Dorit Chrysler, born as Dorit Kreisler, is an Austrian born thereminist, composer, producer, and singer. She is the co-founder of the New York Theremin Society and started America's first school for theremin, "KidCoolThereminSchool". She has performed with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra and is featured on the soundtrack of the HBO documentary Going Clear. Dorit has written the soundtrack for "M - A City Hunts a Murderer" by David Schalko and is the founder of "Dame Electric Festival." Dorit curated Theremin100, a compilation featuring 50 international Theremin Artists to commemorate the Centennial of the Theremin in 2020. Her works have been commissioned for MoMA, Venice Biennale etc. Promoting the use of theremin in contemporary music styles, she has collaborated with Trentemøller, Lene Lovich, Dinosaur Jr., Marilyn Manson, Mercury Rev and Gordon Raphael of The Strokes, Electro Indigo. She has performed at Lincoln Center, Palais Tokyo, the Louisiana Museum, Coachella, Roskilde Festival, Konzerthaus in Vienna and CBGB.
Biography
Chrysler was born in Graz and spent her youth in Austria. She sang with the children's choir of the Opera Graz as a child, and studied Musicology at the University of Vienna. Chrysler moved to New York, where she worked as a musician, founding the band Halcion. She has collaborated with artists including Elliott Sharp, Swans, Anders Trentemoeller, ADULT., Max Romero, Cluster, Chicks on Speed, and Baby Dee. She has performed and recorded as a solo artist since 2000. During this time she discovered the theremin. She has since performed worldwide, including Brazil, Australia, Japan, China and Russia. In 2005, Chrysler and Suzanne Fiol co-founded the New York Theremin Society. Chrysler's musical style consists of electronic pop music, cinematic and experimental compositions. Wall Street Journal hailed her a "Futuristic Lotte Lenya". Paper magazine described her as the love child of Marianne Faithfull and Nikola Tesla, "with Jane Birkin as the nanny and Björk as the wayward Girl Scout leader." Her music has been used in TV, movies and video art, including "Riget" by Lars von Trier and "A Vicious Undertow" by Jesper Just. She is the producer and curator of the 10 piece Theremin Orchestra at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, CA. Recipient of permanent residency at Pioneer Works, Center for Art & Innovation and a grant of the Knightsbridge Foundation.
