Clara Rockmore, the legendary violinist and thereminist, a pioneer of electronic music, died at age 87 on May 10, 1998. Born Clara Reisenberg into a Lithuanian Jewish family in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on March 9, 1911, she showed a remarkable talent for music early on, studying the violin with renown teachers and graduating from the famous Saint Petersburg Conservatory at the age of 15. In 1925, her family emigrated to the United States, where Rockmore became a socialite, performing for the elite of New York City -including President Franklin D. Roosevelt. In 1939, Rockmore and her sister, pianist Nadia Reisenberg, were approached by Russian inventor Leon Theremin with his newly created electronic musical instrument, the Theremin. Struck by the possibilities of the instrument, Rockmore dedicated 16 years to mastering it, becoming the undisputed queen of the Theremin, performing worldwide until her early retirement due to repetitive stress injuries in 1956. Rockmore's skillful performances and her compositional use of the Theremin captivated listeners and earned her recognition of being one of the greatest and earliest interpreters of electronic music. She is survived by her husband, Robert Rockmore, and their daughter, Nina Weisman.