Moog’s Claravox Centennial modernises the Theremin for its 100th birthday

This year marks the 100th birthday of Leon Theremin’s eponymous invention, and to honour one of history’s earliest electronic instruments, Moog has announced the Claravox Centennial, a modern take on the classic instrument.

• READ MORE: Vintage Rewind – Theremin

The Claravox Centennial gets its name from one of the original instrument’s virtuosas – Clara Rockmore. While the hand-made instrument keeps a strong vintage flair, under the hood, it’s been endowed with a host of new features, including a smooth bucket-brigade delay and MIDI compatibility.

Switchable between Traditional and Modern performance modes, the Claravox Centennial is described by Moog as its most versatile yet. Players can select between classic heterodyne analogue oscillators or multi-mode DSP ones with sine, triangle, saw and wavetable options. You can also make use of assignable scales, pitch quantisation and select octaves if you’re not quite as pro as you’d like.

For even more sonic character, the Claravox Centennial culls the same wave-shaping circuit from the brand’s Etherwave Pro, and introduces an analogue bucket-brigade delay, capable of producing warm, spiralling echoes.

With DIN MIDI, USB and CV connectivity, the Claravox is also able to integrate with DAWs, and play well with other sound sources.

Above all, the limited-edition instrument is just a pleasure to look at, especially when you consider its rich history. It can be heard in films such as The Day the Earth Stood Still and Alfred Hitchcock’s Spellbound, and even provided the sounds that would accompany Neil Armstrong on the first trip to the Moon.

Hear the instrument in action below:

The limited-edition Claravox Centennial is available to pre-order now at $1,499. A matching walnut instrument stand, as well as a left-hand configuration of the instrument, are also available to order.

Learn more at moogmusic.com

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