By Aaron Wolf, Musicopia Musicopia is a nonprofit organization that works with approximately 100 of our region’s professional musicians to present a wealth of music education programs and it is also dedicated to restoring and improving in-school music instruction throughout the Greater Philadelphia area.

On Wednesday, February 22, 2012 the Temple Performing Arts Center teamed up with Musicopia to present magical music to over 500 children from the Philadelphia area.  “The Magical Music of the Theremin” performed by Kip Rosser, one of the most accomplished thereminists in the country, discussed the history of the Theremin, as well as the magical science behind its workings.  Children from the General George Meade School, Henry R. Edmunds Elementary School, Joseph C. Ferguson Elementary School, and Tanner Duckrey Elementary School made their way to the Temple Performing Arts Center to watch a presentation by Kip Rosser.  Kip has been involved in Theremin performances for over 12 years and has managed to gain industry recognition throughout his award-winning compositions. Originally trained in theatre, Kip has a way of really capturing his audience through his excellent storytelling skills and sense of humor. Kip began his presentation with a humorous demonstration of how the Theremin works and eventually playing his instrument along with the popular song “Hey Soul Sister” by Train. This dazzled the children, as they had never heard any sound quite like this before.

The Theremin was invented between 1919 and 1920 and is one of the world’s youngest instruments and is still the only instrument in the world that can be played without touching it. The instrument creates sound using an electromagnetic field. With only a wave of a hand, the player can disturb this field, creating a pitch. This pitch can be varied in terms of volume and frequency depending on how close the player’s hand is to the electromagnetic field.

The Temple Performing Arts Center and its staff knew very little about the Theremin musical instrument before seeing Kip Rosser’s presentation.  His presentation before an audience of over 500 children was simply amazing.  The presentation ended with a stunning drum line performance by students from the Meade School.  The children were in awe.

Musicopia dedication to teaching young students about the wonderful world of music really paid off on Wednesday morning February, 22, 2012.