Film Music: The Material, Literature and Present State of Research Author(s): MARTIN MARKS Source: Journal of the

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Film Music: The Material, Literature Present State of Research

and

MARTINMARKS

/. The Material From the time of the first public demon stration of a Lumiere CinSmatographe, forwhich a pianist is said to have impro vised an accompaniment, until today's wide-screen features with their multi has always been music MARTIN MARKS
at Harvard channeled, tape-recorded

for motion pic

scores,

there

is a doctoral candidate

a and is completing University on music is for silent films. He dissertation in Music at MIT. His article on film Lecturer in The Quar Notes: music appeared originally Associ of the Music Library terly Journal ation 36 (December and was 1979): 282-325, as the awarded by that journal recognition best article-length by a young bibliography scholar in 1979.

tures.1 The pictures have fostered an abundant and rich variety of music making, which for more than eight decades has affected us in ways both simple and subtle. Yet most of us have a very poor knowledge of what filmmusic is all about. Why should there be this dis crepancy? Why are the facts of film music not widely understood? Why should Peter Odegard, in a review of two ref recently published musicological erence works, have to take both to task for all but ignoring film music, "the most widely dispersed repertoire being performed today, and hence in its pecu liarway, themost influential"?2 The answer, first of all, derives from the nature of the medium. Because film com

Copyright? 1982byMartinMarks.
To anyone with a sense of Note: Author's history, three years will not seem to be much time; but in our fast-motion century, it is time several important additions enough to witness I have to the literature of film music. These into this reprint. Insofar tried to incorporate of as it was the discussion both possible, recent been were inventors and Louis Lumiere August the first to project motion for pictures within the Salon Indien of public amusement, the Grand Cafe on the Boulevard des Capu

any more fundamental way than this. The pur it pose of this reprint is not so much to make to a au courant, as it is to make it accessible Three different readership. years ago I was for allowing to William McClellan, grateful now I am in this survey to be published Notes; chance

have and the bibliography literature several minor brought up to date. Also, corrections (and I hope a few improvements) the I did not see Yet have been made. in the article necessity, just yet, of altering

28 December to cines, Paris, 1895, according The Behind the Screen: Kenneth MacGowan, and Techniques of theMotion Picture History presence in many of a pianist at the premier is asserted infor books, few give more specific but Oscar Messter, who premiered during October 1896, wrote

(NewYork: Dell, 1965),pp. 80-81. Although the

mation; films in Berlin (1936):

which I to reach a new audience ?one cur the many hope will join me in charting ad research. rents of film music Corrections, on this article may be ditions, and comments sent to me c/o Kirkland Cambridge, University, House C-13, Harvard MA 02138.

indebted to Timothy Lyons, forgiving it the

Diss. rung des Tonfilms," Friedrich-Wilhelm, Berlin 1944, p. 3. 2Review of the Dictionary of Contem ed. John Vinton (New York: porary Music, Music, Martin VoL X:

kein ?ffentichen Filmvorf? ? ohne Begleitmusik" cited by Konrad bis zur Einf?h "Film und Musik Ottenheym, rungen

his autobiography Mein Weg mit dem Film

"Ich kenne

in

Dutton, 1974) and The New Oxford History of

Journal The Modern Age, 1890-1960, ed. in (London: 1974) Oxford, Cooper the American of Musicological

Society 19(1976): 155.

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(at least potentially) through a of visual and auditory conjunction music requires signals, research into film an understanding of not one but two non verbal systems of communication, as well as the problematical jargons with which we attempt to describe each of them in speech. In this age of specialized studies, few scholars have been able to master more than half of the subject. Those in film have been preoccupied with the of its history and broad essentials theory, with the result that music has been granted mostly cursory con sideration.3 The subject also stands on the periphery of musicology. That disci pline, little older than film itself, has em phasized the historical study ofWestern fine-art and folk idioms, along with the ethnological study of music in other cul tures; relatively little attention has been given to recent music in the professional and popular idioms?the idioms through music usually communicates.4 which film Even as musicological attention to recent municates
music

Film music is indeed a peculiar subject, not only because it straddles two disci its material plines, but also because poses many problems for the researcher. This is a point that even Odegard ap parently overlooks. Through his choice of words he associates filmmusic with con cert music as comprising a "repertoire," from which (presumably) selections are "performed." Between these two kinds of
music,

share remains minimal. The reference works reviewed by Odegard are good ex
amples;

grows,

moreover,

film

music's

textbooks bring up film music, they do so to mention a respected composer's only venture into the filmworld.5 Otherwise, this peculiar hybrid idiom is ignored.
better at 3But music has fared somewhat as than historians, the hands of theoreticians in the chapter "Music," in Siegfried Kracauer's

and more

generally,

when

music

tion must be made: unlike concert music, filmmusic does not usually come out of, or go into, a repertoire; it exists only as an accompaniment to a film. (One may, however, speak of a repertoire of ar music for concert use, rangements of film sheet music sales, soundtrack albums, and so on.) Furthermore, since the inven tion of synchronized sound, film music has been heard not in continuous live per formance, but through mechanical repro ductions of many fragmentary perform ances assembled by recording "engi neers." In other words, there not only is no repertoire of film music, there also are no "pieces of film music" at all?only with music photographical pieces of film,
ly or electromagnetically inscribed on a

however,

fundamental

distinc

band alongside the image. The primary material of filmmusic, both for the audi
ence

ing or a score, but the film itself.

and

the

researcher,

is not

a record

Theory ofFilm: The Redemption ofPhysical Reality (London:Oxford, 1960),pp. 133-56;for

see nn. 40-43. other examples, these idioms in defines 4Charles Seeger as a Func Process "The Music Compositional

pp. 16-30. Speech about Music," American Music: 5As in Daniel Kingman's A Panorama (New York: 1979), in Schirmer, film scores of Copland, Bernstein and which are discussed. V. Austin's William Thomson in the 20th Century Music (New York: Nor un names the following indexes ton, 1966) der "film music": Auric-Cocteau, Chaplin,

of California Press, 1977), University Angeles: to pp. 139-67. On the problems of using words see his "Speech, and describe Music, music,

and in Itself a Nest tion in a Nest of Functions a revision of a 1966 essay in his of Functions," in Musicology and Los Studies (Berkeley

thus appear that for scholarly inquiry into filmmusic to advance, film ought to be studied with music at the center of observation rather than on the this is far from an easy periphery?but thing to do, at least when inside a thea ter. As we view a film, our minds must contend with the ever-changing content of the moving image and the soundtrack. The individual elements (not just music, but also lighting, camera angle, editing, and so forth)are submerged into the flow of images on the screen. Hence the en grossed audience rarely perceives these

It would

Eisler, Copland, haud, Prokofiev, sky.

Hindemith, Shostakovich,

Mil Honegger, and Stravin

JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATION XXXIV, 1 (Winter OF 1982)

elements consciously; it is simply carried along by the stream of sights and sounds. The film-viewing experience is in some fundamental sense a passive one; yet film study, like the study of any subject, re quires an active state ofmind. This prob lem has been formulated inmany ways, but perhaps never more eloquently than in his profound by Walter Benjamin study of "The Work of Art in the Age of primarily concerned with the political implications of twentieth-cen tury art, contains this illuminating pass age on the psychology of filmperception: Let us compare the screen on which a filmunfolds with the canvas of a paint ing. The painting invites the spectator to contemplation; before it the specta tor can abandon himself to his associa
tions. Before the movie frame he can Reproduction." That essay,

in ?likewise hending all there is in a film remembering just what has been seen and heard after leaving a theater. One must find other ways of taking the film in. For example, it helps both to see a filmmany times over and to see many films,because repeated viewing dulls the "shock effect" of the medium. One can also use special viewing machines such as
movieolas, which

Mechanical

while

frame analysis. (Indeed, such machines can be said to convert a film into a suc cession of paintings that "invite the spec tator to contemplation.") Finally, one can consult supplementary materials: scripts for the filmand for themusic, cue sheets,
scores, and recordings.

facilitate

frame-by

not do so. No sooner has his eye grasped a scene than it is already hamel, who detests the filmand knows nothing of its significance, though something of its structure, notes this
circumstance as follows: "I can no changed. It cannot be arrested. Du

Of course, all of these materials lead us away from the film as we normally (are meant it toward to) experience inadequate substitutes. "Films cannot be studied in any other way than by seeing them," Raymond Spottiswoode cautions students; "Nothing effective in film cor responds to the text of a play or a musical
score."7 The

longer think what I want to think. My thoughts have been replaced by

moving images." cess of association The pro spectator's in view of these im This consti

ten language can adequately transcribe what the camera sees and themicrophone hears. The film text is, in fact, as another writer has put it, an "unquotable text."8 Yet scholars need these other materials,
whether

point

is well

taken.

No

writ

ages

is indeed interrupted by their

sudden change.

mind.6 Film's

tutes the shock effect of the film, which, like all shocks, should be cush ioned by heightened presence of
to our contem

constant,

min has shown, seeing a film and study ing a film can be very nearly antithetical plements help bring them together. each of these noncelluloid Moreover, items has some unique value of its own
for research. experiences, and the above-named sup

deficient

or not.

For

as

Benja

faculties, advises plative Benjamin, should be countered by a "heightened presence of mind." For the purposes of film study, however, such mental preparation may not suffice. Even the most attentive (in the analytical sense) viewer has great difficulty in compre
6The essay first appeared in the Zeits V (1936); the trans chrift fur Sozialforschung. lation by Harry Zohn is in Benjamin's Il ed. Hannah Arendt luminations, (New York: 1969), p. 238. Schocken,

ability

"arrest"

Of all these materials, scripts are the most widely used. They are of two differ ent kinds.9 (1) The preproduction or shooting script guides the making of a
Grammar of the Film: An Analysis of rev. ed. (1950; reprinted. Technique, and Los Angeles: of Cali Berkeley University fornia Press, 1969), p. 3. 'The Unattainable Bellour, 8Raymond Screen 16 no. 3 (1975): 20-cited Text," by Claudia in "Vigo/Jaubert," Gorbman Cine 1, no. 2 (1977): 65-80. Tracts,

Film

JOURNAL

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1 (Winter 1982)

film.Like a musical score or the text of a play, it provides a set of directions for a performance, but with an important dif ference. Scores and play texts are always required to determine each performance pleted, the shooting script loses its original function. (Itmight be said that a film always is given an identical "per formance"; and this peculiarity dis tinguishes it from the older dramatic arts.) Thus, like an architect's blueprints or a composer's sketchbook, the script documents one or more stages in the making of the work. In retrospect it helps to clarify the writer's contribution to this, the most collaborative of arts.10 (2)The postproduction script, usually as sembled by someone other than the film maker or writer, aids in the close analy sis of a film's structure. Publications of this kind have been criticized for falling far short of what is desirable. For ex ample, when Vlada Petric reviewed all the texts in the Simon & Schuster series of Classic and Modern Film Scripts, he found that "no less than 90 percent of their breakdown of visual and auditory
structure less" is useless is for too inaccurate, film serious strong and therefore study."11 a word. Even "Use the anew; however, once a film has been com

pass themselves offas plays or novels (or still worse, "novelizations") instead of as what they really are: inadequate but necessary transcriptions of what we see
and, to a lesser extent, hear.

The cue sheets that composers use are much less widely known than scripts, but in principle they are little different, be ing a kind of setting down of sequences from a film in shorthand. Their function, however, is quite special: to link the music to the rest of the film. In the silent period cue sheets provided a series of suggestions formusic to be used in ac companiment, "cued" to the titles and ac tion on the screen. (These will be dis cussed further below, as part of the literature of filmmusic.) Sound film cue sheets, normally prepared by a film's the action, "music editor," describe dialogue and (some) sound effects of scenes for which the composer is to write music. Often the composer works solely from these cue sheets after first viewing the film; hence, they become important clues to the compositional process, tell ing us what details the composer thought
deserving of musical emphasis.12

memories. push

vaguest of scripts can be preferable to on frequently unreliable reliance

Petric for more is right, accurate however, publications. to

Often details from cue sheets are copied into scores of film music, as an aid to the This combination of cue sheet and score may actually provide a more detailed transcription of (segments from) a film than does a script. By themselves, how search. In the silent period a score was like a Platonic "ideal." That is, it was shadowed more or less faithfully in each theatrical cave, with fidelity to the text dependent upon such matters as the number of musicians available and the taste of the music director. Indeed, most silent filmmusic consisted of improvisa tions and compilations of preexistent
pieces. see Original scores were unusual 12For examples of sound film cue sheets, the manuals of Dolan, Hagen, Skiles, and Skinner listed at the end of this article. (N.B., inmost cases in the notes I give only abridged references for books devoted to film music; are given in the Bibliography. full citations Section III.) ever, scores pose certain problems for re conductor during recording sessions.

There are too many scripts that try to

9The distinction veil, "Screenwriting." comes The from Roger Intermtional Man En

p. 449. best ideas may not 10But even the writer's to Gore Vidal; be written down, according inHollywood, he citing his comical adventures in involved the serious difficulties illustrates the answering New Movies?" the "Who Makes question York Review 25 of Books, November 1976, pp. 35-39. to a Visual Film History u"From a Written Cinema Journal Film History," 14, no. 2 (1975): 21. This issue is given over to a "Symposium on the Methodology of Film History," spon of Film Federation sored by the International inMontreal, Archives 1974; in the "Transcript of Discussion," pp. 47-64, several participants challenge Petric's point of view. 6 OF THE UNIVERSITY

cyclopedia ofFilm (New York: Crown, 1972),

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1 (Winter 1982)

was

(though we do not really know how un usual, since no attempt at a count has been made). As Charles Berg has noted, the very concept of an "original score"
ambiguous, since many a score said

to be "original" was actually a mixture of new and old music "composed by" (read "arranged by") a compiler.13 In short, music for the silent film was a detach sound film music, on the other hand, is an integral part of an unchanging sound track,with the performed score attached unambiguously to the film.But the value of the score as a tool for study is dimin ished somewhat by the film's integral character. With the exception of the cue sheet transfers mentioned above, scores tell us only about a film'smusic, without indications of simultaneous dialogue and sound effect. As of yet no very satisfac tory method of transcribing a whole soundtrack has been found, any more than has a method of transcribing film
images.14 able, ever-changing accompaniment;

are usually abridged and limited tomusic alone; and (3) they go rapidly out of print and into a highly expensive collector's market.15 It should be noted that film composers often prefer recordings such as these, simply because they allow the most important music to be clearly heard. For scholarly purposes, however, the most desirable recordings are the studio originals, comprising both the separate components of a soundtrack and the final "mixed" version. The accessibility of all these materials is at present a serious problem. Only scripts and soundtracks have been issued in any great number (with the drawbacks al ready noted).16For the most part scripts,
cue

Only recordings can provide us with inte gral soundtracks. Unfortunately, most
commercial soundtrack

motion

accurate in their own way as script publi cations. The problems with such albums are (1) themusic has often been newly ar ranged or recorded (inwhich case the al bum is now usually dubbed an "original an
picture "motion score" ?"original"

albums

are

as

in

scattered in private collections, libraries, and film studios, often uncatalogued. To track any of these items down for a parti cular film requires inordinate amounts of money and time. The studios, moreover, have allowed a great deal ofmaterials to be lost or destroyed. They are still the first place one should inquire, but there is every possibility that the door will be closed to the researcher or that the shelf will be empty. The picture is dark, to be sure, but the materials are not altogether invisible. At least some studios seem more and more to make their holdings disposed
available. ample, Warner now Bros.'s scores, at for ex are

sheets,

scores

and

recordings

are

being
genuine

ambiguous
picture

term);

(2) even

again

soundtracks"

sity of Southern California and can be

consulted by the serious scholar. More

on deposit

the Univer

13See Charles Berg. of the Investigation Motives to Accompany for and Uses ofMusic the American Silent 1896-1927 (New Film, York: Arno, 1976), p. 158. 14Marie-Claire Ropars-Wuilleumier's "The Disembodied Voice: India Song," Yale French no. 60 (1980): 241-268, Studies the analyzes film's first nine shots with a detailed side words image and sound good recent example of tracks of what by "tableau" side ?a both

over, many archives and libraries have shown themselves increasingly sensitive to thematter of film music. The two lead in Movie Music Albums,"High Fidelity (July
McCarty's Published Screen ^ee Ken Sutak, "The Investment Market

can

and cannot takes up the convey. Gorbman and various of transcription attemp problem in "Vigo/Jaubert" (n. 8); in my ted solutions survey of the literature below, I shall refer to one of those attempts, & Huntley by Manvell inThe Technique (1957). ofFilm,Music JOURNAL OF THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO

plays: A Checklist, Seriff Series [of]Bibli

no. 18 (Kent, Ohio: and Checklists, ographies Kent State University Press, 1971), lists 388 films, with an introductory survey of the his tory

1972): 62-66. "Clifford

of screenplay in Manvell, publications; (n. 9), lists seven complete "Screenwriting" of films. shot-by-shot analyses XXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982) 7

ASSOCIATION

ing institutions in this regard are the Museum ofModern Art inNew York and the Library of Congress. The former con tains a very large collection of silent film scores, and both silent and sound film scores can be found in abundance at the latter. At this very moment at the Library of Congress a project is under
way to

career

will

be

stored.20

on microfilm the many scores deposited in the Music Division and in the Copy right Office (one of the great "archives" the of twentieth-century music) ?with hope that studios and composers will be to make further large encouraged deposits.17 Other significant collections can be found at the Free Library inPhila delphia18 and at the following univer sities: California (Los Angeles), Califor nia State Oregon, (Long Beach), Southern California (USC), Wisconsin, and Wyoming.19 Of these, USC should be singled out for having taken a significant step forward: the creation, in 1976, of the Memorial Alfred Newman Library, not just scores but all the where
pertinent to that composer's

collect,

catalogue,

and

preserve

What is still greatly needed is a large scale film music archive.21 Although there are now more than eighty film ar chives around the world,22most of them are not capable of fulfilling this need. Their limited budgets are marked for the preservation and study of films, not film music. Inevitably, their holdings reflect
this bias.23

strive

the only feasible approach may

for a "web" archive:

Thus,

for many

years

to come

be to

network of studios and institutions like those named above. The idea may seem far-fetched, but it is not inconceivable, given the loose bonds which already link the American Film Institute to the Library of Congress, and the world's ar chives into an International Federaton. Undoubtedly progress will be made, for there is an ever-strengthening tendency to take films seriously in all their as
pects?as historical

a cooperative

materials

sociological phenomena, and as works of art. Scholars have written recently of an "explosion" in film study.24 The larger
context is the explosive growth and

documents,

as

contact the project, music reference librarian at Gillian Anderson, Collec the library; see also "Early Film Music Title of Congress," Main tions in the Library the Entr'acte by Recording (published Society) 2, no. 2 (1976): 8. in the "Film Music iaSee Arthur Cohn, 17For information Fleischer Philadelphia," (1948): 11-13. Collection Film of the Free Music Notes of Library 7, no. 3

on

21See Robert the Score ? Fiedel, "Saving Wanted: Film Music A National Archive," American Film 3, no. 1(1977): 32, 71. 22These are listed in the International Film Guide, (London: Tantivy 1979, ed. Peter Cowie Press, 1978), pp. 400-404. An excellent, though now dated guide to several important Ameri can archives and libraries is "Our Resources Film Quarterly for Film Scholarship," 16, no. 2 (1962): 34-50. 23To cite one example: chive (est. 1935), though has and oldest, largest films. only half a dozen collection of the Museum quired over many years, the British among obtained Film Ar

20Page Cook in "The Sound (1976): 369-72.

assesses Track,"

the Newman Library in Review Films 17

Tele 19See the lists in Motion Pictures, A and Radio: Union vision, of Catalogue in the and Special Collections Manuscript Harris ed. Linda Western United States, Mehr (Boston: G.K. Hall, 1977)-the only book in have been film music in which holdings of California some recent acquisitions dexed; are men of Congress State and the Library

the University recently acquired Young included are sketches Steiner; library of Max all of his film scores, as well as for virtually Exten and personal memorabilia. scrapbooks can be of silent film music sive collections of the Seymour Theatre found in the archives at Princeton (the "Valva Collection"), Library and #176). the Music Library at Yale (collection

tioned in Notes

33 (1977): 577-79. Brigham

the world's scores for

its longstanding tradition films with live music.

The extraordinary of Modern Art, ac is largely a result of of screening silent

of Film "The Explosion 24Roger Manvell, Encounter Studies," 37, no. 1 (1971): 67-74; "The Jean Visual The Cohen, Explosion: of Film Literature," Growth Choice (March 1973): 26-40.

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change within the medium itself.What was at the turn of the century a crude,
lower-class entertainment has become a massive

and a conglomerate industry. Likewise film music has been transformed from the tinny piano accompaniments of "in to the "Dolby visible" pit musicians
Stereo" scores of "star"

medium,

a connoisseur's

fine art,

on film music, with the notable ex ception of a few penetrating articles by critic Lawrence Morton. [From the tribution to, and view of, the litera ture will be discussed below.] Certainly filmmusic is a neglected art. Both scholars and audiences have paid it less than its due, partly for reasons con sidered in the first part of this article.
Nevertheless, "Foreword," p. xiii; Morton's own con

an

idiom that makes

concert works,

use

composers

?in

of popular
commer

cialized and genuine folkmusic, synthe sizer, and sitar. Films and theirmusic are both peculiar hybrids, and far from easy to work with. As we look into them, we find ourselves confronted by materials that seem to withhold as much infor mation as they give. Ifwe push further, it is because, like Benjamin, we feel the urge to come to grips with the work of art in the age of mechanical reproduc tion. In order to smooth the course of in quiry, I now propose to examine how others have wrestled with filmmusic's recalcitrant materials, to see what they
have written.

songs,

jazz,

//. The Literature Is there a literature? The tendency has been to suppose not. Thus a recent book on filmmusic is called A Neglected Art (New York: New York University Press, 1977), and at the outset author Roy Prendergast puts forward a case for his title: This book is the first attempt at a comprehensive look at the history, esthetics, and techniques of filmmu sic. Seldom in the annals of music history has a new form ofmusical ex pression gone so unnoticed. While the use of music to accompany film is a relatively new phenomenon, begin ning in the last decade of the nine teenth century, its relatively new ap pearance should not have precluded a body of intelligent and perceptive writing on the subject. The fact remains, however, that there is no such body of critical literature
JOURNAL OF THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO

that the subject has gone "unnoticed" in print ismisleading. There is in fact an ex tensive literature on the subject that be comes, after a bit of sifting, an "intelli and literature. gent perceptive" However, it is far from easy to come by, and this is one reason for its own neglect. Books on filmmusic pass speedily out of print, while articles lie scattered and buried in ephemeral or out-of-reach jour nals. The bibliographies that seek to resurrect them are equally obscure, besides being much too error-prone, and far from comprehensive.25 Also, the literature has been neglected in the sense that no one has written much about it. There are only two surveys, and each is so brief that it can only point at some
sources in passing.26

Prendergast's

assertion

The following survey also does its share of rude pointing at selected items. It is written, however, with a different end in view: to chronicle some of the most im portant methods and tendencies of film music research. (It has been limited to
Jr.'s excel 25See, however, Win Sharpies, lent compilation of sources in Cinema Journal

cited with other ft978), principal bibliographies intheBibliography,Section I.

fifty mainly "Film Music: Geduld's A Sur Review 1 Studies of Film vey," Quarterly to (1976): 186-204, is an uncritical introduction a few books on music and also and musicals, soundtracks. to consult I have been unable of the literature Helman's in survey Alicja Kwartalnik filmowy no. 2 (1961), but her study works; Harry of "Probleme in Film," Film der Musik (Frank furt) 5 (1964: 687-707, contains very thoughtful of much theoretical discussion literature. 26Zofia Lissa's film," in Aesthetik cites about 9-16, "Literatur ?ber der Filmmusik den Ton (1965), pp. theoretical

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sources inEnglish, French, German, and Italian; discographies and filmmusicals have not been considered.) The resultant "montage" of long shots and close ups, it is hoped, will clarify the principal pat terns of thought that have been inspired by this "new form ofmusical expression." The process of recording sound photo electrically alongside an image on a single strip of filmwas not adopted for commercial use until the late twenties. Before this time, despite various at tempts to synchronize sound and film mechanically, the movies were mostly silent, accompanied by live music.27 As has already been noted, this music was not all of a piece; it consisted of improvi and original sations, compilations, scores, mixed inmany ways. The tens of thousands of theaters across Europe and America varied enormously in size and decor, and in the number and types of were musicians employed.28 There
amateurs and

tally as new an art as playing from a figured bass had been three centuries earlier. And just as in the baroque period there accumulated a large number of books written to guide players in the choices they had to make, in the silent period a literature developed that was designed to aid in the preparation of an the first This was accompaniment. of literature of film music: a mass materials fulfilling a variety of practical
functions.

Its first functionwas to guide musicians in the selection of music for individual films. It was to this end that beginning in 1909 the Edison Company, a leading film producer, printed brief "Suggestions for Music" for its weekly film rentals in the The suggestions Edison Kinetogram.
were

chestras. Rather like musicians of the baroque period, these silent filmplayers enjoyed a great deal of freedom to realize their music according to talent and circumstance; for though "playing to
pictures" opera owed

organists,

small

professionals, ensembles,

pianists, or and

followed suit, and "cue sheets," as they came to be called, remained in use until In the demise of the silent film.29 general, rather than name specific pieces of music, which musicians might not have owned or been able to play, early cue sheets specified only a tempo, or mood,
or kind tion of music on screen.

welcomed,

other

companies

century traditions of theater music from

to pantomime, it was fundamen

something

to nineteenth

could then either improvise something appropriate or, if time permitted, select a suitable piece to fitthe cue. As publishers
for such

to the situa appropriate The forwarned player

27The most the history

recent

extended sound

discussion is Geduld's

of

Jolson

The Birth of the Talkies: From Edison

of synchronized

to

dy?music, they began to bring out an thologies containing assorted popular selections (often favorites, classical tal" pieces of cinema music. They also brought out indexes of their music geared for use by the cinema player. That is, as the cue sheets ?by mood,
sketches the early history of cue ^Berg sheets in his Investigation (to about 1915) five (1976), pp. 102-12; Hof mann reproduces newly "arranged"), and original "inciden

"suitable"

sensed the growing need

?and readily han

Indiana University (Bloomington: some of the reviews 1975). Kurt London Press, used in the silent period devices experimental in Film Music to achieve synchronization (1936), pp. 66-70: see also Samuel Music "The Mechanical Makers," Peeples, in Films

Review 24 (1973):193-200.
Dennis

(London: Hugh Evelyn, for Movies Buildings The Best Remaining 1969) and Ben M. Hall's Movie Palace

are film theaters 28Two books on silent and Other Palace Sharp's The Picture

Seats: The Story of the Golden Age of the

Bramhall (New York: House, it gilds is much the less technical; but reveals more the subject with nostalgia, of the in the most about music splendid 1961). Hall's "palaces."

in Sounds (1970), and for Silents examples Max Winkler his own important role explains in their development (though he was not, as he their "inventor"), in "The Origins of claims, Film Music," Films in Review 2, no. 10 (1951): in Limbacher, Film Music 34-42, reprinted (1974), pp. 15-24.

10

OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

dramatic

In this sense they constitute the first typologies ofmusic for film. (For an anno tated list of representative publications, see the Bibliography, Section II-A.) Cue sheets, anthologies and indexes all helped in the preparation of accompani ments, but they tell us nothing directly about how the accompaniments were to be played. Some information of this kind might be included in an introduction, however, as inErno Rapee's Encylopedia (1925; reprint ed. ofMusic for Pictures New York: Arno, 1970). In fifteen highly compressed chapters, the author (famed
as

situation,

tempo,

and

so

forth.

the period (and, more throughout broadly, about the nation's musical cul
ture).

the conductor at New York City's Capitol Theatre) gives detailed advice on such as the kinds of music ap matters propriate to the various film genres, the uses of the organ, and ways to organize
and rehearse theater

a composer

of original

scores,

and

as

Rapee introduction was an offshoot of a second branch of silent film literature (see the Bibliography, II-B), ofwhich the principal function was to advise players on both What and How toPlay for Pic tures. This was the title of an early little manual written by Eugene Ahern in in Twin Falls, 1913, and published Idaho ?far away from New York and quite different in tone from Rapee's
much later work. Ahern's advice is

orchestras.

The

On a smaller scale, one finds similar in formation begin to crop up in one of the fledgling industry's most important trade weeklies, Moving Picture World. The earliest volumes of this magazine, founded in 1907, contain advertisements formechanical instruments, anthologies of music, and specially compiled and composed scores. From 1909, alongside advertisements there appear editorials, letters, and articles calling for the im provement of music; and in the next year, a column of advice on "Music for the Picture."30 This column, which ran for more than eight years, published sample cue sheets and addressed itself to many problems: the types ofmusic appropriate for various film genres; whether a piano, organ, or orchestra was preferable; the place of sound effects in an accompani ment; and the value of special scores. Of ten the editors ran letters on these mat ters from across the country. In this way the column?and others like it ?became national forums on filmmusic, drawing together thousands of isolated musicians (like Eugene Ahern) who welcomed the
chance their Cue to communicate with others of profession.31 sheets, anthologies, columns, and

geared to the small town pianist. He stresses not to call attention to oneself by playing too loudly, not to change the music too often in the course of the pic ture, but to be sure to vary one's playing from week to week lest audiences get
bored.

Manuals such as Ahern's were the first books on film music. They multiplied rapidly, and were addressed variously to pianists, organists and conductors. Often instruction in music they provided on all levels from the rudiments theory, to advanced har of reading music indication of the great mony?one from of musical practice disparity theater to theater. Their principal value to us perhaps consists precisely in this disparity: they convey all kinds of in
formation about performance practices

handbooks all first appeared at very nearly the same time (around 1910). The of a literature sudden development seeking to improve music in the theater, by example and advice, is a phenomenon partly to be explained in economic terms
on film music were 30The first editorials Musical End" and Accom "Musical for Moving Pic Pictures," Moving paniments "The

Louis

ture World 5 (1909): 7-8 and 559. The first column of "Music for the Picture," ed. Clar ence Sinn et al., is in 7 (1910): 1227, and the last in 39 (1919): 1359. Important early articles are Reeves 8 "Jackass Harrison, Music," 124-25, and W. Stephen Bush, "Giving to the Drama," 9 (1911): Expression other

(1911): Musical 354-55.

31See Berg's account of this and columns in Investigation, pp. 112-23. ASSOCIATION XXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

JOURNAL

OF THE UNIVERSITY

FILM AND VIDEO

11

? as in these words from the editorial introduction to the first column of "Music for the Picture": "The demand for good music is such that it is now as much of a rivalry between exhibitors to brag of their good orchestras as it is of bragging of [sic] the quality of their pictures."32 The sentence, despite the grammatical lapse, makes sense. At the time, theaters were growing rapidly in number and size. Pictures were becoming both more "The popular and more respectable. growth of picture houses in America in the period 1910-20 was phenomenal. 'Movie Madness' pervaded society, and by the middle of the decade it has been estimated that 25,000 picture theaters were in use and the average daily attend ance was in the region of six million people."33 To compete for the widening installed audience, theater managers spectacular organs, expanded their or chestras and musical shows, and hired one of a theater's selling points (just as specially composed scores were often used to promote important films like The
of a Nation). managers better musicians. "Good music" became

much

greater

dramatic

effect.35

Better compilations were the object of the period's most sophisticated and wide and Erdmann ranging book: Hans Giuseppe Becce's Allgemeines Handbuch der Filmmusik, edited by Ludwig Brav, in two volumes (Berlin: Schlesinger, 1927). Erdmann, Becce, and Brav all had composed for silent films, and cam paigned for improvement of musical practice.36 The Handbuch was the culmin ating synthesis of their efforts. Its first volume is given over to an essay, unique in the literature of the period, surveying the theory, history and techniques of film music "Vom Atelier bis Theater." The second volume contains a "Thematisches Skalenregister," or index, which follows the most elaborate system for cate gorizing musical moods ever attempted of in this kind of literature. Music several publishers is included, with
abundant cross-references from one cate

Birth

and

tition,

film music

In response to compe became entrepreneurs

gory to another. In its attempt to be so systematic and comprehensive, theHand buch surpassed all earlier indexes and manuals. It opened a door to altogether
new

and

its

literature

thrived.34

It continued to thrive until the end of the silent film. Cue sheets and manuals be came more detailed and sophisticated, (like anthologies more encyclopedic Rapee's). At the same time, musicians within the trade and critical observers fromoutside never ceased to ponder how to "reform" filmmusic. Various kinds of reformwere envisaged: the introduction ofmore "classical" music into the theater (with better playing), more original scores, and better systems of compilation whereby the music would produce a World 7 (1910):1227.
32J[ohn] M. B[radlet], Moving Picture

much

which no one at the time passed through. It was an unusually complex book, and published too late in the day to have
impact.

kinds

of research

?a

door,

however,

"Music for 35See, e.g., Carl Van Vechten, the Movies," in Music and Bad Manners (New K. 1916), pp. 44-54; Sherwood Knopf, "Where 'Movie Needs Playing' Musician (June 1920): 8, 29, and Reform," B?hlitz, Richard Musical wanted "Music and the Cinema," Holt, Times 65 (1924): 426-27. Van Vechten a new kind of music, but he was very York:

Samuel L. theatrical entrepreneur, of Motion "The Belasco Rothapfel, 10 (1911): 796-98. Presentations,"

p. 70. 33Sharp, The Picture Palace, contains Picture World many ^Moving a correlation that establish articles early on; see especially account of James S. McQuade's the budding career of the silent film's greatest ("Roxie") Picture

accom the value of playing classical as a means to educate the young; lambasted all movie music, nearly with kind words only for an original score (film not named) by Eugene Goosens. 36Becce was the most of the prominent of a number of original three, as composer scores of the popular and an Kinothek thologies; his career is traced by Hans Thomas in Die deutsche (1962), pp. 81 Tonfilmmusik paniments and Holt 83. Music indexed and by Herbert literature of all three authors Birett in Stumm-Film is

unspecificas towhat kind it shouldbe; B?hlitz

stressed

musik (1970).

12

OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

The year 1927 marked the phenomenal success of The Jazz Singer. The silent film then entered its twilight phase, and synchronized sound began its triumphal rise. Within a few years, silent films, along with their musicians, had slipped
into obsolescence. No

the music and literature of the period were mostly forgotten.37 The transformation was more in the nature of a slow "dissolve" than a quick "wipe." For a time silent and sound films shared the screen, and also music. Many of the early "talkies" were given continu ous synchronized accompaniments little different from those which had been heard in silent theaters. (Except for the sung portions, Louis Silvers' score for The Jazz Singer is very much in the tradition of silent film scoring.) The quality of recorded sound, however, was at first much inferiorto livemusic. Hence, some deplored the "symphonic hurly burly" created by the sound film; as late as 1929, film critic Harry Alan Potamkin could still assert that the best way to combine "Music and the Movies" was to use live chamber ensembles rather than
synchronized orchestras.38

longer

functional,

tablish principles governing sound.39 A trio of Russian filmmakers? Eisenstein, the tone Pudovkin, and Alexandrov?set with their brief manifesto-like "State ment on the Sound Film" of 1928: "The first experimental work with sound must be directed along the line of its dis tinct non-synchronization with the visual image."40 They were disturbed by the prospect of an excessively literal use of sound ?its use, in other words, merely to confirm things already visible on the
screen ?because such mechanistic

chronization threatened the theory and practice of montage as it had been de veloped during the twenties. Though more minded than progressively Potamkin, these writers, too, felt their loyalties divided. In subsequent films, however, they left the esthetic of silence behind, and Eisen stein and Pudovkin continued to amplify and revise their ideas inmany books and articles.41Parallel to their efforts,Rudolf Arnheim published his theory ofFilm als Kunst, a complex work with a complex section on sound. He incorporated some of theRussians' terminology ? using such
is Marian 39The phrase Hannah Winter's, in the Sound Film," in "The Function of Music 27 (1941): 153. Winter cites Musical Quarterly as an example Guido Bagier's Der kommende Film: eine Abrechnung und eine Hoffnung

syn

Potamkin

was

one

of the writers

who

re

mained loyal to the silent film. Indeed, theorists their had based many reasoning on the premise that the medium was purely a visual one, and sound seemed to them to be a blemish on that purity. But there were many others who welcomed the transformed medium with enthusiasm. Sound triggered "an avalanche of manifestos," full of prophe
cies, speculations, and attempts to es

1928). Cf. Verlag-Anstalt, (Stuttgart: Deutsche in Thomas's overview the sources summarized of the time "Zwischen Stummfilm und Ton film," Die deutsche Tonfilmmusik, pp. 11-17. i0Zhisn Iskustva, 5 August the 1928; is from Sergei Eisenstein's translation English trans. & Film Form: Essays in Film Theory, New ed. Jay Leyda York: (1947; reprinted. Harcourt, n.d.), pp. 257-60. of Eisenstein's 41See the Bibliography in English in The Film Sense, trans. writings & ed. Leyda (1947; reprinted. New York: Har ? and in the same book, court, 1970), pp. 269-76 for Alexander music the essay on Prokofiev's

North American Review 227 (1929):301-7; on

publishers, for the Movies" "Music is the first article on film music to appear in this journal ?one ex forth a ample of how the sound film brought new literature from new quarters and quarter lies; for others, see nn. 44,52, and 53.

370n the plight Maurice Mermey,

of silent film musicians see "The Vanishing Fiddler," "Origins" (n. 29).

^Musical Quarterly 15 (1929): 281-96.

see Winkler's

"Form and Content: pp. Practice," Nevsky, 155-216. Vse velod Pudovkin's essays from the in Film and thirties are gathered Technique rev. Film Acting, trans. & ed. Ivor Montagu, ed. (1958); reprinted New York: Grove, 1970). as a Principle of Sound See esp. "Asychronism Film" and Image," of "Dual Rhythm pp. 183-93 and 308-316. Sound and

OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATION XXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

13

words

as "contrapuntal" for sound ? but also wrote "asynchronous" uses of of more "naturalistic"

and in favor sound.42

stressed Like Arnheim, Bela Bal?zs film's naturalistic character when com bined with sound, in his own treatise, Der Geist des Films; and he even fore accom saw the day when musical would become naturalistic paniments
too: a stract phonies from ab music" made "program into and natural sounds, "sym of noise."43

From 1928 to 1929,most of the articles in Die Musik appeared under the general heading of "Mechanische Musik"?that is, the music of phonograph, radio, and film.45This mechanical music was the product of what Paul Valery called a
"new

That intimacy, it seemed, had brought forthpowerful new sources of patronage

and creative stimulation. Much ex

intimacy

of music

and

physics."46

citement was generated in the musical world by films of all kinds, and it spilled
over into print.47 Soon, however, dis "Erreichtes Naturlichen (1930): Zur Frage der und Erreichbares: im Tonfilm," 22 Klangwiedergabe Biermann, 473-74; and Franz Benedict

All four of these writers, as well as others whose manifestos have nearly vanished into the settling dust, kept their discussions ofmusic abstract. They were not musical professionals, like the writers of silent film manuals and the compilers of anthologies; they were film makers and theorists, whose knowledge of music appears not to have been very deep. (Bal?zs, however, had written the Bluebeard's Castle.). Yet it is libretto for interesting to observe how many writers who were musically educated adopted a in Europe and similar style?especially especially in the periodicals Die Musik and Melos. From the year 1928 to 1933 these two journals brought out a very large amount of filmmusic literature by musicians; and much of it floats on the same abstract plane as the literature
cited above.44

"TonfilmundMusik," 24 (1931):250-54.From
Melos, Film," musik "Der see Hanns Gutman Tonende "Der "Film 7 (1928): 163-66; Hans Luedtke, 7 (1928): 166-70; Becce, und Kunst," oder Illustration Film und die Musik:

Komposition,"

7 (1928): 170-72; W. Mechback, zur Filmmusik," 8 (1929): 24 "Grundgedanken zum "Grundsatzliches Raskin, 29, Adolf 8 (1929): 249-51; Grono Klangfilmproblem," der Musikanwen "Die M?glichkeiten stay,

und Tonfilm: Organi "Kinoorchester 9 (1930): 247-50, der Filmmusik," sationsfragen 11 (1932): 404-6; and "Filmstil und Filmmusik," aus der and Leonhard F?rst, "Filmgestaltung 12 (1933): 18-22. Musik," "Mechanical 45Cf. Constant Lambert, Ho! and the Cinema," Music (New Music, York: Scribners, 1934), pp. 256-68. (See also n. London, 56). "La de the 46From essay Conque*te toute la musique avant (in De lubiquite," in Valer chose, 1928), trans. Ralph Mannheim (New York: Pantheon, 1964), p. y's Aesthetics from this essay cites a passage 225; Benjamin at the head of his own (n.6). of the 1928 and 47See, e.g., these reviews where Music Baden-Baden Festivals, were scores films with many avant-garde "Film und Musik: screened: Heinrich Strobel, 1929 den Baden-Baden 7 Melos Versuchen," "More Fun, (1928): 343-47; Oscar Thompson, Less Music," Modern Music 6, no. 1 (1928): 38 "Die Baden-Baden Kammer 40; and Strobel, 8 (1929): 395-400. Other re musik, 1929," Melos on Der are: Hans Mersmann inMelos views Zu

dung in Tonfilm," 8

(1929): 317-18; Kurt

in 42See the section on "The Sound Film" trans, (from Film als Kunst, 1930) L.M. Film, Morrow Ian F.D. and (London: Sieveking 1933), pp. 201-208. Faber, in Der Geist des Films 43See "Tonfilm," 1972), pp. (1930); reprinted. Frankfurt: Makol, sicht first book on film, Der 142-85. Bal?zs's des Films oder die Kultur bare Mensch, (Vienna: Deutsch-?sterreichische Verlag, a brief section on "Musik 1924) also contains ins Kino," pp. 143-44; ideas from both books in revised are incorporated, form, into Theory and Growth Character of a New of the Film:

(1952; reprinted. New Art, trans. Edith Bone York: Dover, 1970), pp. 194-241. theoretical 44The following are the most Ali Weyl-Nissen, from Die Musik: articles einer des Tonfilms ?Versuch "Stilprinzipien Grono 21 (1929): 905-7; Walter Gundlegung," der Gerauschanwendung stay, "Die Technik 22 im Tonfilm," A. (1929): 42-44; Lion, 14 JOURNAL OF THE UNIVERSITY

on "Vier Tonfilme," 10 (1931): 371-72; and Lon Ein Tonfilm mit Musik don on "LArlesienne: von Bizet," 11 (1932): 53-54. For a very good to of the avant-garde's discussion approach both in the late silent and early film music, FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATION XXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

blaue Engel 9 (1930): 188; H[ellmuth] G[otze]

appointment set in, as music's place within commercial films dwindled. The public's attention was directed toward talkies full of talk but not much music, and toward musicals full of song and dan ce. (In fact, the two categories overlap ped, since songs were apt to be inserted into any kind of film,no matter how awk ward the context.) By 1931, moreover, the public's appetite formusicals was ex hausted; and their decline in popularity coincided with the general abandonment of accompanimental music.48 (One rationale for the spreading silence was that in the "naturalistic" context of the music was as out of place as sound film, the stylized, exaggerated gestures and facial expressions of silent film actors.) Owing to this downward turn of affairs, when musicians wrote about music they dwelt mostly on the exciting, exceptional examples of creative use of sound, and on the theoretical future rather than on the immediate present. Of the movies as they were, they had formed a pretty low
opinion.49

in the following year Hollywood granted it official recognition with the in stitution of the Academy Awards forout and
standing scores.50

Recognition of a more inquiring kind was at the first International granted (ICM) in Florence, Congress of Music 1933, where a session was held on "La e il film."51 This marked the Musica beginning of a new outpouring of litera ture across all of Western Europe. A special issue of La Revue Musicale was devoted to "Le Film Sonore."52 New peri odicals were established: Cinema Quar terly and Sight and Sound in Great Britain, Bianco e nero in Italy; and each of them published many articles by com posers, critics, and theorists.53From the city of London, moreover, came the first two books onmusic in the sound film.
Award Winners and in The Com 1934-1972," and Jazz: 1900 plete Encyclopedia ofMusic 1950, ed. Roger D. Kinkle, Vol. 4 (New York: Nominees "Academy for Music: early years, awards went to the studio's music rather than to the composer(s): department, see Frank Varity, "The Sound Track," Films MSee

Arlington House, 1974), pp. 2029-39; in the

In the mid-thirties, however, opinions and opportunities began to improve. From Hollywood, in 1933, came Forty Second Street and King Kong?two movies less important in themselves per haps than as signals of "comebacks" of (The songs of the former were by Al Dubin and Harry Warren; the music of the latter was by Max Steiner.) In each case, the comeback was made with a fresh set of techniques that quickly be
came established as conventions. both musicals and background scores.

in Review 15 (1964): 295-97,300.

51See the Atti del primo congresso inter nazionale di musica, SO april-U Firenze, 1933 (Florence: Le Monnier, 1935), pp. maggio e il on "La musica for the session 209-216, film." (Furst's paper for this session was a re of his Melos article cited in n. 44.) working on "Radio, was There also a session Film, ? see "Due Grammofono" Lualdi, esp. Adriano novi vie per la musica: Radio e film," pp. 43-52. are 1934. There 52[No. 151], December nineteen articles under "Esthetique," and "L'Ecran of the issue "Technique," four headings: "Dessin anime," More than a third

mercial
sound

filmmusic was back on its feet,

Com

see Dietrich Stern, "Kompon periods, isten gehen zum Film," inAngewandie Musik der 20er, Jahre, ed. Stern (Berlin: Argument 1977), pp. 10-38. Verlag, of the early sound period 48My overview deutsche follows Thomas, Die Tonfilmmusik, and Manvell & Huntley, The of Film Music, pp. 31-53; see also to MusicalFrom "Vitaphone as Reported in a Great Fan Street" %2nd from 1926 to 1933], [i.e., Photoplay, Magazine ed. Miles Kreuger (New York: Dover, 1975). pp. 11-30; Technique The Movie *9Leonhard F?rst, "Musikkritik 12 (1933): 92-97. film,"Melos OF THE UNIVERSITY und Ton

to these articles by "Essai d'esthetique composer du film du sonore," pp. 45-62; "Le Travail "Par sonore," pp. 63-69; and with Honegger, ticularities du filmitopf," pp. 88-91. and Sound, in 1932, was Sight begun

pedagogique." is given over Arthur Hoeree:

published by the British Film Institute from

to run ar 1934, and at that time commenced J. Bor ticles on film music, including; Ernest neman, "Sound Rhythm and the Film," 3, no. to 10 (1934): 65-7; John Grierson, "Introduction a New Art," 3, no. 11 (1934): 101-4; and M.D. "Music 4, no. XXXIV, and Film: 14 (1935): A Problem 57-58. Cinema 15

Calvocoressi, Adjustment," ASSOCIATION

of

JOURNAL

FILM AND VIDEO

1 (Winter 1982)

Leonid Sabaneev's Music for theFilm: A Handbook for Composers and Conduc tors (1935) and Kurt London's Film Music: A Summary of the Characteristic Features of Its History, Aesthetics, Technique and Possible Developments (1936)were as different as their subtitles suggest.54 Each had its own antecedents. the handbook revived Sabaneev's tradition of the silent film manuals, avoiding abstractions (except, to some degree, in a chapter on the "Aesthetics of the Sound Film"), and describing in prac tical terms each stage of the film-scoring Erdmann and Becce in attempting to sur vey the whole subject systematically.55 Yet in one respect the two books were a alike: very much they shared fascination with the concept of "Music for the Microphone." The theme was a popular one in the literature of the time (like that of "Mechanical Music," towhich it was closely related), but it was Sabaneev and London who gave it the most play.56Each author explained in de
with the monthly World Film News merged (WFN); under both titles it featured many ar ticles Alexander by composers, including: "Film trans. and Music," Hackenschmied, 1 (1933): 152-55; Walter Karel Santar, Leigh, "The Musician 3 (1935): 70-74; and the Film," and Hanns the Film: "Music and Eisler, or Creation?" Illustration WFN (May 1936): p. e nero began 23 [cf. Becce's art., n. 44]. Bianco at the Centro di cinematografia sperimentale in Rome, theoretical 1937, and offered many with studies Sebastiano Luciani, beginning e il film," 1, no. 6 (1937): 3-17. "La musica London's subtitle with the first "Compare of Prendergast's on sentence book, quoted 55London, however, with directions did not make the con process. London's summary followed

tail how the acoustics of the recording studio altered the sounds (forbetter and worse) made by instruments alone and in
groups. From these

tried to generate idiomatic principles of film composition and orchestration. As it turned out, however, neither their ob servations nor their principles endured for long. Recording technology was so rapidly that large portions of changing
book soon became obsolete.57

observations,

each

each

London had anticipated this "possible de velopment." He called for the creation of a "Microphone Academy" for the scienti fic study of the microphone's properties and for the training of a new generation
of

Quarterly (Edinburgh)ran from1933-35,then

created, however. Nor did any books come to join these two until afterWorld War II. Sabaneev and London rode a wave of interest in film music at its crest, but by the end of the decade that wave had broken on the shoals of politics and war. Literature continued to issue from Europe, but slowed to a trickle. The main achievements of those years were the second ICM at Florence (1938), which
into Walton's deeply scoring ex (October 1936): 46. Other Eric et elec Sarnette, amples: "Musique tricite," La Revue Musicale [No. 151] (Decem ber 1934): 80-87; Libero "I prob Innamorati, lemi della registrazione in the Atti musicale," del sec. cong . . . 1937 (Florence: Le Monnier, soul," very in WFN, 1940), pp. 261-64; New Music: Music 1937); Norton, of view, W.F. Films (1937) Carlos Toward A Chavez, and Electricity (New York: and, from more technical points Elliott's Sound Recording for Cameron's Sound and entered

composers.

No

such

academy

was

p. 9.

Handbuch is that it nection; all he says of the

"dealt for cinema conductors to silent musical playing accompaniments . . ." films, which soon after became superfluous (p. 12). ^"Film wrote Walter music," Leigh, "must be written for performance specifically with through the microphone, various needs and possibilities" full regard to its ?from "Music

by Pitman. "London's one book, though published after became obsolete year Sabaneev's, on developments itwas based sooner, because Antheil's reviews: prior to 1933; cf. George "Good Russian Advice about Movie Music," and the Hollywood "On in both Front," Modern Music 13,14 (1936,1937): 53-56,107-8. MNine papers on film music are contained

the Documentary Film (1947),both published

in London

and Ken

and Microphones," WFN

Benjamin You Like that "one

score for As Britten gave Walton's It a negative review, complaining cannot feel that the microphone has

(August 1936): 40;

Fey and Friedrich Robbe (see Bibliography

III).

theme was "Music and the Public." Besides dissertation there were two Ottenheym's ? others to me?by unavailable Wilhelmine

in theAtti of the second ICM (n. 56); its other

16

JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATION XXXIV, 1 (Winter OF 1982)

sponsored three sessions on filmmusic, and Konrad Ottenheym's dissertation (completed in 1944) on the history of silent film music inGermany.58 At the same time a much stronger "new wave" of literature began to pour from the United States, swelled by the great number of refugee filmmakers, com posers, and critics. In the thirties, Ameri can literature had followed its own course. It was, in general, less concerned with theoretical problems than with descrip tions of techniques and trends written
for a

Then in 1936 it took the innovative step bers to be its film music reporter and critic of news K0n the Hollywood Front." For four years George Antheil held the job, writing in a lively, thoughtful fashion of his experiences both as an ob
server and of hiring one of the avant-garde's mem

larizing tendency set it apart frommuch European writing. A comparison of two articles from 1937 is instructive: French cupied by the aesthetic principles of "Music on the Screen," while Max Steiner (Viennese-born, but inmatters of film music, Hollywood-bred) described the processes and history of "Scoring the Film."60 It was not that Steiner lacked ideas about what filmmusic should do, but that he displayed them as the fruits of his working experience rather than as theoretical precepts in the manner of that combined Jaubert. One magazine both approaches was Modern Music. Like Melos, it had, since the late twen ties, functioned as a promoter of the
avant-garde's ideas about film music.61 in the Movies 59See, e.g., "Music Wins New Place" (in the Academy Awards), Musician 40, no. 1 (1935): 14; Douglas Moore, "Music and the Movies," 111 (1935: Harpers 181-88; and Antheil, "Hollywood Composer," Atlantic 165 (1940): 160-67; Monthly also, Prendergast York Times composer Maurice Jaubert was preoc

lay audience.59

This

more lively place formusic, so there was a great deal of news to report. Lengthy symphonic scores had become normal ac cessories to feature films. Much of the
music posers was (such

Hollywood

as a participant.62 in those years

was

an

ever

practical,

popu

Korngold) had found distinctive ways of adapting nineteenth- and early twen tieth-century idioms to films. At the
same time more "modern"

derivative, as Steiner,

but

some

com and

Newman,

(like Antheil himself, as well as several who had come over from Europe) tried their hand at films with varying but rarely overwhelming success. In 1940, Alfred Newman was appointed Music Director at Fox, and Steiner and Erich Korngold were enthroned at Warner Bros.; Antheil wrote only one film score in that year, and then gave up on Holly wood until after the war. Describing its hostility to modern music, he called Hollywood a "closed proposition."63 The
best

composers

find were

openings

in documentaries.

many

composers

could

Thus,

in

cites many articles from the New and Herald Tribune. 60The titles of the sources in the contrast same way: Jaubert's essay comes from Foot notes to the Film, ed. Charles (New Davy York: Oxford, 1937), pp. 101-115; and Steiner's from We Make theMovies, ed. Nancy Naum (New York: Norton, burg 1937), pp. 216-38. see Behind

10 (1933): 188-91; Music," Ernst Toch, "Sound-Film and Music Theatre," 13 (1936): 15-18; and John Gutman, "Casting the Film Composer," 15 (1938): 216-21. ran through 820n the Hollywood Front" vols. 14-16 (1936-39) and continued as "On the Film Front" under Paul Bowles, 17-18 (1939-41) Latouche and Leon Kochnitzky, 19 (1941-42): under Carter, 20-21 (1943); and back "On the Hollywood under Lawrence Front," 21-33. (1944-46). Morton Morton, gives a fine of Antheil's views in 22 (1945): summary 135-37. 63In his autobiography, Bad Boy ofMusic and Jean

tie More

about Movie

of Movie Music," "Pioneers Hammond, (1931) 10-14 and 35-38; Virgil Thomson, JOURNAL OF THE UNIVERSITY

York: Dodge, 1938), pp. 139-44. 61As in these articles: Darius Milhaud, with Sound Films," 7, No. 2 "Experimenting : 11-14; (1930) Hans "Film Heinsheimer, vs. and Richard Opera ?Screen Stage," 8, no. 3 "A Lit

also Herbert Stothart's "Film Music," in the Screen, ed. Stephen Watts (New

music

(New York: Doubleday, 1945), p. 314. Cf. Oscar as Levant's characterization of the place in "pretty much a closed shop for specialists," his own autobiography, A Smattering of Ig norance (New York: Doubleday, 1940), p. 111. Both of these books, along with Hans W. Hein scheimer's Menagerie in F Sharp (New York: 1948), tell a great deal about film Doubleday, inHollywood in the forties.

FILM AND VIDEO

ASSOCIATION

XXXIV,

1 (Winter 1982)

17

1940 the following composers were credited with documentaries: Marc Blitz stein, Paul Bowles, David Diamond, Hanns Eisler, Louis Gruenberg, Roy Harris, Werner Janssen, Gail Kubik, and David Raksin.64 Of these, only Raksin had much Hollywood experience. As composers wrote more and more film music, they wrote more and more about film music, with as much diversity in the latter sphere as in the former. What they wrote depended on where they stood: in side the Hollywood circle or out. Aaron Copland, for example, was one of the more successful outsiders; consequently his feelings about Hollywood were amiably ambivalent.65 But Antheil and Eisler, who both tried and pretty much failed to get "in" (though in different ways), painted pictures of Hollywood in dark tones. Antheil's tales, however, of ten read like black comedy, whereas Eisler's Composing for the Films (1947) has no light touches. Indeed, it is as severe a critique of Hollywood music as has ever been published. The book began as a seemingly scientific collaboration between Eisler and Theo dor Adorno. In the early forties both were at the New School in New York, Adorno investigating radio music, and Eisler heading a "Film Music Project," funded by the Rockefeller Foundation.66 But although Eisler had once described this project in terms of a laboratory
MSee the credit in Clifford Mc listings Film in America (1953). Carty's Composers Kubik wrote that "composers in the documen often been allowed the tary field have more in the more commercial in Documentary Film," Congress: of the Con Proceedings in October ference Held 19kS, by the Holly wood Writers' Mobilization Committee (Los Univ. Cal. Pr., 1944), p. 256. Angeles: 66As expressed in the chapter on "Music in the Film," Our New Music (New York: films," Writers colleagues in "Music have our

theoretical determi experiment ?with nation of special problems, experiments and public tests of the results67?Com posing for theFilms contains passages of Marxist rhetoric so high-pitched that they defy all notions of dispassionate re
search: ... it is preposterous to use words

such as "history" with reference to an apocryphal branch of art like motion picture music. The person who around 1910 first conceived the repulsive idea of using the Bridal March fromLoh engrin as an accompaniment is no more of a historical figure than any other second-hand dealer. Similarly, the prominent composer of today, who, under the pretext ofmotion-pic ture requirements, willingly or unwill ingly debases his music earns money, but not a place in history. The histori cal processes that can be perceived in cinema music are only reflections of the decay of middle-class cultural goods into commodities for the amuse ment market ... It would be ludi
crous

sic has really evolved either in itself or in its relation to other motion pic turemedia [p. 49]. The
than

to claim

that motion-picture

mu

ideological
one

tone has turned more

reader away. Pren

dergast goes so far as to term the book (A "testy and relatively valueless" Neglected Art, p. 3); but much of what Eisler writes is of great value. This in cludes the fascinating report on the origi nal project (unfortunately too brief and relegated to an appendix). Moreover, the
name history, including why Adorno's not appear on the first edition, see his in the reprint edition published in "Postscript" 1971 New York: for Li Books (Freeport, braries Press)?this postscript being a tran slation of "Zum Erstdruck der Original Fas to the German edition pub sung," appended did cated

American

luxury of writing what they have felt than

McGraw-Hill, 1941), pp. 260-75. An earlier ver sion of this chapter appeared in Modem Music 17 (1940): 141-47, under the ambivalent title on Hollywood." "Second Thoughts 66For explanation of the book's compli

Modern Music 18 (1941):250-54.

names. A summary of these matters authors' is given under Eisler in Bibliography III. 67See "Film Music ?Work in Progress,"

lished in 1969 as Komposition f?r den Film (Munich: Rogner & Bernhard) under both

18

OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

book is conceptually on firmer ground than most others about film music, because it so unyieldingly affirms its main point. For Eisler, the point was that modern music (particularly twelve-tone music) was an ideal style for the film medium, but that the film industry,with and bad its barriers of "prejudices habits" (enumerated in the first chapter), made it impossible for such music to be
heard.68

better, and so deserved to shine; others maintained that only when the eye (and ear) of the public was directed toward "background music," and itwas brought into the foreground, would the public be come aware of how bad itwas. This was Eisler's position, except that he linked improvement of filmmusic not just to public awareness but to changes in the whole socioeconomic structure of our
culture.

As for the composers who got along very well in the "industry," they wrote about it far more brightly. Two examples in book form are British composer Louis Levy's memoir of a life spent making Music for theMovies (1948), and Holly step manual Underscore (1950). The lat ter is a cheerful case history of Skinner's experiences composing themusic forThe Fighting OTlynn (released by Universal in 1949; in the book, however, the film is titled The Irishman). Skinner approaches the assignment uncritically, in the prag matic manner of the Hollywood profes sional; but he was far from being the of writers. That most Pollyanna-like credit may well belong to Nathaniel Fin ston, Music Director at Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM), for claiming that "every film today contains in its making the painstaking efforts of the best minds in
the musical world."69 wood composer Frank Skinner's step-by

took a critic Hans Keller English somewhat simpler but still negative view, in several articles and, most per tinently, in a lively pamphlet on The Need for Competent Film Music Criti cism (London: British Film Institute, 1947). He wanted critics equally knowl edgeable in film and music to "thrust" film music from the "unselective precon
sciousness into open consciousness,

in

fact into an aural close-up," so that "film music will be heard for what it isn't
worth" (p. 21).70

At the time Keller took up the pen, it ap peared as if the above-named need was being satisfied. The profession of film music criticism suddenly took on many practitioners both in England and the United States.71 They were all very much interested in seeing filmmusic improve,
70For other Kellerian thrusts, see "Film Some and Objections," "Hollywood Another View," Sight and Sound [S &

Finston and Eisler would have had diffi culty coming to terms. Yet in one sense they wrote for the same reason: to bring their art into public light. Some desired this because they believed, with Finston, that film music was good and getting
68See Lawrence Eisler: Composer Morton's and review, "Hanns Critic," Hollywood

Music: Music: and

S] 15 and 16,nos. 60 and 64 (1946and 1947): 136

168-69. see also nn. 71 and 73. 7Tn England, criticism was written on a regular basis by Ernest Irving, "Film Music," nos. 1-3 (194647); Keller, "Film Music," Tempo Review vols. Survey vols. 9-17,19-20 (1948-56, 58-59), 1-3 (1949-51), and Musical

Music

Music

in in Music," Screen's Influence in California, Music and Dance ed. Jose Rodri of Musical Research, guez (Hollywood: Bureau 1940), p. 124. Cf. the claim that "the great and of the musical world are finding the near-great ""The new medium" on The Men (Hollywood: Distributors an anonymous pamphlet Who Write the Music Scores Motion-Picture Production and of America, 1943), p. 2. ?from

Quarterly [HQ] 3 (1948):208-211.

their way toHollywood to trytheirskill in the

"The Sound Track," S & S, Vols. 18-19 (1949 "The Sound Track," 50); and John Huntley, S & S, 19-24 (1950-55). In America the critics wre et al. for "On the Hollywood Antheil Front" (n. "Film Music of the Quarter," 62); Kurt London Films nos. 1-4 (1939-40); Walter Rubsamen, in the Cinema" Arts and Architecture, to January 1947; and Lawrence "Film Music of the Quarter." HQ 3-7 Morton, (1947-52). Also, Film Music Notes contained criticism in every issue from 1941 to 1957. "Music June 1944

Times vols. 96-97 (1955-56); Antony Hopkins,

OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

19

but their common goal did not prevent them from sparring just as much as com merits of American and European film music, and the state of the art inHolly wood. The criticwho described that state with perhaps the nicest blend of wit, sympathy, and insight was Lawrence Morton.72 Morton engaged in his share of debate, especially with English critics.73 His writing, however, is distinguished from everyone else's by its pointed preci sion. Morton expressed precisely what he thought, without the hyperbole that seemed to come naturally to a writer like
Keller. posers over such issues as the relative

"Musicality" is an inclusive term, and it is not axiomatically applicable to once remarked that uthe only differ ence between Alban Berg and other Viennese atonalists is that Berg was more than a dozen composers for whom the same can be said inHolly
wood. musical." Franz Waxman is one of no everyone who writes music. A wit

tions

It was a polemical age. Sweeping evalua

were common. But Morton's

sis makes
Waxman

score's

every attempt to define the

"musicality" (harmonic,

analy

his opinions and rested them on solid fac

tual ground.

rather than summarily Moreover, or approve, reasons for he gave condemn

is most obvious in his pioneering study of "The Music of Objective: Bur ma,1' published in Hollywood Quarterly 1 (1946): 378-95. In this article for the first time a score is analyzed cue by cue. After listing the six main themes, Morton de scribes every one of the twenty-four This cludes the article with this assessment of the composer and his milieu:
of the balanced 72See especially perusal "Film Music: Art or both sides of the question in Film Music Notes 11, no. 1 Industry?" (1) Morton's "Rule, examples: inHQ 3 (1948): 211-14, was a nega Britannia!" Film tive review of both Huntley's British Music (1947) and Cerald Cockshott's pamphlet on Incidental Music in the Sound Film (Lon don: shott British Film responded Institute, 1946), with "Comments and on Cock a Re (1951): 4-6. 73Two "separate compositions," score excerpts provided. with Then he several con

thematic, and structural) in terms of the relationship of music and drama. Few other critics were able to justify their opinions with such carefully marshalled evidence ?although Frederick Sternfeld followed Morton's lead with four com parable but less compelling articles.74 Earlier on in his article, Morton called himself "counsel for the defense" (p. 394, where he acknowledges Tovey's Essays in Musical Analysis as the source of the phrase). Film music was considered to be
on

part of that world; and so was the idea that film music could be deserving of serious analysis. Very little could be taken for granted by writers seeking to end public and professional neglect. Was the neglect passing? It had already seemed so to Kurt London several years earlier. After emigrating to America, he was but hired by the short-lived prestigious periodical Films (1939-40) as a critic of filmmusic. In his last column he optimistically wrote of a change in at titudes: Slowly but surely, motion picture pro fessionals and laymen are coming to
score 74Sternfeld analyzed Friedhofens Hugo for The Best Years in of Our Lives "Music and the Feature Films," Musical Quar Love Martha of Ivers in "The Strange

trial;

so was

Waxman,

for becoming

run riot" in "Music: "orchestration at Florence," S & S 19 (1950): 243-44; Congress Morton replied to the charge in his column on "Film Music of the Quarter," HQ 5 (1951): 282 music as

view," in the next issue ofHQ (1948): 326-27; (2)Antony Hopkins described American film

Keller

with a 88; the replywas reprinted (incomplete) rebuttal by Hopkins inS & S 20 (1951):21-23;
into it with "Film Music and got The Dragon Shows His Teeth" Music once more with "Composing, Or

Miklos Rozsa's forThe terly33 (1947):517-32;

Strange "Gail Kubik's Score and "Copland 161-75.

Review 12 (1951): 221-25 and Morton showed

his 206.

Beyond:

Music ofMartha Ivers,"HQ 2 (1947): 242-51; The Heiress], Musical

ASSOCIATION 360-69; for C-Man," HQ 4 (1950: as a Film Composer [for

HQ 6 (1951): 191 chestratingand Criticising,"

teeth

Quarterly 37 (1951):
XXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

20

JOURNAL

OF THE UNIVERSITY

FILM AND VIDEO

recognize that music for the movies is not a mere by-product of film-mak ing, but an important part of the cine matic art. We have had various signs of this awakening during the past year [no. 4, p. 25]. The "signs" to which London pointed were the Film Music Project under Eisler and the formation of a Federation ? ofFilm Music Clubs across the country which might indeed have developments appealed to "professionals" on the one hand and "laymen" on the other. And in fact, one sees similar signs all through the period. An "awakening" could be said to have begun with Antheil's criticism in Modern Music, which pointed the way to a flourishing profession after the war. The formation of filmmusic clubs led to the establishment ofFilm Music Notes, the first and longest-lived (1941-1957) of periodicals to be devoted to the subject.75 Beginning in the same year, a number of sophisticated studies of the aesthetics of filmmusic were published, as innovative in their own way as the analytical studies already cited.76 Above all, composers wrote about their craft. Some, like Ber nard Herrmann and Adolf Deutsch, did so in individual articles.77More common,
of 75For its various titles and a description III. its contents, see Bibliography in the Film: Notes "Music 76Paulo Milano, and for a Morphology," Journal of Aesthetics

however, and perhaps more in keeping with the spirit of those years, were collective publications and anthologies at one end of the decade came a sym posium of mostly east coast composers; in the middle, a series of publications fo cussing on Hollywood; and at the end, the one en Seventh ICM in Florence?this music, primarily tirely given over to film as seen through the eyes of film com
posers in Europe.78 representative of common views. Thus,

From the "Hollywood Front" to the Florence Congress, the literature ex panded impressively. What had come awake with full forcewas the urge to ex music?its functions,itsmethods, plain film its quality, and its possibilities for im provement. Yet though in a general sense the range of the literature was always broadening, taken piece by piece its nar rowness is undeniable. Most writers were caught up by ideas and music of the moment and did not attempt to catch the overall drift. Retrospective views were
rare enough;79 scholarly work was rarer

78See "Music Composers," and Dance and Music West, wood:

Art Criticism 1, no. 1 (1941): 89-94; [Claude]

Roland-Manuel, "Rhythme cinematographique et conferences in Cinema: Cours et musical," des hautes etudes dIDHEC (Paris: L'Institut U. n.d.), pp. 3-5; Robert cinematographiques, 2 "Film Music: Color or Line?" HQ Nelson, "L'Element (1946): 57-65; Pierre Schaeffer, au cinema." Revue du Cin&ma non-visuel 1, nos. 1-3 (October-December 1946): 45-49, 62-65, "Funzione and Nazareno Taddei, 51-54; e nero 10 estetica della musica nel film" Bianco no. 1 (1949): 5-11. "Herrmann, Section "Score for a Film" [i.e.,

1948); War," the seventh

is concerned, the ICM although under "Film Music" in Grove's bibliography 5th edition lists a volume of Proceedings, I have been unable to locate such a publication. in conjunction with the congress, However, e nero published a special double Bianco issue on "La musica nel film," ed. Luigi Chiarini & Enzo Masetti, 11, nos. 5-6 (1950), issued the same year in book form. The 1959 anthology on Musica e film, ed. S.G. Biamonte (Rome: also includes some papers read at the Ateneo) It was this congress that sparked congress. the second

ed. Richard Drake Saunders (Holly of Musical Bureau 1940 and Research, on "Music and the and the symposium in Writer's (n. 64). As far as Congress

in Films: A Symposium of no. 4 (1940): 5-20; Music in California, ed. Jose Rodriguez, and Dance in California and the Films

"Three 9, p. 6; Deutsch, com 1 (1946): 214-23. Each HQ Strangers," how he wrote his score. Such poser explains issue of in virtually articles every appeared Film Music with 1, no. 1 Notes, beginning is reprin article (1941), in which Herrmann's ted. 1941):

Citizen Kane], New

York Times

(25 May

debate described above (n. 73). 79But Alberto a history wrote Cavalcanti no. 1 of the use of "Sound in Films" for Films

Musical

(1939): Hannah Winter 25-39, and Marion one of film music, misleadingly wrote titled "The Function of Music in the Sound Film," above ?see n. 39).

Quarterly 27 (1941): 246-64 (cited

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21

still.80So it is not surprising to read this description of the literature by Morton, written in 1953: If the truth be told, it is not very dis tinguished. Some of it is pertinent but uninteresting, or interesting but fan ciful; much of it is mere reportage, spot news; little of it has any perma nent value. As opinion, as judgment, it represents a varied assortment of ant's-eye views of film-musicevents in isolation, a great deal of special plead ing, and a still larger amount of preju diced derogation. Its short-comings have not prevented it, however, from being made the basis of broad gener alizations. These exist, for the most part as catch-words, epithets and im precations. They do not reflect, in any true sense, a general view with either critical or historical perspective.81 Morton's "general view" of the literature covers a lot of ground, including his own: as a critic, he too was obliged to view "film-music events in isolation." And what is his study of "The Music of Objec tive: Burma," if not "special pleading" (indeed, by a "counsel for the defense") on behalf of Franz Waxman's virtues as a film composer? We
literature's

scattered to be contained in this article), Films inReview has, from 1952 until the present, run a column on "The Sound Track," little different (except in its longevity) from its predecessors as a re pository of capsule reviews, too-brief and essays, summary judgments. Currently it is being written by Page Cook, whose colorful and emotional prose make him one of film music's most
passionate critics.82

Yet in the literature of the fifties,one be gins to perceive signs of a second, more scholarly "awakening." Films inReview, for example, has published not just spot criticism, but also many articles calling attention to silent filmmusic, as well as com studies of important Hollywood posers.83 During this decade, moreover, various musical reference works begin to include film music surveys and bibliogra
of com 82Contrast, e.g., Cook's damning who write "noise" of music instead posers in (Neil Hefti, Quincy Jones, et al.) in Films

with his effusive Review 19 (1968):162-63,166, praise of Scott Lee Hart in 26 (1975): 235-39.
to "The Sound Track" contributors Principal have been Gordon Hendricks in 3-5 (1952-54); 6-10 (1955-59); T.M.F. Edward Connor, Steen, 12-13 (1961-62); and Page Cook, 14-29 (1963-79). film music include: 88Articles on silent

shall return to the question of the

value, permanent or other

wise, later in this article. For the mo ment, let it be acknowledged that Mor ton's description contains a good deal of truth.Moreover, it applies just as well to much of the literature written since.
There have never ceased to be "ant's

Winkler, "The Origins of Film Music" (n. 29);

5 (1954): "The Music Masters," John Griggs, "Film Music for Silents," and 338-42; McCarty, 8 (1957): 117-18, "Victor Herbert's Filmusic,"

eye views" of contemporary events, and "special pleading" for, or prophecies of, ? improvement always dependent upon the latest technical and stylistic trends in filmmaking. Thus (to cite one set of ex amples out of a number too large and too
dis examples: Ottenheym's some bibli ground-breaking The Film Index and Nelson, ographies?see Rubsamen and Zuckerman under Bibliogra phy I. sertation, 81From the Film Composers "Foreword" to McCarty's inAmerica (1955), p. xi. 80The best and

(n. 27); and Makers," tive source material," For

123,and 183-85;John Ripley, "Song Slides," 22 (1971):147-52; Peeples, "TheMechanical Music

a column 27 on "authorita 493-94, 499. see Theo composers, 1, no. 6 Composer," (1976):

Hauer

"Bernard Herrmann," 19 (1968): Waxman," by," 20 (1969): 335-56.

(1965): 536-48; Rudy Behlmer, "Erich Wolfgang Korngold," 18 (1967): 86-100; Cook,
398-412, 18 (1967): 415-30, "Franz and "Ken Dar

12 & George "Max Steiner," Raborn, "David 338-51; Thomas, Anthony 14 (1963): 38-41, and "Hugo Fried Raksin," Ken 16 "Miklos 496-502; Rozsa," Doeckel, (1961):

(1950): 1-5;Dmitri Tiomkin, "Composing for Films," 2, no. 9 (1951): 17-22; Jack Jacobs "AlfredNewman," 10 (1959): 403-414;Harry

studies of American as dor Huff, "Chaplin

22

1982) OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter

phies.84A still brighter sign was the book forwhich Morton wrote his description of the literature (from which he quite rightly excepted the new work): Clifford McCarty's checklist of Film Composers in America (1953). This book was the first to tackle the formidable problem of gathering accurate music credits for thousands of films; and because of Mc Carty's slow and careful research, the book is still the most successful refer ence work of its kind.85 A work as important as McCarty's, but for different reasons, is Roger Manvell and John Huntley's The Technique of Film Music (1957). It is important as the firstexample of the kind of book that has the in recent years: predominated view." By this ismeant a book "general the subject within a that presents of perspectives: history, theory, variety and criticism either mix or take turns. The Technique of Film Music is of the turn-taking sort, since each of its five chapters has little to do with the other four. The first two cover the history of music, first in silent, then in early sound
MSee especially, Meilers, of Music Dictionary and Wildred Ernest Irving, H. Keller, "Film Music," in Grove s 5th ed. and Musicians,

films (to 1939). The next chapter at tempts to categorize the functions ofmu sic in the sound film,and offers analyses of excerpts from several films. Four of these excerpts are laid out in vertical alignment with dialogue, descriptions of sound effects and action, plus photographic stills?one of the more in teresting and lavish attempts to quote
the

tunately the authors say nothing about them. The significance of this group of "analyses" rests purely in the method of transcription.88 The fourth chapter, moreover, drops analysis entirely for a discussion of the role of the music direc tor and recording practices in the film studios. The final chapter shifts to a pre sentation of "The Composer's View"; that is, the views of fourteen composers are cited on such matters as their feel ings about being a member of a "team," their freedom to experiment, and the problem of writing music to accompany dialogue. The book concludes with three appendices: a chronology of filmmusic's history (told through yearly lists of music composi "principal events and film tions"), reprints of a few examples of film music criticism, and a bibliography.87 It is clear that The Technique of Film Music is not just about film music's "tech nique." (The misleading title was chosen so that the book could be included in "The Focal Press Library of Communica tion Techniques" series, since all the titles in the series begin with the same three words.) It is difficult, perhaps im

"unquotable

text"

?but

unfor

de la musique (Paris: Fasquelle, Encyclopedie 1959); and Roman Viad, "Musica per film," La musica 1: Enciclopedia storica (Turin: Ed. 1966). Turinese, was Claire Reis's 85Its only predecessor in America: Sketches of Contem Composers a Record with porary of Their Composers

Martin Ulner. Musik in "Filmmusik," Geschichte und (Cassel: Gegenwart van Parys, 1955); George Barenreiter, "Film,"

(NewYork: MacMillan, 1955);Edmund Nick &

rev. ed. (New York: MacMillan, Works, 1947), a book praised as the first refer by Morton ence work to put "Film Music in the Main 3 (1947): 101-4-but it is a general stream,"^ to film limited afforded work, with space The is James L. musicians. only successor Limbacher's Video

of this and 86See Gorbman's dissection of transcription, to methods referred in this way are (n. 8). The films analysed V, pp. 96-107; Louisiana Henry Story, pp. 117 25; Julius Caesar, pp. 130-32; and Odd Man other above Out, pp. 139-49. 87The bibliography to its chronological is extensive, has and been

wrote Notes

Film Music: to Violins From inclusive and up to (1974), a book more date, but so flawed that it must be used with the greatest caution. McCarty, ob though nonetheless observer, viously not an unbiased a devastating review 31 (1974): 48-50. of Limbacher

owing

for

errors and inconsistencies, it contains many in the not been corrected and these have are given second edition (1975). Some examples I. in the eleventh entry under Bibliography ASSOCIATION 1 (Winter 1982)

very helpfulto thewriting of this survey;but

ordering,

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23

possible, to put the book's contents into focus. Full as it is of interesting informa tion and ideas, little of the information is accounted for, and few of the ideas are taken beyond a page or two. One isn't given any explanation, for example, why the authors consider the films listed in the "chronological outline" to be the "principal filmmusic compositions"; nor is there any way to correlate them with the rest of the text, for they are not in cluded in the index. In short, the book is a hodge-podge, which cannot be swal lowed altogether. It contains morsels both tender and tough, rather like an un
trustworthy pot-pourri.

of approach,

lack

of

quent clumsiness of organization and language. Colpi, Porcile, and Lacombe &
for example, are uneasy com

focus,

and

conse

Rocle,

binations of history, theory, criticism, and biographical dictionaries (though the latter are very useful). The works of Tony Thomas and Evans are primarily historical surveys of American sound filmmusic, with descriptions of the lives
and works of several prominent com

Before The Technique ofFilm Music, the number of books that followed this recipe was small: Erdmann & Becce's Handbuch (1927),London's Film Music (1936), and to some extent Eisler's Composing for the Films and Huntley's solo British Film Music (both 1947). Compared to this rate of one or two such books every decade, the subsequent pack has crowded one another's heels. Here is a list of the eleven that have followed Manvell & Huntley's Technique: et le Georges Hacquard, La Musique cinema (1959). Hans Thomas, Die deutsche Tonfilm musik (1962). Henri Colpi, Defense et illustration de lamusique dans lefilm (1963). Zofia Lissa, Aesthetik der Filmmusik (1963). Francois Porcile, Presence de la mu sique a Vecran (1969). Tony Thomas, Music for theMovies (1973). the Score Irwin Bazelon, Knowing (1975). Mark Evans, Soundtrack (1975). Roy Prendergast, A Neglected Art (1977). Alain Lacombe & Claude Rocle, La Musique du film (1979). & Hans Helga de la Motte-Haber Emons, Filmmusik (1980). Most of these books have suffered from the same kinds of problems: diffuseness 24

the Score is posers. Bazelon's Knowing divided into two parts: a section of abra sive polemical criticism, jumping from film to film, and a series of interviews with fifteen composers. Of all these writers, perhaps Evans uses language most carelessly; and the following de scription of Newman's style may be taken as an example of this kind of literature at itsweakest: Often countermelodies, in a lyrical mode appropriate for an operatic aria, would be offset against the main
theme. Newman's melodies were char

use

acterized by wide leaps, often harmon ized in thirds or sixths. Like Strauss, he knew how tomanipulate the colors of the harmonic palette. His scores are always tonal, his uncanny ablity to
deceptive cadences, to alternate

between major and minor, and to in fuse his music with a breathless, of emotionalism surging quality accounts formuch of its unique quali ty [p. 52]. One wonders, among other things, whose arias (with "counter-melodies") Evans has in mind; and what is "unique" about a composer whose style seems derived fromdevices used by a host of composers and (apparently) including Strauss Schubert? Writing ofmuch greater strength is to be found in the three German works from the list above: Hans Thomas' carefully documented survey of his country's sound filmmusic; Lissa's abstract and scholarly study of filmmusic aesthetics;
and la Motte-Haber & Emons'

tic description" of filmmusic, primarily in functional terms. These books do not

"systema

OF 1982) JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter

adhere to the normal motley pattern. Each of them has been designed with a careful balance of general concept and specific detail. Indeed, within their respective (though overlapping) spheres of history, theory and analysis, theymay well be considered indispensable foun
dations for further research.88

Over the last twenty years there have those appeared many books besides taking a "general view." Our stocks of an thologies of the literature, reference works, biographies, and manuals have all been rising.89Of particularly high value, however, are three works that lie outside Herbert Birett's these categories: Stummfilmmusik (1970), a compendium of primary source materials relating to the silent period in Germany; Robert Faulkner's sociological investigation of the careers of Hollywood Studio Musi cians (1971?to be complimented by his forthcoming: study of Hollywood com
cannot be said 88The same unfortunately it contains of Prendergast's study. Although more detailed than and sophisticated analysis book, A Neglec any earlier English-language too heavily upon other sour ted Art depends (many of them not cited) to offer a con sistent point of view of its own. See my re in Pro Music Sana view, "Focus!" (published Society) 6, no. 4 (1978): 14 by the Miklos Rozsa 18. e film Musica Biamonte, 89Anthologies: ces

posers, Music on Demand); and Charles Berg's Investigation (1976) of silent films inAmerica.90 As can be judged from the topics (and full titles) of these books, they have been written by scholars for the use ? of scholars quite a change from the "by musicians for musicians" character of the literature from the silent period, and an indication that the "explosion" in film studies has begun to shake even this
peripheral the area

today we see many other indications of

same phenomenon. Various

of

research.

Moreover,

have reprinted forgotten publishers early works that are now of value pri marily to the scholar.91 Dissertations have appeared and are in progress.92 As was noted in the first part of this article, many libraries and research centers are taking a more active interest in film music and its materials.93 Finally, the
work of retrospective less weight is Hofmann's Sounds (1970). One should also be aware of for Silents a group of books comprising a separate cate in the gory of their own, viz., "studies of music somewhat modern grossen some Die media"; examples: "F" Musica (1958), Prieberg, drei ex ^Another

Machina (1960),Jungk, Musik im technischen Zeitalter (1971),and Bornoff& Salter,Music and the Twentieth Century Media (1972).
to offer variations These books continue the theme of "music and the microphone," ferred to above (n. 56). out 91Arno Press, for example, six: Lang & West, Musical has on re

n. 78); Engmann, eine Filmmusik: (1959 ?see Dokumentation Film Music (1968); Limbacher, Film Thomas, (1974), first half; and Tony works: Hippenmeyer, Score (1979). Reference Film Music, Jazz sur Films (1973); Limbacher, second

brought

ment of Moving Pictures (1920; 1970);London, Film Music (1936; 1970);Rapee, Encyclopedia (1925; 1970); Huntley, British Film Music Films (1935;1978).
(1947; (1924; 1972); 1974); Motion Rapee, and Sabaneev, Picture Moods Music for the

Accompani

Jazz in theMovies (1977); half; Meeker, lexicon (1980); and Lim Comuzio, Film music Score (1981). Biographies: bacher, Keeping Don't Hate Me Tiomkin Please & Bucanelli, (1967); Lazarou, Max Steiner and Film Music

L. (1961); Korngold,Erich WolfgangKorngold

as a dis 92Berg's Investigation originated sertation at Iowa; others include Gerrero, as a Film Variable," "Music 1969; Schwartz,

Miklos mann

Maurice Jaubert (1971); Previn Porcile, (1971); & Hopkins,Music Face toFace (1971); Hugo Friedhofer: An Oral History (1974);Palmer,
Rozsa (1975); Johnson, Bernard Herr & Yockey, Andre (1977); and Bookspan and Sounds (1981). Manuals: Mancini,

Previn

1975; Hamilton, "Improvisation," "Film 1976; Stevens," Gorbman, "Alfred Newman." Music," 1978; and Steiner, 1981 (cf. nn. 95 and 96). I know of two others in Scott Smith's on Alex North, at Ball progress: State

Hanlon, "Leith

"Film Music and Attitude Change," 1970;

Music

Modern Media Scores (1962);Dolan, Music in (1967); H?gen, Scoring forFilms (1971);Skiles, (1976);and Lustig,Music Editing forMotion
(1980). Scoring for TV and Motion Pictures

Pictures

and mine on music for silent University, films. "The AFI has been quite in innovative in taping and transcribing this regard, oral of histories Friedhofer and composers as well as sound Bronislau Kaper (in progress),

OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

25

literature is being enriched by articles heretofore in short supply: close scholar ly looks at special problems. In the fifties and sixties, the periodical literature was of three main types: (1) the topical, typified by 'The Sound Track" column ofFilms inReview; (2) the retro spective articles designed to reawaken interest in some part of film music's past (as in the examples cited in note 83 from the same periodical); and (3) probing of abstract problems by composers and
theorists.94 Since

tions which must be addressed if film music research is to advance. Most of these articles have been the work of three writers (the third trilogy to be named in as many paragraphs)?Douglas Steiner, and Claudia Gallez, Frederick Gorbman.95 Most of their articles have been analyses of music within specific in films, but unlike their predecessors
this

strand has been weaving through the periodical fabric, spun out of articles that combine careful scholarship with a sensi tivity to fundamental questions ?ques
of editor George Grove. The Feldman Library tran also possesses the AFI (Los Angeles) scriptions of seminars with several composers,

1970,

however,

new

cerned as much with providing a context for the analysis as with the analysis proper. Thus Gallez relates his under Entr'acte to standing of Satie's music for present-day compositions and filmmusic aesthetics. Steiner uses a study of Leith Stevens' music forThe Wild One to trace the development of jazz idioms in film thest of all beneath the surface analy sis. She plunges the depths of semio logical and structural modes of film criti cism in order to come up with new analytical methods and new ways of music. talking about film
"Theories of Film 95Gallez, Music," Cinema Journal 9, no. 2 (1970): 40-47; "Facing in Scripts," CJ ll,no. 1 (1971): 57-62; the Music A Model of Film Music," CJ "Satie's Entr'acte: (1976): 36-50; and "The Prokofiev and Ivan Collaboration: Nevsky CJ 17, no. 2 (1978): 13-35. Gorbman, Revisited," on Fellini as Salvation: "Music Notes and Rota," Film 28, no. 2 (1975): 17-25; Quarterly Sound Hierarchy "Clair's and the Creation of Annual (West Auditory Space," Film Studies Lafayette, 1976), pp. "Narrative Ind.: Purdue Research Found., 113-23, and Film Music," (n. 8); "Vigo/Jaubert" on and "Bibliography in Yale French Studies 16, no. 2 Eisenstein scoring. Gorbman goes perhaps fur

genre,

these

writers

have

been

con

visible Monde

in the der Filmmusik," Lissa, "Formprobleme ed. Heinrich Karl Gustav Feilerer, Festschrift Huschen Bosse, 1962), pp. 321 (Regensburg: a collection of four ar 35, "Le Bande-Son," no. 152 (February du Cinema ticles in Cahiers du Les 19-44 Yves 1964): Baudrier, Signes et de sonore

Bernstein, Jerry Goldsmith, including Elmer Alex North, and John Green, Henry Mancini, Dory Previn. Pierre be mentioned should 940f these sonores "Les Nouvelles Techniques Schaeffer, du son et and "Le Contrepoint et le cinema," no. 37 du Cinema both in Cahiers derimage," (July 1954): 54-56 and no. 108 (June 1960): 7-22;

Le Vaudible, partie: premiere (Paris: IDHEC, 1964); Helman, in Film" der Musik "Probleme (n. 26); Rolf Urs "Filmmusik sucht sich selbst." Melos Ringger, a special 33 (1966): 313-19; "Colonna sonora;" e nero, 28, nos. 3/4 (March/ issue of Bianco in "Musik 1967): 3-111; Hanns Jelinek, April 23 Ost Musikzeitschrift Film and Fernsehen," "Notes Rosenman, (1968): 122-35; Leonard Sub-Culture," of New Perspectives 7 (1968): 122-35; William Johnson, "Face Film Quarterly the Music," 22, no. 4 (1969): 3 of Film "The Aesthetics 19; Win Sharpies, 8 no. 5 Newsletter Filmmaker's Sound," e film: La "Musica (1975): 27-32; Sergio Miceli, un E possible colonna sonora ha cinquant'anni. Italiana in (Nuova) Rivista Musicale bilancio?" a

from Music

in Film," both Sound no. 60 (1980): 183-203, and 269-286; Steiner, forHitch 'Black and White' Music "Herrmann's Film Music Notebook cock's Psycho," 1, nos. "An 1-2 (1974): 28-36 and 26-46; and of Leith Stevens' Use of Jazz in One," FMN 2, nos. 2-3 (1976): 26-34 and 26-34. Besides these, the best recent ar ticles I know of are by Dietrich Stern, "Kom zum Film" (n. 47); Charles ponisten gehen CJ 17, no. 2 Berg, "Cinema Sings the Blues," excellent (1978); [1]-12; and Jon Newsom's Examination The Wild in Hollywood," Raksin: A Composer "David Journal of the Library of Congress Quarterly 35 (1978): 142-72, which comes with a 45 r.p.m. disc of recorded examples. ASSOCIATION XXXIV,

E. Backer & Eddy Law (1977): 349-63; Thomas of Feeling," "In the Key rence Manson, 7 (February Behavior 1978): 62-67; and Human Skiz der Kindheit: Luther Prox, "Im Stadium 3 (1978): 229-235. zen zur Filmmusik," Musica 26 JOURNAL OF THE UNIVERSITY

FILM AND VIDEO

1 (Winter 1982)

Gorbman's case studies of films by Fel lini, Clair and Vigo are all convincing demonstrations of the power of this new mode of criticism; likewise, her article on "Narrative Film Music" makes a fine theoretical introduction ? especially when read in conjunction with the other articles in the same issue of Yale French to the topic of devoted Studies, "Cinema/Sound" (see nn. 14 and 95). This important collection is perhaps the most valuable addition to the literature to be published in recent years. It reflects a growing fascination among theorists and critics with cinema's "auditory dimen sion" (to use editor Rick Altman's phrase); and it speaks with a "new and different voice" ?one grounded in film contem theory's most sophisticated porary language. In all likelihood, this language will be of great importance to filmmusic research for many years to
come.96

many

recent

scores

that

resonate

with

allusive meanings, in parody and homage to the past.98For all kinds of scores have
"worked" ?that as

films both artful and profitable. More disappears from view (and for different people this can be any time from the twenties to the fifties), sound tracks re surface and filmmusic societies do their best to bring the age back.99 Thus film music research is being pushed forward by waves of scholarship and nostalgia. Film is still a babe among the arts, but it of has outlived several generations
makers, over, even film music's "golden age"

is,

have

been

used

in

The literature, in recent years, has found new ways to proceed, and followed the old ways as well, at an accelerating pace. The same can be said of film music itself. In theaters today one encounters a wide spectrum of new styles ranging from popular songs of the hour to the latest
avant-garde techniques.97 Yet there are sources include related "Important The Rules Track: "Sound Michael Little, of CJ 13, no 1 (1973): 35-44; and the Game," Kristin Thompson, "Simple Sound Relations," in her book Eisen and "Vertical Montage," A Neoformalist the Terrible": stein's "Ivan Princteon Princeton: University Analysis. Press, 1981, pp. 202-260. Film Films Music contains discussions chosen for their film music": of

hind us, the origins of filmmusic recede and even sink (no matter the waves of nostalgia); before us, the art opens unto unknown but exciting horizons. Research attempts tomove in both directions. But given its present state, will it be able either to recapture the past or to keep abreast of the present? State ofResearch into

composers,

and

researchers.

Be

///. The Present Film Music Within

this survey, five powerful cur

blend of and Denny Zeitlin's press superb music and sound effects for Invasion of the Body Snatchers. (1976), in which 98Examples are Obsession recalls which the music by Bernard Herrmann deliberately Ver his score for the film's "double,"

97The1975 edition of The Technique of

"Four since 1955," toward "different The Devils, French music

a score en Porcile Francois constructed tirely out of compositions by film composer Maurice Jaubert; and Star Wars (1977), with, at least in John Williams' main title music, dis tinct echoes of Korngold's swashbuckler style. "The in recent years four American societies established are the Max Steiner Music

L'Histoire dAdele H. tigo (1958);

(1975), for

Society (1965),theMiklos Rozsa Society (1971),

the the Entr'acte Recording Society Elmer Bernstein Filmmusic (1975). Each nal, Music called, offers both recordings the Max respectively, (1974), and Collection and a jour Steiner

approaches with both

seventeenth-century Da vies; and original work by Peter Maxwell with 2001: A Space Odyssey, prerecorded works by Johann and Richard Strauss, Khat chaturian, somewhat

with a Second and Ligeti; Best, score by Richard more traditional and Zabriskie Point, with an amalgam Arnell; of popular music by groups such as the Rolling recent ex Of more and Pink Floyd. Stones one could cite the amples score by Giorgio Moroder synthesizer-based Ex for Midnight FILM AND VIDEO

Pro Musica Sana, Society Newsletter, Main Notebook?all and Film Music Title, with in Bib listed further information, III. and societies, clubs, liography Foreign are listed by Sharpies newsletters soundtrack in his 1978 bibliography of these, Soundtrack! most important. XXXIV, for Cinema (formerly SCN) Journal; is the

JOURNAL

OF THE UNIVERSITY

ASSOCIATION

1 (Winter 1982)

27

rents of literature have surfaced, with these points of origin and tendencies: (1) The Edison Company's "Sugges tions for Music," 1909: aids for the (2) Eisenstein, Pudovkin, and Alexan cal speculation on the principles and potentials of the sound film. "On the Hollywood (3) Antheil's Front," 1936: explanations and de
bates focused films. on music in contem dra's "Statement," 1928: theoreti preparation of accompaniments.

inated in America for nearly twenty years. The primary example of the kind of literature Morton wished to see ?the "general view" written from "either a critical or historical perspective" ?was London's Film Music (1936), a book very much out of date. Since the fifties, such views have become more common; and if they in turn seem "not very dis tinguished," it is partly because they do so little with the literature that pre cedes them. The perspectives of books by
writers such as Prendergast are and Evans, Bazelon, too closed-in. Prender

(4) Manvell and Huntley's The Tech nique ofFilm Music, 1956: general views of filmmusic's theory and history, amplified by criticism. (5) Gallez's "Theories of Film Music," 1970: scholarly studies of narrow topics with broad implications for
further research.

porary

Charting the literature in this way, we have only skimmed its surface. Each of these currents has for a time been on top, but a more detailed study would reveal them all mixing and guiding the general flow. Still, we have seen enough to make clear that the literature is heterogeneous and abundant. Much of it has been writ ten for a lay audience, some for profes sionals; some of it is technical, much of it is not; it has been written by composers contributed the (they have perhaps
most),

gast complained of a lack of "intelligent and perceptive writing," but we have seen instances of such writing in every phase of filmmusic's history. What con tinually changes is the direction inwhich the intelligence and perception are ap plied. The author of A Neglected Art (1977) wished to end neglect through the development of a "critical literature." By this he presumably meant careful, music within a his critical studies of film torical context (for that is what his own book attempts to be). But if such studies are to be ofmuch use, theymust begin to
swim with the literature's eariier cur rents.

It is the very impermanence of the older literature, the speed with which it disap pears beneath the surface, that makes it
useful for research.

terested observers, and scholars (who have certainly contributed least). Hence, it is difficult to generalize about its use fulness for research. One must place every piece of literature into its context, defining the position of the writer with respect to his or her audience.

critics,

filmmakers,

theorists,

in

and Morton, in Because Prendergast their negative assessments, failed to do the litera this, they underestimated ture's value. When Morton, in 1953, described the literature as mostly "mere cial pleading," generally with no "perma nent value," he had in mind the third current of writing, which had predom 28
reportage," "ant's-eye views" and "spe

look for "general views" in the manuals of Eugene Ahern and Frank Skinner, we will be disappointed; but we can make use of them as informative sources on (1) silent filmmusic as heard in rural com munities and small towns from 1910 to 1915, and (2) the composer inHollywood from 1945 to 1950. The obsolete anthol ogies and indexes of music from the silent period have become keys to the buried treasure of that bygone aesthetic; they can help both to establish control of that vast repertoire and to develop a typology ofmusic for film (and, by exten sion, to shed light on the age-old ques
tions

If, for example,

we

The "mere reportage" of Film Music Notes will lend assistance to historians of filmmusic in the forties and fifties, as will Moving Picture World and its com

concerning

the "meaning"

of music).

OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

panions for earlier decades. The "special pleading" of writers such as Eisler, Keller, and Morton (along with Eisen stein, Arnheim, Pudovkin, and so forth) have become important texts for film music's criticism and theory. These are some examples of how, owing to the growth of scholarly interest in film
music,

tionship to other kinds ofmusic

past and present.

today's primary resources. As of yet, however, these examples remain largely hypothetical. Careful scrutiny both of the literature and of the music itself is in creasing, but we can not, like London, take the encouraging signs for the whole pattern. Scholarly research may have be gun to awaken, but it is still quite early in the day. The very fundamentals elude us. We lack comprehensive indexes, bio graphical data, and editions (critical or otherwise) of film music. Our histories have not progressed much beyond unsub
stantiated generalizations and anec

yesterday's

research

can

become

To carry out these tasks, if only for the first half century of film music's exis tence, may well require another half century of patient teamwork. It will certainly re quire changes of attitude on the part of studios, composers, and scholars. It will be a long time before we have a Reper toire Internationale des Sources Musicales du Cinema, or a Riemanns In the meantime, Filmmusiklexikon. lines of communication must begin to open up, while scholars chisel at projects bit by bit. And these tasks must be kept ever in view. Without them, research is sure to drift, in the power of one current or another; with them,we may presently arrive at a true state of research, in which our understanding of filmmusic, and thus the art itself, can flourish.

dotes, which, however amusing, do little to sort out what is imaginary and what is real in an industry that delights in con fusing the two. Our analyses wrestle with the basic problem ofwhat an analy sis of filmmusic should do. Indeed, the are so scattered and the materials methods so tentative that a true "state"
of research can

A Selective Bibliography Publications

of Film Music

Instead
working upon

of a
with

community of scholars
common set of pro are isolated

hardly

be

said

to exist.

Note: Items with an asterisk are dis cussed in the text of the article. /.Bibliographies
des Musikschrifttums, Bibliographie 2nd & 3rd ser. Var. ed., publ., d. Last Mainz: Schott, 1969-77. Entries under "Filmmusik." sources. central European Very ? . 1950 11 vols.,

cedures toward a set ofmutually agreed coping as best we can with the materials
we can come up with. goals, we individuals,

and methods

We face the following fundamental tasks: 1. To find thematerials (films,scores, literature, and so on). 2. To make the materials available for research (at the proper facil ities, in catalogues and editions). 3. To devise methods of analyzing the
materials a. in so that we can come to an

good

on

Film Institute, ton: G.K. Hall,

Catalogue of theBook Library of theBritish

1975. vol 3: Subject Catalogue. Bos

eclectic Extensive, tion," "Film Music,"

listings under "Anima "Sound," and so forth. A Bibliography."

music, both understanding of film

its own terms ?that

function of music
audio-visual whole;

within
and

is,

the

on Film Music: "Composers no. 1 (1940): 21-24. Films

the

b. in its social context ?that is, the history of thismusic and its rela

from the thirties by influ articles Mostly in conjunction ential composers. Published on "Music with a symposium in Films," pages 5-20.

OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

29

Articles The Critical Index:A Bibliography of

on Film Lana Press, in English, New Gerlach. 1974. Ed. 1946-1972. York: Teachers John & College

of items, listed chronologically Hundreds from the Soviet from 1881 to 1964; many and Eastern Union Incorporates Europe. & Hunt many of the entries from Manvell ley (see below) as they stand. Roger Manvell & John Huntley, comps. "A

pages

and "Music for Silents," "Sound," "Music," brief summaries. 516-20. Occasional

Film

as Art, by the WPA Writers' Program. of New York: Museum Leonard. Ed. Harold 1941. Modern Art and H.W. Wilson, Silent Era," "Music: 202-7; "Sound pages 207-11. American and British Era," pages and trade maga cultural sources, mostly zines. Detailed summaries. Film Accto Ed. Vincent Literature Index, 1974?. 1975-. et al. Albany: Filmdex, SUNY, under "Music." Favors J.

The Film Index: A Bibliography; VoL 1: The

Film Music. House,

Select Bibliography," in their Technique of

1957; 2nd ed. New 1975, pp. 291-302. British sources, York: Hastings

Mostly Music,

logically in four divisions: Books on Film

Articles and Reports on Film Music,

arranged

chrono

Exten Film Music References. Containing Ex and inconsistent. sive, but error-prone in Film McCarty's Composers amples: is dated 1954 instead of 1953, and America Un Skinner's its reprint is not mentioned; from its 1960 reprint derscore is dated rather than the 1950 original; Biamonte ap e film, to be the author of Musica pears 1971 is rather than the editor; and a whole sue ofFilmmakers Newsletter to the subject of film music," "devoted it contains only a few articles on sound. Robert is said to be but

Silent Film Music Publications, and Books

Entries American Film Music.

popular

periodicals. Institute British Film British Film 5. London: Book Li

brary, No. 1977.

Institute,

Selections some new Claudia Sound

from the Catalogue items.

(q.v.), plus

(1980):269-286.
Ca.

on comp. Gorbman, "Bibliography no. 60 Studies in Film." Yale French

& Walter U. Nelson Rubsamen, comps. on Music in Film and Radio." Annual Communi Hollywood Quarterly: to vol. cations Bibliography, Supplement 1 (1946): 40-45. "Literature See Rubsamen The New Film zine Articles below.

and French sources, drawn 350 English from film books and periodicals. primarily and Aes under "General Entries Theory thetics," nology: History and "Music." "Technology: ?The Coming "Tech General," of Sound,"

& Richard Dyer MacCann 1975. New York: Dutton,

Index: A Bibliography of Maga 1930-1970. in English, Ed. Edward S. Perry.

in comp. "Bibliographie," Georges Hacquard, in et le cinema. Bibliographie his La Musique Paris: Presses ternationale de musicologie. de France, universitaires 1959, pp. 101-4. Mostly French the fifties. sources from the thirties to

"Technical "Sound," 63-68, includes pages and Function of Sound," "Theory Aspects "Tech of Film Music," "History of Music," of Music," and "Case Studies nical Aspects Criticism," chronologically summaries. Edmund and "Dubbing." within each Arranged section, with

to Film Index International Periodicals, 1972?. Jones. New York: Bowker, Ed. Karen 1975-. St. Martin's Press, 1973,1974; Entries tations. Zofia under "Music" and "Sound." Anno

from the ar Nick, comp. "Literatur," Musik in Geschichte und in ticle "Filmmusik," 1955. Cassel: B?renreiter, Gegenwart. Mostly works Francois maire," Vecran. 329-31. German on film. sources, including general

in her Lissa, comp. "Bibliographie," der Filmmusik. Berlin: Henschel, Aesthetik 1965, pp. 409-24.

Porcile, comp. in his Presence Paris: Editions

du

som "Bibliographie a la musique de CERF, 1969, pp.

30

1982) OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter

sources French from the forties ties. (Cf. Hacquard.) Roy Prendergast, New comp.

to the six

Of value

principally

for Italian

sources.

Films.

A Neglected Art: A CriticalStudy of Music in

York: New York Press, 1977, pp. 254-60. University

"Bibliography,"

in his

Motion Pictures." Bibliography on Music for Hollywood Quarterly 5 (1950):195-99. Unique headings: "Psychological Articles
ar on the Effects of Music," "Professional ticles ... by Critics, Composers and Musi of and Sources cians," and "Bibliographies Information on Film and Radio Music."

John

V.

Zucker man,

comp.

"A

Selected

An eclectic of mostly range sources keyed to each chapter. to Film Index Retrospective 1930-1971. Ed. Linda Batty. New 1975. "Music," pages 311-12. Less

American

Periodicals, York: Crown,

New Film either the Critical Index or the

Index. RILM Ed. Some brief annotations. 1967?. Literature, York: International Abstracts Barry ofMusic S. Brook. New

extensive

than

from //. Sources (through 1929).

the Silent

Period

RILM Center,CityUniversity, 1968-.

Entries

Arts under "Dramatic (Including "Film Music." under indexed Film)," of musicological World-wide coverage sources. Walter Rubsamen, comp. "Literature on

Note: The following lists contain no more than samplings of these types of literature, selected to suggest the range of such publications. References tomany others can be found in the books byBerg and Birett, cited in section III. A. Anthologies and/or Indexes of Music
Ideal Ascherberg's London: Ascherberg, 29. Cinema Hopwood Series. & Crew, 8 vols. 1928

Music inFilm and Radio: Addenda (1943-48)." Hollywood Quarterly 3 (1949): 403-3; re
& Rubsa printed, combined with the Nelson Year in Musical men bibliography Hinrichsen's

book 6(1950): 318-31.

Hyden, Philip Cathie, Reginald Somer

R. Collins, Herman Finck, ville, Walter and Ar Percy Elliot, H. Baynton-Power, thur Wood. Piano and orchestra parts. comp. Picture and Modern Music: A Collec for the

six per volume, each numbers, Forty-eight volume by a different composer: Walford

for the Silent "Music Subject headings: ofMusic in the Sound Film," "The Function and Reproduction of Film," "Recordings Film Music," of Film Music," "History "The Sound Film as an Audio-Visual Ex of Film Music," "Criticism perience," "Legal Rights of Film Composers." Win and

Lacey Baker, tion of Classic tures with

theOrganEspecially Adapted for Moving Pic

Practical 2 vols. New Suggestions York: H.W. Gray to

Compositions

and An Jr., comp. "A Selected Sharpies, on of Books and Articles notated Bibliography in the Cinema." Cinema Journal Music 17, no.

Organist.

[1919].

2 (1978):36-67.

into "Reference Over 400 sources, divided "Books," Works, Including Bibliographies," and "Periodical Articles," plus supplemen clubs, soundtrack tary lists of film music an sources, and films on film music. Many of bibliogra recent The most notations. on for (though weak phies, wide-ranging and mostly accurate. eign periodicals), in Mario Verdone, comp. "Nota bibliografica," nel film. Ed. Luigi Chiarini & Enzo La musica e nero editore, Rome: Masetti. Bianco 1950, pp. 139-45.

fifteen per volume, with Thirty numbers, in the first and the "mod the "classics" in the second. is pro erns" Each piece a "synopsis" vided with of its affective character.

The Theatre: Dramatic John L. Bastian. Picture Music. Bastian Moving Chicago: ply Co., 1913.

and Sup

_.

The World: Dramatic tureMusic. Chicago: Bastian, Thirty

and Moving 1913.

Pic

respectively,

numbers and thirty-four numbers, each very short. Piano.

1982) JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter OF

31

Hubert

Bath. Feldman's don: B. Feldman, 1925. Eight numbers,

Film

Fittings.

Lon

ume

Evil Intention, Thoughts, and Reconciliation. Piano, for small or full orchestra numbers each. Becce. Kinotheh Giuseppe 12 vols. Berlin: Schlesinger, Eighty-one numbers,

lain, Parental Affection, Grief, Happy

The Dispute, also published in sets of two

namely,

Heroic,

The

Vil

2: "Thematisches of Skalenregister" in a fascinating 3,050 numbers, arranged table by mood, tempo, and form. The most complex and valuable work of its kind. Carl Fischer Designed Vaudeville Picture Folio, Especially Moving Picture for Moving Theatres, etc. New York: Carl Houses,

Fischer, [1913].

Neue

Filmmusik.

[ca. 1920-1927]. in volumes 1A (7) and

IB (8),Tragisches Drama; volumes 2A (8) and 2B (7), Lyrisches Drama (Chopiniana); volumes 3A (9)and 3B (6), Grosses Drama; volumes 4A (6) and 4B (6),Hochdrama termezzi, and 5B (6)Exotika, and 6B (6)
small orchestra, Large, (arr. Richard Tourbie). See, below. Erdmann, Breil's Collection of Original Picture for Motion Plays. 1917. tisches Agitatos; volumes 5A (6)Ernste In

numbers: "National and Fifty-eight Songs ... Mazurkas Melodies, Waltzes, Marches, Dramatic and Characteristic Music." Small orchestra. ar composers; Many principal ranger, M.L. Lake (q.v.). to Play Inc. What the Fischer, for A Complete Motion Music Picture and Conductors. New York: Guide for Pianists Carl Carl Fischer, n.d.

Movies:

Verschiedenes. trio, or piano also, Hans

Joseph Dramatic London:

Carl

Music Chappell,

of lists of titles, and Twenty categories their tempo, key, meter, and composer, of adver pages price, followed by several for Fischer (Cf. tisements, publications. Julius Seredy.)

Twelve in sections constructed numbers, so "That it is possible to pass from one sec tion of one number into almost any section . . . of another "Fore [the composer's Piano, organ, word"]." large or small or chestra. An by important early collection the man who collaborated with Griffith on scores for Birth and Intoler of a Nation ance, besides composing many other origi nal scores. Ditson's Music for the Photoplay. Boston:

Gregg A. Freiinger. Motion Picture Piano Mu To Fit the Action, sic: Descriptive Music or Scene Character Pictures. La ofMoving 1909. fayette, Indiana: G.A. Freiinger, Fifty-one numbers. Among such publications. According the earliest to a note of on

was "known as one of the 879, Freiinger in America," best descriptive and pianists in theatrical for work had been "engaged the past twenty years." comp. Denison's Gregory, Descriptive Book for Plays, Festivals, and Pageants Pictures. 1913. Moving Chicago: T.S. Denison, Adam Music Nearly tunes, 150 numbers, mostly in simple arrangements. well-known

thework in Moving Picture World 5 (1909):

Oliver Ditson, [1918-1925].

ton Borch (11), Lucius Hosmer (3) Otto Langey (21),ChristopherO'Hare (12),T.H. Multi Rollinson (1),and Berthold Tours (1).
ple arrangements. Becce. Giuseppe Allge der Filmmusik. Ed. Ludwig meines Handbuch Brav. 2 vols. Berlin: Schlesinger, [1927]. Hans Erdmann &

in five looseleaf series (10 Fifty numbers Nicolas Amani each). Composers: (1), Gas

Chfarles] Grelinger.Musical Cinema Guide [sic]Guide musical a Vusage du pianiste de

cinema. Paris: Edition A. de Smit, 1919. numbers: Berceuse, Reverie, Twenty-five Duo d Amour, Chagrin, and so forth. The Hawkes Photo-Play 1922-28. Series. London:

Volume

on "Musik 1: Introductory essay und Film," followed by two indexes (of com to the and posers headings) referring second volume, plus twenty pages of adver for film music publications. Vol tisements

Hawkes,

the largest collections: Among bers in twenty loose-leaf albums,

120 num normally

32

OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

one composer ments.

per album. Multiple

arrange

Schirmer's Collection

M.L. Lake & Lester Loose Fischer's Leaf tion for Piano Solo. Fischer, 1915,1916,1918.

Brockton, comps. Carl Collec Motion Picture 3 vols. New York: Carl

Piano. 1929.

A Loose Series: Leaf Photoplay Musi and Descriptive ofDramatic . . . or Full cal Numbers for Small Arranged and Playable Orchestra for Any Combination and Violin Includes Which of Instruments 7 vols. New York: G. Schirmer, 1915

numbers, Forty-five Lake and composed and

2, Brockton teen "Hurry"s and ten "Agitato"s.

per volume. 1 volumes arranged thir volume 3. Includes fifteen

Seventy Andino gunker

PianOrgan Extracted

Film Books Music, of Incidental the World Famous from "Berg" 7 vols. New Incidental and "Cinema." Series. York: Bel win, n.d. 42 nos. republished under Approximately new headings: Dramatic and Pathetic (7), Love Themes Neutral (7), Emotional Music Music and Galops (7), Ani (5), Western Indian and mated Cartoonix (5), American, Mexican Music (6), and Preludes (volume most Composers frequently Morris Aborn, Gaston Borch, represented: Sol P. Levy, and Adolf Chas. K. Herbert, incomplete). Minot, plus sixteen others. for Pic ofMusic New York:

William Lo bensky (4),Edward Falck (2), witz (6),Otto Langey (21), Adolf Minot (4), Domenico Savino (1;), Hugo Riesenfeld (3),
and Walter C. Schad (4). Several bers were reprinted in Rapee's Motion tureMoods. num Pic

ten per volume, by J.E. numbers, Ber (2), Irenee Berge (3), W.W. Borch Du (6), Gaston (5), Arcady

Julius Seredy, comp. Carl Fischer Analytical Orchestra Guide: A Practical Handbook for the Profession. New York: Carl Fischer, 1929. Even extensive than Rapee's Ency limited to the music although alone. Over 300 sub by Fischer published with extensive cross-refer ject headings, to listed according ences, "every number clopedia, more

Mood

Erno Rapee. Encyclopedia tures. NY: Belwin, 1925; Arno, 1970. _. Motion Organists. print New The 270 Picture

reprint

of Time, and Form, with indications (title p.). Be and Duration" Key, Tempo cause of its late date, the index affords a survey of the output of this comprehensive ad Extensive active film music publisher. vertisements S. at the end of the book.

Moods

New York: York: Arno,

and for Pianists G. Schirmer, 1924; re 1974.

Lester Guide

and M. Chas. J. Roberts Seredy, Music Picture Lake, comps. Motion to the Carl Fischer Modern Orchestra New York: Carl Fischer, 1922. Catalogue. Julius Much cata than the above less extensive and logue, with only nine general headings some subdivisions; but expressly prepared for motion use, and interspersed picture with many paragraphs that cover impor for the silent film musician tant problems songs, (e.g., the use of silences, well-known leitmotifs, etc.). Many advertisements.

of about latter book is an anthology under and indexed arranged pieces, the former is a much fifty-two headings; more index, listing numer "encyclopedic" ous compositions under each of its detailed "Aero Music," ("Abyssinian headings

Fables ?See "Aesop's plane," 'Comedy and con Pictures'" composed [sic]). Rapee in several of New York ducted City's in these two and sought largest theatres to condense works and summar expansive in the Motion ize his "six years' experience Picture game" {Moods, p. iii).

Sam J[ohn] S. Zamecnik. Music. 4 vols. Cleveland: numbers

1-2),1914(3), and 1923(4).

Ninety-six

Picture Fox Moving Sam Fox, 1913 (vols.

WhichMay forPiano, Violin& Violoncello, to

be Added Violin don: Augener, II, Bass 1921-1923. & Harmonium. Lon

Ernest

Reeves,

arr. Augener's

Cinema Music

film composers. This was merous film music series Fox,

piano, by one of themost prolificof silent

the first of nu pieces most of them containing posed or arranged by Zamecnik. Manuals What and How toPlay for brought out by com

(25, 24, 21, and 26), for

loose leaf nos. An example of Twenty-five stocks of salon how publishers converted music Valse, by Leon (e.g. Liselotte: to use in cinemas. Adam)

B.

Performance A. Ahern.

Eugene Pictures.

Twin Falls,

Idaho:

n.p., 1913.

OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

33

to Pipe Bernard Barnes. From Piano Organ: An Instruction Book Written for the Pianist an Efficient Who Wishes toBecome Organist. Educational no. 17. New for the Music Library York: Belwin, 1928. Student,

Music 1970. For

Co.,

1920;

reprint

New

York:

Arno,

to motion Scattered references picture on "Organ but heavy playing, emphasis ... as a perfect Tricks and Effects accepted to the Motion Picture" accompaniment (Barnes' George Motion 1921. One on the sources detailed history and practice of silent filmmusic, by a composer/compiler of broad experience. of the most Buckley, London: The Orchestral 1923. Hawkes, and Cinema W. "Introduction").

the advanced performer, with detailed on technical advice as such problems thematic the requirements development, of individual genres, and the proper use of the theatre organ.

Ernst Motion 1925.

Luz.

Motion

Picture

Presentation of Beynon. Musical New Pictures. York: G. Schirmer,

Picture New chestras.

Exhibitors, York: Music

For Synchrony: and Or Buyers Buyers' Corp.,

Proposes

P. Kevin Organist.

a new method of "cueing motion to a complex according "Sym Color Guide." The method phonic ap never caught on, but the author parently remains noteworthy as a compiler of scores formany Metro films of the twenties. pictures"

Technical

treatise

on a fairly simple

level.

A G. Roy Carter. Theatre Secrets: Organist's Tricks Collection Imitations, of Successful and Effects Picture for Motion Accompani on the Pipe ment Los Angeles: Organ. pub lished by the author, A n.d.

New Photo-Play. 1917. Bureau, Sixteen based

[T.J.A. Mapp].

The Art York:

the of Accompanying Musical Photo-Play

of "ideas and suggestions pages on the practice of some of the lead ing New York Theatres" (p. 3).

loose leaf pamphlet. tails than in Barnes. Erdmann Handbuch &

More

technical

de

Hans

gemeines

Guiseppe der Filmmusik

Becce.

All

Shaw Meeker. The Art of Photoplaying May . . . In or Double Operating Any Photoplayer Tracker Piano Players St. Paul: for Theatres. n.p., 1916. How piano to accompany rolls. pictures using player

(See under Frank

section

II-A.) New: Organ 400 Self Players. May Complete 1922. Meskimen Mills. The Pipe Instruction and Reference Organist's on Work

Fruttchey.

Suggestions Help Detroit: n.p., n.d. A book

Something for Movie

theArt of Photo Playing. [Philadelphia]:n.p.,

on the "Requirements A brief introduction of the Movie followed by an ex Organist," tensive encyclopedia of "Notes."

for of maxims, seemingly designed what the player who has never considered he is doing.

to Pictures: A Playing Tyacke George. and Conductors Guide for Pianists ofMotion Picture Theatres. London: Kinematograph E.T. Heron, Weekly, [1912]; 2nd ed. London: W. 1914.

Kinobrevier: M[ax] Muhlenau. musikalischen Filmillustration.

milianMuller, [1926].
Primarily of use

zur Anleitung Berlin: Maxi

An Both

exhaustive editions

manual contain

for its early lists of music

date. pub

kapellmeister," according (see Section III), page 46.

for the "unwissende Kino to Ottenheym

lishers. Edith Lang

paniment

Accom & George West. Musical Pictures. Boston: Boston ofMoving

Ten Lesson Course The [Maude] Stolley-McGill Piano Picture in Moving Portland, Playing. Ore.: Stolley-McGill Publ. Co., 1916; reprint as a column in 1922. Melody,

34

OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

The first five lessons offer the performer technical the last advice; mostly general five take up the requirements of specific genres. E. Talmadge. William N. p., n. pub., 1914. How To Play Pictures.

though many topics and sources ed in a superficial manner. Herbert sammlung. Martin Previn: 1981. Part Birett.

are

treat

Material Stummfilm-Musifa Berlin: Deutsche 1970. Kinemathek,

Advice in a folksystyle fromone of the

early Northwest and True.) professionals. (Cf. Ahern

& Ross Andre Bookspan Yockey. A Biography. New York: Doubleday,

to Play the Cinema Or George Tootell. How Book gan: A Practical by a Practical Player. London: Paxton, 1927. The als. most informative of the organ manu

1, "The Hollywood Life," cellent index and photographs.

pp. 3-96. Ex

Jack Bornoff Twentieth

& Lionell

Salter. Music

and

the

Media. Century Music Council Publications vol. 3. Florence Communication, "Cinema Lacombe.

International in Music and Olschki, 1972.

and What To Play for Pic Lyle C. True. How tures: A Manual and Guide for Pianists. San Francisco: The Music Supply Co., 1914. the 'What' over the "Emphasizes see Berg (cited below), page 167. 'How'"?

et musique Ed. Alain (1960-1975)." issue of Ecran no. 39 (Sept Special tember 1975). a round table, four articles, A chronology, and a biographical dictionary. Ed. Rick Altman. "Cinema/Sound." Special issue of Yale French Studies no. 60 (1980). The most stimulating to date. 5 anthology articles on the theory of sound, 3 on its his tory, 4 on music, plus 3 case studies and a (see Gorbman above). The ar bibliography ticles by Brown, Gorbman (n. 95), Insdorf, and Ropars-Wuilleumier Metz, Percheron, valuable. (n. 14) are especially

///.Books, Dissertations, Pamphlets and Periodicals on Film Music, from 1930 to thePresent position f?r den Film. Munich: Rogner &
Bernhard, 1969. Theodor Adorno & Hanns Eisler. Kom

lished under Eisler below.

The firstedition of this work to be pub

both authors' names. See

Gerald Bad 1945. Boy of Music. New Sound

Antheil. George York: Doubleday, Chapter Yves

Cockshott. Incidental Film. Pamph. London: stitute, 1946. (See n. 73).

Music British

in Film

the In

V, "Hollywood,"

pages

281-368.

Les Baudrier. du visible et de Signes sonore. Le Monde Partie: Vaudible; Premiere Paris: 1964. IDHEC, Three very philosophical chapters. never published. Knowing the Score. Second

"Colonna sonora." Ed. Mario Verdone. Special

28, nos. 3/4 (1967).

Five and articles,

Glauco & Pelligrini e nero issue of Bianco

part apparently Irwin Bazelon.

reprints "Documente,"

a of Pellegrini, filmography of eight earlier sources: four and four "Testimonianze."

York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1975.

New

the American Silent Film, 1896 Accompany 1927. Ph.D., dissertation of Iowa, University 1973; New York: Arno, 1976. The best work to date on this period, al

Charles Merrell Berg. An Investigation the Motives for and Realization ofMusic

Henri Colpi. Defense et illustration de la musique dans lefilm.Lyons: SERDOC, 1963.

Ermanno Comuzio. Film music Amministrazione The provinciale, lexicon. 1980. Pa via:

of to

most recent biographical dictionary, by a critic who has written frequently on film music for Italian periodicals.

JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter OF 1982)

35

Robert Media,

Emmett New York: Part

Dolan. 2, "Films"

Music

in Modern 1967. 51-144.

Entr'acte

Newsletter. Title.) Soundtrack: Study The Music Series. New of the York:

G.Schirmer,

Manual. Die drei

pages

(See Main *Mark Movies. Evans.

Ed. Heinrich Lindlar & Reinhold Schubert.

Musik der Zeit: eine NS, und Gegenwart, 1958. Hawkes, Schriftenreihe vol. 2. Bonn: zu Musik & Boosey

grossen

"F": Film-Funk-Fernsehen.

Hopkinson & Blake, 1975; reprintNew York:

Da Capo, 1979 (Pap.). Studio Musi in the Record 1971. Aldine-Atherton, Robert R. Faulkner. Hollywood cians: Their Work and Careers

Cinema

fourteen Anthology; and technical. *Hanns Eisler.

articles,

philosophical

ing Industry.

Chicago:

York:

for the Films. New Composing Press, 1947; reprint University for Libraries New York: Books Freeport, 1971. Press, Oxford The ten was text of this book was in German, originally writ in & Eisler, by Adorno

_, Careers

Music Brunswick,

on Demand: Film

in theHollywood

NJ: Transaction

Industry. New 1982. Books,

Composers

and

Due inJuly.A highlytechnical sociological

study, based on data Hollywood's to 1978. Wilhelmine pferischer principal gathered composers from 40 of from 1964

translated ?with changes significant with George in collaboration Eisler ?by Adorno and Norbert Guterman. MacManus his name from this edition with withdrew Eisler's consent, seeking to avoid the kinds was the latter of political problems States with the United gov experiencing to Ger returned Eisler After ernment. edition he brought out a German many, (East much Berlin: revised

1944.For publicationby Oxford in 1947, it

musikscha Fey. Die Verwertung Werke finsbes. bei Funk, Film und Dissertation Munich, 1941; Schallplatte). 1941. Triltsch, Wiirzberg:

Cited in the Nelson & Rubsamen biblio

graphy, posers." under "Legal Rights of Film Com

(Munich: Rog fur den Film Komposition was ner & Bernhard, 1969). What Adorno in fact publishing was the original German for the first time, with both au version,

Henschel, 1949), but it was in accordance with anti and pro-Soviet American doctrine, along to make with a desire the language more in style. Subsequently, however, popular Eisler gave Adorno publication rights to it out as the book, and the latter brought

"Film Music." Ed. of Cinema Journal Articles

John L. Fell. Special 17, no. 2 (1978).

issue

on jazz and by Charles Berg on Eisenstein Gallez and Proko Douglas the Win fiev, plus Jr., biblio Sharpies, graphy. Notes.

*Film Music

Although the 1971 Books for Libraries

Press edition contains text a translation of this postscript, the 1947 Oxford of the translation text still awaits the remains version. Thus original to identical an English

thors named; and he explained the book's "Zum history in a postscript, complicated der Originalfassung" Erstdruck (pp. 212-13).

The firstperiodical devoted to film music, edited by Grace Mabee, published under Film Music 11-15 (1951-55),and (1941-51), Film and TV Music 16-17 (1956-57).The
ar included news items, general reviews of current film ticles, and many and scores, frequently with score excerpts, more often than not by the composer. An 6-11 (1947-52) is in 11, no. index to volumes contents no. 1; 15 in 16, no. 1; and 16 in 17, no. 1. "Le 1935." Film Sonore: et la musique L'Ecran issue of La Revue Musicale various titles: Film Music Notes 1-10

Adorno-Eisler

publication.

Hartmut eine comp. FilmmusikEngmann, Dokumentation. Munich: Wolf gang Gielow, 1968. An of short excerpts, all trans anthology connected lated into German, by short edi torial paragraphs. JOURNAL OF THE UNIVERSITY

5 (1952): 19-23;volume 12 is indexed in 13,

en [no.

151] (December 1934).

FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATION XXXIV,

Special

36

1 (Winter 1982)

(See n. 52.) Film Music Notebook.

Among subject.

the weaker

general

views

of the

Publication of the Elmer Bernstein Film

Music CA issues Collection, 91302. Edited Box 261, Calabasas, Four by Eve Adamson. 1, beginning with volume P.O.

Earle H?gen. Scoring forFilms: A Complete

Text. New York: EDJ Music, 1971. Fifteen technical chapters, from scores for the I Spy by a symposium of Creating Music Alfred using excerpts television show

its new issue, and has coordinated with these. dealt recordings Composers with in the first ten issues are Max Steiner (vol. 1, no. 1), Elmer Bernstein (vol. 1, no. 2), Franz Waxman (vol. 1, no. 3), Bernard Herrmann (vol. 1, no. 4), Miklos Rozsa (vol. in every 2 no. David (vol. 2, no. 2), 1), Alfred Newman Raksin (vol. 2, no. 3), John Green (vol. 2, no. 4), Alex North (vol. 3, no. 1),

excellent 1974). Some those by *Fred Steiner. articles, especially a film The Notebook has also provided composer ography of a leading Hollywood

per year, 1 (Autumn number

Followed ogy

(byH?gen and Friedhofer) as illustration.

on "The Psychol for Films," fea and Lalo

Jones, Quincy Schifrin. James

turing Friedhofer, Jerry Goldsmith,

Newman,

Analysis

C. Hamilton. "Leith Stevens: A Critical of His Works." D.M.A. disseration of Missouri at Kansas University City, 1976.

Leigh Harline (vol.3, no. 2), JerryFielding

(vol. 3, no. 3), Henry Mancini (vol. 4, no. 1) and Bronislau and Dmitri Tiomkin Kaper (both in vol. 4, no. 2).

Application forTheatrical Music and Silent

Film." Ph.D. dissertation nati, 1975. Hans W. New University of Cincin

Esther

S. Hanlon.

"Improvisation:

Theory

and

Reginal Foort. The Cinema Organ: A Descrip tion inNon-Technical of a Fascina Language 2nd rev. ed., Vestal, 1970. New York: Vestal

Sharp. Two 256.

Heinscheimer. Menagerie York: Doubleday, 1948. on Hollywood, pages

in F

tingInstrumentandHow It Is Played. [1932];

Press,

chapters

209

under Section II-B ex Properly belongs cept for its late date; but most of the book concerns the workings of the organ and as Foort's career, rather than film music such. Film Institute Hugo Friedhof er: An American Louis B. Mayer Foundation Oral History. In terviewer & comp. Irene Kahn Atkins. TS in

Jean-Roland Jazz sur films: 55 Hippenmeyer. annees de rapports jazz-cinema vus a travers plus de 800 films tournes entre 1917 et 1972. de la Thiele, Switz.: Editions Yverdon, [1973]. (Cf.Meeker, below.) Sounds for Silents. 1970. New

Hof mann. Charles York: Drama Books Hofmann Museum

Specialists,

theFeldman Library of theAFI, 1974.

Comprehensive, iscences, with

detailed and witty remin an outstanding filmography. Gerrero. dissertation "Music as a Film State

at the played accompaniments of Modern Art. His short book is informative and well illustrated, and comes a recording with of performances made during screenings at the Museum, Film 1968-69. London:

Richard

Henry Variable." Ph.D. 1969.

Michigan

University,

Arno, A study of the value of music as an influ ence on learning in an instructional film. Claudia Gorbman. "Film Music: Narrative in French Films." Ph.D. disser ofWashington, 1978. tation, University

Skelton Robinson, [1947]; reprintNew York:

1972. (See n. 73.)

John Huntley.

British

Music.

Edward wood's

Johnson.

Bernard

Herrmann:

Functions

Music-Dramatist. Triad Press no. 6. Rickmansworth, Series, graphical Triad, 1977.

Holly Biblio Eng.:

La Musique etle cinema. Georges Hacquard. internationale de musicologie. Bibliographie Paris: Presses universitaires de France, 1959.

Klaus im technischen Zeitalter: Jungk. Musik von der Edison-Walze zur Bildplatte. Bu

OF JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter 1982)

37

chereihe Berlin:

des

Haude

Sender Freie Berlin, & Spener, 1971. sections

no.

11.

Scattered overview problems

on film in this the new media and formusic. of all

short their

to Film Music: revised, partially sequel corrected and updated. Still many prob over the lems, but a distinct improvement

original. Zofia Lissa. Aesthetik der Filmmusik. 1964 in Polish; German trans. Berlin: Henschel, 1965. Kurt London. Film Music: Features A Summary of the of Its History, and Possible Develop Bensinger. York: Arno, London: 1970.

Music Film

Hans Keller. The Need for CompetentFilm

Criticism. Institute, Pamphlet. 1947. London: British

Lebensbild. Osterreichische des Komponisten xx. Jahrhunderts, vol. 10. Vienna. Elisabeth 1967. Lafiti & Ost. Bundesverlag, Alain Lacombe & Claude Rocle. La Musique du film. Paris: Editions Francis Van de Velde, 1979. The most recent French Book, following the same general format as Colpi and Por cile. Nearly 140 pp. of general discussion, selective filmographies.

Luzi Korngold.Erich WolfgangKorngold Ein

Characteristic

Aesthetics, Technique ments. Trans. Eric Faber,

S.

1936; reprint New

Milton Lustig.Music Editing forMotion Pic

Hastings The tures. Communication Arts 1980. House, Books. New York:

followed by close to 500 biographies and

first manual for this specialized techni cal profession. from four scores Excerpts of the 70s (e.g., Heaven are in Can Wait) cluded. Title.

Main

de la Motte-Haber & Hans Emons. Helga Filmmusik: eine systematische Beschreibung. Munich: 1980. Carl Hanser, Indeed the most and sophisti systematic cated general study to date. A solid theo retical introduction, followed by analysis of dozens of excerpts in both technical and functional terms. George Music. Music Oscar NY: A. Lazarou. Max and Film Steiner The Max Steiner

Quarterly

Newsletter

of the Entr'acte

Re

by the Entr'acte has issued many

ularly published 1974-1978.Now replaced

Newsletter. outstanding The society recordings.

P.O. Box cording Society, IL 60690. Ed. John Stephen

2319, Chicago, Lasher. Irreg

and Scores: A Practical Henry Mancini. Sounds to Professional Guide Orchestration. New York: Northridge Music, 1962. Roger Manvell & John Huntley. Music. Focal Press The Tech

Athens, Society, Levant.

Greece: 1971. A

Doubleday, Chapter 144. See

Smattering 1940.

of Ignorance.

3, "A Cog n. 63.

in the Wheel,"

pages

89

of Library London: Focal, Techniques. 1957; 2nd ed., revised and enlarged by Richard Arnell and Peter Day, New York: Hastings 1975. House, Clifford McCarty. Film Composers in

of Film nique Communication

Louis Sampson

Levy. Music Low, 1948.

for

the Movies.

London:

America: A Checklist of Their Work Los

Angeles: Da Capo, Valentine, 1972. 1953; reprint New York:

James L. Limbacher. Film Music: From Vio lins to Video. Metuchen, New Jersey: Scare crow Press, 1974. Part of fifty-two short ar 1, an anthology ticles (many of them excerpts); part 2, a series of indexes of composers and films. but unreliable. (See n. 85.)

One-hundred composers, sixty-three their film scores listed by date.

with

Useful -,

Robert and Guy McLaughlin. "Broadway A History of Economic Interac Hollywood: tion." Ph.D. dissertation. of University 1970. Wisconsin, Focuses on the ties between commercial theater and Hollywood, but very little on filmmusic.

Score: Keeping Metuchen: Scarecrow,

Film Music, 1981.

1972-1979.

38

JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATION XXXIV, 1 (Winter OF 1982)

David

Meeker.

Jazz

in theMovies: London:

A Guide Talisman,

to

Jazz Musicians, 1977.

1917-1977.

Konrad Ottenheym. "Film undMusik bis zur Einfuhrung des Tonfilms: Beitr?ge zu einer
Filmmusik." der Geschichte 1944. Berlin Friedrich-Wilhelm, A Mikl?s Dissertation, little known but very fine contribution. Palmer. Rozsa: A Sketch

Contains 2,239 entries. Supersedes the Movies: A Tentative Index

Jazz

in

BFI, 1972).

(London:

Christopher H?rtel,

phlet. Hollywood: and Distributors

"The Men Who Write the Music Scores." Pam Motion Picture Producers of America, 1943. on scoring Useful information personnel in the early forties. (See n. and methods 69.)

ofHis Life and Work. London: Breitkopf&

1975. Chapter 4, "Film Music," pages 28-47. Musician Editeurs

Jaubert: Porcile. Maurice Francois ou maudit? Les Paris: populaire fran?ais reunis, 1971. date. tion. and

Motion Mechelen,

Picture

Music.

Ed.

Luc

Van 1980.

de Ven.

The best biography of a film musician to

Thoughtful scholarly presenta a

Belgium:

Soundtrack,

Paperbound anthologyof 24 articles culled

from issues track!). phies, posers. Music riguez; Bureau 1-12 of SCN Includes and/or (q.v. ? now Sound filmogra discographies, com for eight interviews

_.

Paris: Editions du CERF, 1969.

Roy M. Prendergast.

Presence

de

la musique

Vieran.

New

Music inFilms, New York: Critical Study of

York University Press, 1977; also Norton

A Neglected

Art:

and Dance

in California Ed. Jose Rod J. Perlman. comp. William Hollywood: ofMusical 1940. Research,

Paperback,1977. Andre Previn & Antony Hopkins. Music toFace. New York: Scribner's, 1971. two The careers. Fred K. men converse and Face

of the Wide-ranging anthology on matters (6 ar ory and practice, including film music ticles), plus a biographical dictionary. Music Ed. in California and Dance and the West. Drake Richard Saunders. Hollywood: Bureau ofMusical 1948. Research, Format similar to 1940 volume.

compare

das Verh?ltnis von Musik Berlin:Ullstein, 1960.

"Filmmusik," pages lated chapters.

Prieberg.

Musica

ex Machina:

und Technik
re

?ber

in Film and Television: An Internation Music al Selective 1964-1974. Catalogue, Comp, and ed. International Music Centre, Vienna. Paris: Unesco Lists Press, 1975. of operas, concerts, and experimental films and tapes educational programs, programs. e film. Ed. dell' Ateneo, S.G. 1959.

234-43,

plus many

Pro Musica

Sana

of the Mikl?s Rozsa Publication Quarterly Society, 319 Ave. C, No. 11-H, New York, NY 10009. Ed. John Fitzpatrick. Twenty

Musica Edizioni

Biamonte.

Rome:

In papers read at the XX Mostra dArte ternazionale di Cinematografica * Sev from the Venezia, plus eight more Thirteen

ence (1950).
*La musica comp. Bianco Enzo e nero,

enth International

Music

Congress

at Flor

with vol. 1, no. 1 (Spring 1972). The focus is in print, on disc and on always on Rozsa, and recordings tape; but other composers receive consideration. The is not society to be confused with John Stevens' Austra publishes a newsletter). for 1956;

six nos. to date (Spring 1979), beginning

lian-basedMikl?s Rozsa Cult (whichalso

nel film. Masetti.

Bianco

lished the same year in book form (Rome:

e nero editore). on the occasion Published of the Seventh Forence and also the XIMostra Congress, Internazionale. Twenty-seven papers.

and Luigi Chiarini, issue of double Special 11, nos. 5-6 (1950); also pub

Ed.

F. Rawlings. How To Choose Music Amateur Films. London: Focal Press, 2nd ed. London: Focal Press, 1961.

A throwback to the catalogues and manu als of the silent film period, except that re cordings are the subject, rather than music in live performance.

JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATIONXXXIV, 1 (Winter OF 1982)

39

Friedrich G. Robbe. Die Einheitlichkeit von Bild und Klang im Tonfilm: Untersuchung
'?ber das

f?r die tonfilmische Gestaltung. Dissertation

Hamburg, Moschinski, 1940; 1940. Hamburg: Niemann &

schiedene

Sinnorgane

Zusammenwirkung und seine

der

ver

Bedeutung

Steiner Annuals. An indispen by ten Max sable series of sources for information on one of Hollywood's giants, with attention given to other composers as well. Gestern und HeuteStummfilmmusik Interviews anlasslich ein trage und Ed. Walter Seidler. Berlin: Bei Sym

phy under "The Sound Film as an Audio Visual Experience." The literature on this important topic is small; so it is to be re sult.

Cited in theNelson & Rubsamen bibliogra

Berlin. 1979. Hans musik:

posium insKino Arsenal am 9 juni 1979 in

Spiess,

gretted that thiswork is difficultto con

Sabaneev. Music

A for the Films: handbook and Conductors. for Composers Trans. S.W. Pring. London: Pitman, 1935; re print New York: Arno, 1978.

Leonid

trage G?tersloh:

Alex Die deutsche Thomas. Tonfilm von den Anfangen bis 1956. Neue Bei zur Film und Fernschforschung, Vol. 3. Bertelsmann, 1962.

Two large sections: the first half a chain of historical and conceptual essays; the
second, indexes of composers. South for the Movies. Tony Thomas. Music NJ: Barnes, 1973. (Also in paper Brunswick, back.) and full of information, Entertaining not at all a scholarly presentation. Film Score: The View from South Brunswick and New York: 1979. but the A.S.

a Musical Soundtrack upon Manipulating in Attitude toward Militarism-Paci Changes Students." Ph.D. 1970. dissertation Syracuse

Change: A Study to Determine the Effect of fism Held by Tenth Grade Social Studies
_.

Stanley

Schwartz.

"Film Music

and Attitude

University, SCN:

(Cf. Gerrero Soundtrack Soundtrack, tridlaan

above.) Collector's P.O. Box Newsletter. 3895, Springfield,

Podium. Barnes,

In 165, 2800 Mechelen, Belgium. short articles and su terviews, reviews, perb international discographics. Marlin Skiles. Music Scoring for TV and Mo tion Pictures. Blue Ridge Summit, PA.: Tab Books, 1976. The most recent manual, concisely written, and especially valuable it includes because interviews with several com Hollywood posers. Frank Skinner Criterion, Skinner. Music 1960. Underscore. Co., 1950; Los Angeles: New York:

MA 01101 or Luc Van de Ven, Editor, As

Articles by 20 Hollywood composers,with biographical sketches, a discography by 1970),and a reprintof the Page Cook (from Sharpies bibliography.Some of the articles
are reprints, several places; taken lack a from out-of-the-way source attribution; a few

and perhaps Steiner's, Frederick] others, are newly written. Dmitri Tiomkin & Prosper Bucanelli. Don't Hate Me. New York: Doubleday, Der

Please 1961.

reprint

eine Gefahr fur den Musiker Tonfilm: beruf und fur die Musikkultur. Pamphlet Berlin: 1930. Deutscher-Musiker-Verlag, of the strong resistance Indicative to re corded sound on the part of professional si lent film musicians.

The onlymanual to proceed by tracing the

composition Frederick of one film score. "The

?ber

die Musik

im Film:

American Film Composer: A Study ofAlfred

Newman's Music in the First Decade of the Sound Era." Ph.D. of dissertation, University Southern California, 1981. The first dissertation by a musicologist? one who has career enjoyed a distinguished as a composer and conductor for films and television. The Max Steiner Music Society Newsletter.

Steiner.

Making

of

an

Autoren. Ed. Tamara Krause. Sowjetischer 2nd rev. ed. Beitrage zu Fragen der Film kunst, No. 2 Berlin: Henschel, 1950 [between

Vier Aufsatze

55].

Khatchaturian, Essays by Dunayewsky, and two by Shostakovitch. Whitworth. The and Cinema Reginald Theatre A Comprehensive Organ: Descrip tion of This Its Constituent Instrument, and Its Uses. London: Parts, Musical Opin ion,1932. Even more than Foort (see above), Whit worth is primarily with concerned the of the instrument rather than the workings music played.

Ed. Albert

P.O. Box 45173, Los Angeles, CA 90045. published from1965 to 1976, supplemented
K. Bender. Forty-nine numbers

40

JOURNAL THE UNIVERSITY FILM AND VIDEO ASSOCIATION XXXIV, 1 (Winter OF 1982)