Sound motion pictures : from the laboratory to their presentation (1929)

288 SOUND MOTION PICTURES ture beyond Poet and Peasant and the overture to William Tell. To-day the inclusion of selections from the works of Brahms, Tschaikowsky, Liszt, and Haydn is a common practice. Slowly but surely millions of persons have been trained to appreciate good melody and harmony. The motion picture has thus exerted a greater influence upon the musical development of this country than any other institution. On the other hand, the so-called "jazz" music still has a wider appeal than any other type that we have in this country. The beginning of music itself may be traced to the time-beating of the primitive dance, and the rhythm of ragtime perhaps strikes a deep note in something primitive in our natures. Both ragtime and jazz are of interest, not only because of this fundamental appeal, but because they originated in a typical American source. They have sprung out of the life of our own people and are enjoyed and received like no other. Eventually we may find our ragtime and jazz evolving into a type of American music that will be representative of American life and that will be appreciated and understood by all races of people. From the beginning, at any rate, music has been a vital factor in the development of the motion picture. In its synchronization with the cinema, difficulties of a technical kind have gradually been overcome until now scores are being made that compare with music played by the finest orchestras. The whole purpose of music with pictures was originally to satisfy the ear so that the eye could give undivided attention to the screen. Upon this fundamental theory great strides were made in blending the emotional force of melody with the appropriate action of the film. Eventually, as the piano and the primitive organ disappeared, fine symphony orchestras have taken their place. Now the score must be chosen with the great