Music in the early age film

1. Music in early sound film

2. Submitted to –
Amit Mallik
Course Teacher
“202- Sound and music for television and
film”
Department of television and film studies
University of Dhaka

3. • Submitted by –
• Shadman Sadab – 21
• Mohammad Maruf Hossain- 25
• Nafisa Hossain – 26
• Immanuel Shovon Mondol – 22
• Abu Rayhan –17
• Hasnat Ashik – 28

4. SILENT FILM AND SOUND FILM
• A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound
especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for
entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted
gestures, mime and title cards.
• A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound,or
sound technologically coupled to image.
• Intertitles- Those cards between moments of action
contained explanations of action or important moments of
dialogue.

6. Introduction
• Before films talked they still made themselves heard through inter titles and musical
accompaniment.
• Also by the 1920 silent film music had reached an aesthetic pinnacle: very subtle
emotional and plot nuances could be conveyed without the use of any accompanying
dialogue.
• The primarily steps in the commercialization of sound cinema were taken in the mid to
late 1920. At first the sound films incorporating synchronized dialogue- known as “
talking pictures” or “ talkies”.

9. The reasons why music in sound filmcame
• To soothe ghostly effect on its viewers
• To exorcise fear or help the spectator absorb the shock.
• To neutralize the noise of the primitive projectors .
• Music is the rhythm of the film as an art of movement .

10. Significance and function
• Expression through music.
• Expressing action .
• Play a more integral and influential role.
• Reduces monotony
• To gain more popularity and to connect with audience .
• To be more economically successful .

11. Device soundin earlyfilm
necessity for device sound –
1.To enhance drama: by adding title music we can enhance drama or
emotion of scene
2.facing failure to express without no sound: where visual fail to
communicate with audience, there sound play great rule to understand
the scene.
3.showing reasons.
4.pictorially justification.

12. Approaching device sound
• There are two ways to approach –
1.Constant background music in films : London primary objection
to background music in film was based on the notion prevalent among
filmmaker at that time, the music for a film must emanate from some
special source on the screen-the source music just discussed . This attitude
is reflected in London's complaint that background music is used "where
there could be no possible justification for it, either in the form of an
orchestra playing behind the action of the film or of a radio instrument
appearing in the picture".
Form this 1935 perspective, of course, London's could not foresee the
sensitive and artistic use of music behind dialogue scenes.
2.No music: sometimes there are no music in the scenes . Actually it
reveal great music.

13. DEVICES usedin early film
• 1. microphone : used for recording dialogue, ambient sound or any kind of sound.

14. orchestra : for happiness , loveliness.

15. • 3. Piano – joy, happiness and peace .
• 4.Flute-

16. Banjo
Tuba

17. SaxtromboneS

18. contrabass
clarinet

19. • violin : use of happy and joyous scenes
• Alto clarinets:for wedding and any kinds celibration
• Sarengi: use of pathos
• saxthormbones

20. Psychological Impact
Helps the audience where to focus

21. Creates mood and connects to emotional event

22. Provides the implicit meaning of
the script
Silence creates fear ,
tension and suspense

23. MUSIC creates a mood of sadness . Joy and love also

24. Fast music creates rapid action in our mind

25. Slow music soothes our mind

26. Music addresses to a place that is not present in the
screen

27. Music reminds us of a
space or a person
Heightens senses

28. Sudden noise and music creates panic

29. Music with extreme vibration and bass to create ghostly effect

30. Music can cover up weak direction
and cinematography

31. Ambient
Sound

33. Diegetic sound
Non Diegetic Sound

34. Diegetic sound and non diegetic sound

35. Optimistic belief & the use of original opera:
Dividing the film into acts and adding music during intervals to give more
effects and fulfilling mere purposes.
Adapting old operas for the screen To adapt existing operas for
arias, duets, ensembles ,finals, dance, marches to mutilate either screen
action or the music itself.
To create and develop its own forms out of typical screen action,
combining its different laws of space ,time and motion with constant music
laws with the help of film opera.

36. Raw realism and talkies :
With the new raw realism of the talkies
which meant only there were actual
musicians playing in the screen.
• Using music very sparingly
• Using dialogue and sound effects

37. Source music:
Music emanating from a clearly visible musical
source on the screen. In the Blue Angel Café the
stage band accentuates the action realistically even
to the extent of their music starting and stopping
with the opening and closing of doors as characters
approach the stage area. Thus the source music was
handled cleverly in numerous films those days.

38. Theme songs:
Was sensitive example of this genre
Having own songs adding little title in the way of
artistry to the film
To advertise the film by gaining popularity
Enriching the production company
For economic reason

39. Sound montage:
In the early 1930s there were
some interesting experiments
attempted in “sound montage”.
Sound montage is essentially
constructing films according to the
rules of music.

40. •For making perfectly synchronized so that the time of the cutting and time of music
would correspond exactly.
•Visually rhythmic montage: montages related with the shape of the music. the shape
include time, rhythm, counterpoint, the melodic curve, vigour, and faintness, crescendo,
and decrescendo, accord and discord, harmony and discord
.
•Using a particular music for a particular characteristic of a thing.
•Involving filmic expression of time and rhythm.
•Synchronized cutting from one shot to another in time and rhythm with music.
According to Borneman, “prevent the spectator from becoming tired by the excessive
short cutting which the quick rhythm of music logically demanded.”

41. Sound used in the early days documentary & Avent Garde Film:
There were few significant scores written during this period belong to the documentary and avent garde film.
A fine example is Joris Ivens documentay “New Earth”.
•The score by Hanns Eisler is based on what is by today”s film music standards
•Machinery in the film is represented by natural sounds and men by music.
•It was highly notable because of its success in putting Eisler”s highly individualistic compositional style
In Avent Garde Film:
L”Idee is an avent garde film of that time with an imaginative score by the Frenc h composer Arthur Honegger.
•He uses an electronic instrument called the Ondes Martenot.
•It has high degree of synchronization of music to action at that early date.

42. Expressing time and rhythm :
An idea used to express time and rhythm with film was the moving of
camera itself. They used panning, traveling and flying camera shots to show
things not only from usual angles but Borneman claims to interpret theirs
inner sense and value by musical movement times and rhythm, for
example, could now be expressed by horizontal and vertical to-and- fro
movements; crescendo and decrescendo by approaching and creating the
camera. The melodic curve by corresponding curve movement of the
camera slow motion and ultra rapid motion were used to represent musical
time variation ;fade in and fade out for musical increase and decrease ; one
turn one picture for syncopation ; prisms for accords ; composition shots
and double exposure for various short of harmonies and discords.

43. London's objection :
London's primary objection to background music was
based on the notion, prevalent among the film makers at
that time, the music for a film must emanate from some
musical source on the screen the source music just
discussed .This attitude is reflected in London's complaint
that background music is used where there could be no
possible justification for it, either in the form of an
orchestra playing behind the action of a film or if a radio
instrument appearing in the picture .London seems
strangely upset that as we watch a film we don't quite
know whether to listen to the words or the music.

44. Why background music :
Background music tells the viewer something in the
film capable of telling.
Background music help to improve a fundamentally
weak scene through the addition of music. The
particular practice had never ceased in the film industry
and every composer is forced to deal with it.

45. Side effects :
There was one unfortunate side effect created by the rush to sound in films
which caused an economic disaster for musicians working in movie houses
.With the sound and music permanently affixed to the film, there was simply
no need for musicians to be employed in the individual theatre exhibiting films
.As a result, thousand if musician were thrown out of work. this sudden
economic shock to so many musicians us still being felt today and is
manifesto in the antagonism of the musicians toward any form of record
music. This antagonism and fear quickly found its way onto the Hollywood
recording stage, as seen in 1937 New work Times report. The musician union
says that half of the 'B's and nearly all of the quickies are made without benefit
of an orchestra. Track is taken from the library and added to the picture.

46. Development of musical department:
As the realization of the need for music in films grew, the film studios develop
their own music departments .During most of the early period of sound, no
person composed an entire film score for a picture. Instead the scoring of a
picture was a group effort on the part of several individuals.
.

47. • Critic Lawrence Morton point out that these scores of the early 1930s were
created not by individual composers but by a music staff working under the
supervision of a music director. They collaborate in a practical way by using
common thematic material and employing one or another of the currently
fashionable styles -the neo-Gershwin for instance, the western folk, or the
Wagner -Strauss symphonic

48. Who got the credits:
It should be also pointed out that the composers of these "paste-pot
and scissors " scores, as Morton characterizes them seldom receives
screen credit for their work. Instead, it was the music director of the
studio who received screen credit for the music
There were exception to this as in Stagecoach and Union Pacific, where
the multiple authorship was given on the screen.

49. Difficulties
[] Many directors were disturbed as they were able to express feelings visually.
[] Because of noisy cameras, camera movements were compromised.
[] Specially composed and synchronized music were needed.
[] No scope for dubbing & re-recording.
[] Due to technical disadvantage, the musicians had to be very careful.
[] Unnecessary justification of music source.
[] Filmmakers & composers had to learn a new discipline.
[] Inserting songs broke the attention of the spectators.

50. [] Microphone quality was poor.
[] Created problems and frustrations for the composer
[] Difficulties to set up the entire orchestra and vocalists on the set day and nigh
[] Bear huge expense
[] Some failure in the box office
[] Took more time for recording

51. Popularity
[]People want to get rid of the monotonous film music
[]It was easy to communicate with people through music
[]People want to be entertained
[] Popularity of musicals decreased.
[]Public lost interest on talkies without music

52. Conclusion:
A new era of film began with the talkies. So, there had been difficulties naturally.
Overcoming them was the great part. That’s the reason behind today’s succession of
film.

53. Have a nice day