Theremin Fever

In the 1930's, America was taken by storm by a Russian musical instrument called the theremin. The theremin was one of the first electronic instruments and was invented by Leon Theremin. A user could control the volume and pitch of the instrument by placing his/her hands at different spots between two metal poles. Moving your hands changed the sound because different positions interrupted the electric flow at different points. The theremin was considered one of the easiest instruments to play but one of the hardest to play well.

During the late 20's and early 30's, Theremin was sent on an international tour by the Soviet government to promote his instrument. It worked as the concept was picked up by RCA for a considerable sum. The ulterior motive for Theremin's visit is where this story takes a strange twist. The Soviets successfully used Theremin as a spy. His contract with RCA gave him some interesting insight on many of their more strategically useful projects.

In 1945, Theremin created a secret listening device called The Thing. The Thing was placed in a wood carving of the Great Seal of the United States and presented to the U.S. Ambassador as a "gesture of friendliness" by a group of Soviet schoolchildren. The bugged seal sat in the ambassador's office for seven years before being discovered by the CIA. It later became a key piece of evidence in the hearings following the U-2 incident.