Motion Picture News (Oct 1913 - Jan 1914)

Mvtsic and the Picture ^-b^ HlVjJMJinjJ|^ Suggestions Invited, Questions Cheerfully Answered Address: Music Department, The Motion Picture News IN talking of the opening of the "Empire," a new photoplay house ul Portland, Me., the Portland Press says: "The first thing that strikes you as you sit down and look at the pictures being shown on the screen is the music. You would think that there was a whole orchestra there. But there is not, it is but another sample of the modernness of the place." Then the Portland Press explains that the supposed orchestra is composed of a piano and a Dramagraph, operated by Mr. Alfred Davis. The Dramagraph, according to the description of the Press, is an arrangement by which everything shown on the screen can be imitated. All sounds ranging from the cackles of a hen and the cry of a baby to the booming of a gun or the playing of a graphophone can be reproduced on the machine. As I described the Dramagraph in a previous issue of this publication, I have not much to add to the rather meagre description given by the Portland Press. While the Dramagraph can reproduce faithfully all the sound effects required in a motion picture, I wish to correct a wrong impression. The Dramagraph is not a toy, nor is it a mechanical instrument to take the place of the drummer. Some persons have an idea that all they have to do is to either turn a crank, press down a pedal or pull a string to obtain the desired sound effects. A great mistake, as the Dramagraph requires the service of a conscientious drummer. The various sound effects enclosed in the cabinet of the Dramagraph are the same kind of traps sold individually to the drummer, consequently they require as much attention if it is desired to have the correct effects at the proper time. The Dramagraph is an instrument to save some money to the exhibitor and help the drummer. We know that the "souvenir craze" is strong in the United States, everyone helping himself to the property of others, just to collect souvenirs. If the traps of the drummer are loose on the floor, on some chairs or tables, there are always enough souvenirhunters to pick up some of them. One exhibitor of Pittsburgh told me that he had to spend over $300 per year to replace the traps carried away by visitors. As all the traps are either nailed, screwed or gummed in the cabinet of the Dramagraph, the souvenirhunters have no chance to help themselves, and the traps saved during the year amount to more than the price of a Dramagraph. To the drummer, the Dramagraph is of invaluable help, as all the traps are so arranged as to enable him to produce a number of effects at the same time, a feat that he cannot accomplish correctly when the loose traps are scattered all over the place. For instance, in the scene of a great storm, accompanied by destruction and fire, he can imitate the wind, the rain, the thunder, the fire-alarm bell, the fireengine, the gallop of the horses, the falling of some buildings or trees, even the cry of the baby left in distress, or of the animal running for a shelter, etc. To accomplish this the drummer must be experienced and have a knowledge of the Dramagraph, so as to have under his control all the pedals, strings and cranks to enable him to work them quickly and even in darkness. The drummer who wishes to make the picture talk should welcome the Dramagraph, as he will find many possibilities in the instrument. The Dramagraph is like the pipeorgan or the Wurlitzer Unit orchestra; it is a marvel when under the control of a man who knows his business, while it will be the most discordant noise in the hands of the man who will pull the strings, turn the cranks and press on the pedals, like the fellow who, while playing a Wurlitzer Unit orchestra, was constantly working all the keys and stops, as if he was amusing himself or trying to find the sound effect of each stop. If a drummer has fifty or sixty traps loose on the floor, on chairs or tables, it is practically impossible for him to find the right trap at the proper moment, and if the effect is not given at the proper time, it is better to omit it. I have been taught to look at the pipe organ as the musical instrument of the church, the same as the drum is the instrument to mark the steps of the soldiers. I then feel that it is sacrilegious to accompany a Western picture of a fight between Indians and cowboys, a saloon brawl, a gambling scene, etc., with the sweet melodious tones of the instrument so well adapted to sing the praises of God. I am opposed to the pipe organ and full orchestra because the exhibitor in general will not and cannot always pay the wages of proficient musicians. The exhibitor in too many cases wants to make all the money he can, his greatest ambition is to force the patronage by putting his neighbor out of business. The exhibitor wants a long program, he wants a pipe organ and a full orchestra, not to give a good show to please the patrons but merely to brag: "I show nine reels, more than any of my competitors — I have a pipe organ against the piano of Smith — I have an orchestra of six pieces against the four pieces of my THE HAPPY FINISH OF A ROMANCE OF THE SEASON Wallace Reid, the director, and his leading lady, Dorothy Davenport, who were married in Los Angeles on October 13.