng'en.
Playing technique
The ondes Martenot is unique among electronic musical instruments in its methods of control. [11] Maurice Martenot was a cellist, and it was his vision to bring the degree of musical expressivity associated with the cello to his new instrument. Maurice Martenot ( October 14, 1898 – October 8, 1980) was a French cellist a radio telegrapher during the first World The violoncello (abbreviated to cello, or 'cello, plural cellos or celli —the c is tʃ [12] The ondes, in its later forms, can be controlled either by depressing keys on the six-octave keyboard (au clavier), or by sliding a metal ring worn on the right-hand index finger in front of the keyboard (au ruban). The position of the ring corresponds in pitch to the horizontal location along the keyboard. The latter playing method allows for unbroken, sweeping glissandi to be produced in much the same manner as a Theremin. " Glissando " (plural glissandi abbreviated gliss is a glide from one pitch to another The keyboard itself has a lateral range of movement of several millimeters, permitting vibrati of nearly a semitone below or above the pitch of the depressed key to be produced. Vibrato is a musical effect produced in singing and on musical instruments by a regular pulsating change of pitch, and is used to add expression and vocal-like qualities to
By depressing keys or moving the ring, no sound is initially produced. A control operated by the left hand and situated in a small drawer of controls (tiroir) on the left side of the instrument controls the musical dynamics, from silence to fortissimo. This control (touche d’intensité) is glass and lozenge-shaped, and can be depressed several centimetres. The depth to which this key is depressed determines the dynamic level: the deeper, the louder. The manner in which it is pressed determines the attack of the note: quick taps produce staccato articulations, whilst more controlled and deliberate depressions are used to play legato.
The small drawer of controls also contains flip-switches to control the instrument's timbre. These function in much the same way as a pipe organ's stops can be added or removed. The pipe organ is a Musical instrument that produces sound when pressurized air (wind is driven through a series of pipes, controlled by a keyboard An organ stop (or just stop) is a component of a Pipe organ which admits pressurized air (known as wind) to a set of Organ pipes Its name Like organ stops, each switch has its own sound color which can be added to the chorus of other timbres. The 1975-model instrument features the following timbres:
| Onde (O) | A simple sine wave timbre. Similar in sound to the flute or ocarina. The flute is a Musical instrument of the Woodwind family Unlike other woodwind instruments a flute is a Reedless wind instrument that produces its The ocarina ( is an ancient Flute -like Wind instrument. While several variations exist an ocarina is typified by an oval-shaped enclosed space with four to twelve |
| Creux (C) | A peak-limited triangle wave. A triangle wave is a Non-sinusoidal Waveform named for its triangular shape Similar in sound to a clarinet in high registers. The clarinet is a Musical instrument in the Woodwind family The name derives from adding the suffix -et meaning little to the Italian word |
| Gambe (G) | A timbre somewhat resembling a square wave. A square wave is a kind of Non-sinusoidal waveform, most typically encountered in Electronics and Signal processing. Intended to be similar in sound to string instruments, as the French title would suggest. |
| Petit gambe (g) | A similar but less harmonically-rich timbre than Gambe. In Acoustics and Telecommunication, the harmonic of a Wave is a component Frequency of the signal that is an Integer The player can control the number of harmonics present in the signal by using a slider situated in the control drawer. |
| Nasillard (N) | A timbre resembling a pulse wave. A pulse wave or pulse train is a kind of Non-sinusoidal Waveform that is similar to a Square wave, but does not have the symmetrical Similar in sound to a bassoon in low registers. The bassoon is a Woodwind instrument in the Double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and Tenor registers and occasionally |
| Octaviant (8) | A timbre with a reinforced first harmonic whose intensity in the signal can be controlled by using a slider. This setting is analogous to the 4 foot stop in organ terminology. An organ stop (or just stop) is a component of a Pipe organ which admits pressurized air (known as wind) to a set of Organ pipes Its name |
| Souffle (S) | A timbre often described as white noise, but in fact pink noise of indefinite pitch. White noise is a random signal (or process with a flat Power spectral density. Pink noise or 1/f noise is a signal or process with a Frequency spectrum such that the power spectral density is Proportional |
In addition to the timbral controls, the control drawer also contains flip switches which determine to which loudspeakers (diffuseurs) the instrument's output are routed to. These are labeled D1 to D4.
| D1 Principal |
A traditional, large loudspeaker. |
| D2 Résonance |
A louspeaker which uses springs to produce a mechanical reverb effect. Reverberation is the persistence of Sound in a particular space after the original sound is removed |
| D3 Métallique |
A small gong is used as the loudspeaker diaphragm to produce a 'halo' effect rich in harmonics. |
| D4 Palme |
An iconically lyre-shaped loudspeaker, using strings to produce sympathetic resonances. The lyre is a stringed musical instrument well known for its use in Classical Antiquity and later Sympathetic resonance is a Harmonic phenomenon wherein a formerly passive string or vibratory body responds to external vibrations to which it has a harmonic likeness |
See also
The Electro-Theremin is a similar instrument, famous for being used in the song "Good Vibrations" by the Beach Boys. The Electro-Theremin, often called the Tannerin is an Electronic musical instrument developed by trombonist Paul Tanner and amateur Inventor " Good Vibrations " is a pop single by The Beach Boys. The Beach Boys is an American rock band Formed in 1961 the group gained popularity for its close vocal harmonies and lyrics reflecting a California Youth culture
Prominent ondes Martenot performers include Ginette Martenot, Jeanne Loriod, Thomas Bloch, Pierre Boulez, Cynthia Millar, Christine Ott, Jacques Tchamkerten, Jonny Greenwood, Jean Laurendeau. Jeanne Loriod ( 13 July 1928 - 3 August 2001) was a French Musician, regarded as the world's leading exponent of the Thomas Bloch (born 1962 in Colmar, France is a prominent classical musician specializing in the rare instruments Ondes Martenot, Glass harmonica, WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Pierre Boulez (pjɛʁ buˈlɛz (b Jonathan Richard Guy Greenwood (born 5 November 1971) is a BAFTA and Grammy -nominated musician and composer-in-residence for the BBC best
Jeanne Loriod's three-volume Technique de l'onde electronique, type Martenot (Leduc, 1987) is considered to be the standard reference work on the ondes Martenot. Jeanne Loriod ( 13 July 1928 - 3 August 2001) was a French Musician, regarded as the world's leading exponent of the It has a preface written by Olivier Messiaen. Olivier Messiaen ( December 10 1908 &ndash April 27 1992 was a French Composer, organist and ornithologist.
Video
- A large choice of ondes Martenot videos on Youtube
- Jacques Tchamkerten demonstrates ondes playing technique
References
- ^ Thomas Bloch: insert notes to Naxos CD 8. Naxos Records is a Record label for classical music Compact discs and DVDs Founded in 1987 by Klaus Heymann, a 555779 "Music for ondes Martenot", p. 9
- ^ Timeline of the Ondéa replica development
- ^ Extensive (21 pages) documentation on the Ondéa (Ondes Martenot replica)
- ^ Peter Hill and Nigel Simeone: Messiaen (Yale, 2005), p. 74-75
- ^ Bloch, p. 7.
- ^ Hilda Jolivet: Avec André Jolivet (Flammarion, 1978), pp. 188-190
- ^ Bloch, p. 8
- ^ New York Times 19/08/01: obituary of Jeanne Loriod
- ^ Jacques Tchamkerten: catalogue of works for ondes Martenot in Jeanne Loriod: Technique de l'onde electronique type Martenot, vol. 2 (Leduc)
- ^ video of "How to Disappear Completely", with 6 Ondes
- ^ Loriod, 1987
- ^ Jean Laurendeau: Maurice Martenot: Luthier de l'Electronique (Dervy Livres, 1996)
External links
- Keyboard Museum entry
- Thomas Bloch: ondes Martenot player website (pictures, history,...)
- Christine Ott: Ondes Martenot musician
- The presentation of Ondes Martenot C° Union des Enseignements Martenot
- Audities Foundation Model 6 Ondes Martenot
- BBC Radio 6 Music - The Great Bleep Forward
- The Ondes-Martenot at Obsolete.com - includes two audio excerpts from the Turangalila-Symphonie (Quicktime format). The Turangalîla-Symphonie is a large-scale piece of Orchestral music by Olivier Messiaen.
- Analogue Systems - sell an analog synth controller similar to the Ondes Martenot (commissioned by Jonny Greenwood) named "The French Connection".
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