Lausanne 2020

The “special” academy in Switzerland. Inspired by and often in collaboration with the famous N/O/D/E festivals and the HEMU/EJMA music schools, it has its very own unique character and attires Thereminists from the whole world.

Teachers

Venue

The academy will be held at Pôle Sud, Avenue Jean-Jacques Mercier 3, 1003 Lausanne, Switzerland

Program

This academy will be held in collaboration with the Lausanne Music School for Jazz and contemporary music (EJMA).

On Sunday, after the academy, City Club will host a concert of Carolina Eyck & Contre Champ Orchestra as a closing concert (booking & payment via City Club)

Important: For people who only want to partake in the Open.Theremin v3 building and Open.Orchestra workshops on Sunday 02/02/2020 in the morning, a special “Open.Only” formula exists. If you are interested in that, don’t read the following paragraphs (these don’t apply to you), but scroll directly down to the registration form at the end of the page and select the corresponding option.

Common activities for all registered participants

(included in the package fee if not otherwise mentioned)

• Common dinner on Friday night (Cheese Fondue) in a nearby restaurant ⁽¹⁾
• Workshop: Carolina Eyck introduces the Theremin and shows and demonstrates her actual setup for improvising on the Theremin and singing with Ableton Live and Surround sound at the EJMA
• Common evening on Saturday night with pizza, beer, wine, and soft drinks ⁽²⁾, including a round table discussion with Carolina, Coralie, and Thierry where you might ask all your questions around the theremin, and a demonstration of new piezo technologies by the French Musical Saw expert Alexis Faucomprez who will also act as DJ in the later evening
• Open.Theremin Orchestra workshop conducted by Thierry, where all participants will play together, either with their newly built open.theremin or with their own instruments, followed by the…
• Final student’s concert where those participants who want might share their creations and progress with everybody

⁽¹⁾ Everybody pay their own restaurant bill
⁽²⁾ Pizza is included, drinks are available at very moderate cost from the Pole Sud’s cafeteria.

Options which might be booked individually “à la carte”

(the detailed pricing of the options is listed in the registration form)

· Individual Theremin lessons

à 45 min. can be booked with Carolina , Coralie, and Thierry

· Workshop Theremin & Synth

Coralie, assisted by Alain Gillièron, CEO of the WaveLicker company, will first explain the principle of interfacing between the theremin and modular synthesizers, using CVs and Gate signals. Then, the participants will realize and try out efficient patches in practice. (90 min.)

· Chamber music class

Conducted by Thierry, we will work on an arrangement of Caccini’s Ave Maria for 3 Theremin voices and electric bass. We’ll also prepare a little support for the Open.Theremin Orchestra (see above). (3 x 45 min.)
Important: Participants who sign up for the chamber music class will receive the sheet music 10-14 days before the academy starts and are expected to practice in advance, so that we can concentrate on the playing together during the rehearsals.

· Build your own Open.Theremin V3

The Open.Theremin, based on a theremin shield and an Arduino UNO is a concept of Swiss engineer Urs Gaudenz. As an open source project, many contributors around the world have brought the v3 to new heights. The participants will build their own instrument assisted by Coralie and Alain. Following the built, the participants will get an introduction in elementary playing techniques by Thierry. (180 min., all materials like Open.Theremin v3 shield, Arduino UNO, etc. are included in the workshop price)

· Theremin Service

As usual, Thierry is also there to optimize the internal tuning of your Theremin or to upgrade your Etherwave Standard/Plus with the famous ESPE01 module. For other repairs and actions, please contact Thierry beforehand in private, so that he might carry the needed tools and parts with him.

Information for participants

What you will need to bring with you

• Theremin
• Cables
• Amplifier
• Music stand
• Theremin stand

(In case you can’t travel with an amplifier and/or a theremin stand, please contact us before registering. In most cases, a solution can be found.)

You will most probably need a wall plug adapter, since these are quite different in Switzerland. The mains voltage is 230V, though.

Please try to be present during all days of the academy, so that we might schedule lessons and classes without constraints.

Stay and food

Participants book their stay traditionally at the Lausanne Guest house, or via AirBnB. Food can be found either in one of the little shops and restaurants in the nearby “Flon” shopping mall, or in one of the restaurants in the city which is at a 8 minutes walking distance. There is also a cafeteria directly in the Pôle Sud building, open at specific hours, offering coffee, beer and soft drinks.

Registration

1060 people have already signed up!

The Academy is fully booked, no more registrations are possible!