“When integrated sound came to the cinema, many theaters fired their musicians and stopped showing silent films,” writes Kendra Leonard in Thursday’s (11/29) NewMusicBox. “Some accompanists … have tried to recreate the accompaniments that audiences would have heard in the 1910s and 1920s. Others, however, [argue] that today’s audiences have heard so much of this pre-existing music already that common musical gestures and tropes have become saturated with meaning that can interfere with first-time viewers’ experiences seeing silent film. So they compose all-new scores or improvise new scores for each film. Organist and pianist Ben Model, who serves as the resident film accompanist for the Library of Congress and the Museum of Modern Art, writes, ‘Avoid playing recognizable music if you can help it.’ … Model improvises most of his performances…. Composer and performer Andrew Simpson … in his new scores for old movies … works in an early-20th century idiom, using piano, clarinet, cello, and other instruments.… He too avoids pre-existing music… The Alloy Orchestra describes itself as ‘a three-man musical ensemble, writing and performing live accompaniment to classic silent films.’ … The Orchestra creates evocative and original scores that … are new and thoughtful and always interesting.”
Posted December 5, 2018
