The MIXTURE TRAUTONIUM, invented by Friedrich TRAUTWEIN, is
a very expressive two-strings electric instrument that produces
melodic, rhythmic sounds and special effects used to sustain
the new movies in the thirties. The mixture of harmonics produces
warm sounds.
The quality and expressive power of the trautonium seems to cover
the sound and expressive possibilities of synthesizers today.
Oskar SALA (1910-2002) reimplemented the Mixturtrautonium several times and has produced dozens of compositions. Sala was probably the only trautonium-player in the world. On this instrument he provided many films and radioprograms with conventional music and even non-conventional sound effects (like the scream in Hitchcock's film The Birds).
He introduced at the Klang Art Festival (1993) in Osnabrück never before released films about the trautonium.
Autograph
of Oskar Sala for me (1993)
Oskar Sala has published his historical survey My Fascinating Instrument in: B. ENDERS (ed), Neue Musiktechnologie. Mainz, Schott, 1993, p. 75-93.
Two years later at the Klang Art Festival 1995, Jörg SPIX (University of Oldenburg, D) presented his digital version of the trautonium, using the famous alternative program MAX (for Macintosh computer).
Doepfer releases the new trautonium. Look at P-ART JOURNAL #41(<click).
P.S.
Soon I hope to integrate in this Journal page a short, personal and unique video excerpt SALA PLAYS THE TRAUTONIUM.
©P-ART
back to P-ART JOURNAL index
back to the general index of the P-ART PARADISE site