Samuel Hoffman

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Samuel Hoffman was an American theremin player, born in 1903 in New York. At the age of fourteen he was already playing the violin professionally and leading nightclub and society orchestras under the stage name Hal Hope. In the early 1930s he received an RCA theremin from 1929 as payment of a debt. In 1936 he had a nine-piece swing orchestra in which he played both violin and theremin. Later he became a podiatrist and in 1941 moved his practice to Los Angeles. That is why he was often called Doctor.

Music and breakthrough

His big moment came in 1944, when the composer Miklos Rozsa wanted a theremin in the film music for Alfred Hitchcock's Spellbound. Hoffman turned out to be the only thereminist in the musicians' union register who could read music. The score won an Oscar. After that he played on the music for The Lost Weekend, The Spiral Staircase and later on science fiction films such as The Day The Earth Stood Still. That music was also used as the title theme of Lost in Space.

Influence

With the bandleader Les Baxter and Harry Revel he recorded Music Out of the Moon in 1947, according to the source the best-selling theremin record ever. The sequel Perfume Set to Music from 1948 reached first place on the Variety chart, and in 1950 followed Music For Peace Of Mind. These records are regarded as precursors of exotica and space age pop. Sun Ra recorded a piece of it for his first album. One of Hoffman's last recordings was Safe as Milk by Captain Beefheart. He died in 1967.

Listening

Discography

Studio albums

• 1947Music Out of the Moon
• 1948Perfume Set to Music
• 1950Music For Peace Of Mind

In School of Rock

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• The Dream Factory: Film Reel 5^NL Reader