Motion Picture News (Jul-Aug 1916)

306 ACCESSORY N^EWff SEGTION^ Vol. 14. No. 2 Music and the Picture Edited by Erast Luz This department is ntaintained for the exhibitor's assistance with a view of suggesting proper musical illustrations for current photo plays. MOTION PICTURE NEWS will be pleased to help solve any difficulties the exhibitors may have with their musical programs. All communications should be addressed to the Music and the Picture Department. Classification of Material for Picture Playing " Real Master of Problem Confronting Musicians Is He Who Takes Wealth of Material of Past and Present atnd Weaves Into Complete Musical Garment Ideas of Great Masters for Cloak That Will Fit Pictm-e in All Beauty and Splendor Called for by Scenes and Characters" BY JOSEPH C. ROEBER EVENTS in motion picture history have moved along so rapidly that it is almost impossible to keep pace with them. Not so many years ago, at the end of a theatrical season, one would have been considered a back number if he had not " taken in " at least two shows a week. To-day in order to have even a passing knowledge of the motion picture's successes it would be necessary to attend the theatres twice a day. For years the photoplay stood alone ; a white sheet and a picture machine was all that was necessary to attract a crowd. To-day it is quite another matter. The exhibition of the photodrama must be surrounded with scenic effects and embellished with elaborate music. The silent play constitutes only one-half, or, as some experts have stated, one-third the drawing power of the program. Would a strong film story' stand alone tO-day? That it is not attempted is the answer. The embellishments have now reached a point where the " as produced " is costing the exhibitor several times the film itself ; that is, considering the rental •cost. Does it pay? It is almost incredible what an enormous library is required nowadays to " play " a picture properly, not to mention the time and labor used in preparing the selections for the performance. The conductor at the Strand theatre has frequently used 100 selections to fit one picture. The average theatre library consists of 600 to 1,000 pieces. This stock is easily exhausted. To facilitate the preparation of this material somewhat of the following classification is necessary: ClasEification of Material 1, Overtures; 2, Agitato (Excitement, Fear, Riots); 3, Allegro Dramatic Vivace (Pursuit, Races) ; 4, Andante Pathetique (Sadness, Sorrow) ; 5, Misterioso (Sneaky, Creepy Murders, Burglaries, Stealth) ; 6, Furioso (Storms, Battles) ; 7, Galop (Parades and Train Effects); 8, Marches, Two-Steps, Dances; 9, Waltz; 10, Intermezzo; 11, Themes: (Melodies, Ballads, Serenades); 12, College Songs; 13, National Airs; 14, Popular Songs; 15, Hymns and Church Music; 16, Folk Songs; 17 Characteristic: a, Spanish; b, Russian; c, Scotch; d, Irish; e, Norwegian; f, Indian; g. Oriental ; 18, Comic Operas ; 19, Grand Operas ; 20, Symphonies and Tone Poems. The judicious handling of this material will surely prolong the life of the library. Still, playing in a community where the picture-fan is also " Up in music," it is one of the greatest trials of the director to keep his selection from becoming stale. What is the remedy? One well-known composer claims to have solved the problem by writing an " original score." This may temporarily " fill the gap," but no living composer can keep pace with the film industry without running dry or repeating himself. The real master of the problem is he who can take the wealth of musical material of the past and present and weave into a complete musical garment the ideas of the great masters, completing a fitting cloak that will clothe the picture in all the beaut/ and splendor which the scenes and characters call for. The variety of ideas by the various composers selected precludes_any_danger of a stereotyped performance. This is the aim of the printed score. The inexhaustible source of new material in a library comprising 100,000 selections lends variety to depict the multitude of . scenes required in the feature play; the score with its little bits of original melody interwoven insures a finished and smooth performance. Musical directors and all picture musicians voice the sentiment of Charles A. Dowsett, Norwich, Conn., who says : " I am utterly lost without these scores, their music as compiled raises the entire standard of the theatre, orchestra and picture." Another director claims that he saves four hours a day by their use, and from all parts of the country the leaders are stating that " The score's the thing." Editor's Note: The above article, contributed by J. C. Roeber, sums up to-day's situation of Music and the Picture. With the exception of his last hundred words, I enthusiastically agree with all that he says. His method of classification is somewhat abbreviated and can be well adapted to small music libraries of 600 to 1,000 pieces. Such a small library is of little or no consequence to-day in picture playing, especially when you know that a certain per cent, of the music you buy is so seldom adaptable to picture playing. For instance, his Nos. 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17 are all numbers that can only be used at positive screen suggestion when playing for pictures. To be more thorough in the selection and playing of serious music Nos. 11 and 20 will allow for a much greater classification. There is no standard as to how many numbers a library should contain when the musician is interested in playing pictures right. The picture theatre of to-day is in the market to buy any music, new and old, which shows its adaptation for picture playing. It should not only be a bonanza for music publishers, but should give a wide scope to that musical talent which is intelligently inclined toward serious composition. Many Talented Musicians Want the Spotlight Many talented musicians seem to think that it is their birthright to claim every privilege of recognition and to have the spotlight continually thrown upon them. It is quite right that everyone should have ambition and a high opinion of his work, but nevertheless in the picture theatre it requires a collaboration of more minds to present a performance successfully. It is a mistake for musicians or music publishers to think that they at any time can bring a picture down to within the scope of their imagination. No director or producer of film would allow this. While musicians might make a thousand well meant suggestions as regards picture production, nevertheless they require a great deal more' than a musical education to be able to inform producers what is necessary to make a photoplay impressive on the screen. It is therefore the musician's most important duty that he never ceases accumulating an unlimited library of musical numbers for picture playing; so that, regardless of the photoplay's forrriation, he will