Silent Film Music By Ben Model

In this episode: Ben plays with holding back musically to help an audience of art deco fans connect with Valentino and Nazimova during a show of "Camille" (1921); he and Kerr Lockhart dig in to details about "Oriental Blues", the theme song Ernie Kovacs used for all of his shows from 1951-1962; and Ben discusses the various intricacies of live-scoring Keaton's "The General" in order to help one gag, get out of the way of another, and to create a musical arc for a feature-length comedy that's essentially one very long chase. Show notes for this episode can be found here.

In this bonus episode, podcast co-host Kerr Lockhart talks with Rick Benjamin, musical director of The Paragon Ragtime Orchestra, about mood cues and photoplay music from the silent era.

In this episode: Ben trusts his instincts and has a little magic happen during a show of "The Patsy"; makes a decision and tries something new when it comes to using a "characteristic" musical mode in scoring Keaton's "The Cameraman" and "The General"; pays tribute to Gilbert Gottfried and talks about getting to do a comedy bit with him when Ben was a guest on Gilbert's Amazing Colossal Podcast in 2021; pulls back to help the audience zoom in for a tender moment in "The Cameraman"; plus performance clips from shows at St. Francis College and the Oxford Community Center; and a teaser for a bonus episode (no. 48), in which podcast co-host Kerr Lockhart interviews the Paragon Ragtime Orchestra's Rick Benjamin Show notes for episode 47 can be found here.

Ben talks about: being a guest accompanist at the 25th annual Kansas Silent Film Festival; playing for Edward Everett Horton in a Cathedral, and the use of a "Bowery waltz"; introducing Marcel Perez to fans at the KSFF; playing for William S. Hart in Brooklyn; being able to turn on a dime in underscoring and have it make sense musically; live-scoring "The Goose Woman" on piano; new Marion Davies Blu-ray and DVD releases from his Undercrank Productions label and the new Kickstarter for Raymond Griffith films; and more. Episode 46 show notes are available here.

Ben talks about: the process of scoring "Zander the Great" and "Beverly of Graustark" for home video release; a recent Kickstarter that funded super-quick; Marion Davies's talents as a silent film actor; teaching in-person and on-campus again after two years; accompanying Edward Everett Horton shorts and "The Fire Brigade" at the Museum of Modern Art; various silent film accompaniment techniques; upcoming streams and shows, and more. Episode 45 show notes are available here.

This is a re-posting "flashback" of episode 8, which originally posted on February 4, 2015. Welcome – News from January: composing and performing music for Parallel Exit's "Everybody Gets Cake", running off-Bway thru Feb 8, 2015 – Recording: instrumental from "Cake" show: "A Shakespearean Smoke Break" – the restoration of Georges Melies' "A Trip to the Moon" with narration – recording: live performance piano and narration for "A Trip to the Moon" in Tromsø, Norway – funeral organists workshop in Oslo, Norway – Recording: live accompaniment to DeMille's "King of Kings" on the pipe organ at the Holmen Church in Oslo – Upcoming performances, Egyptian Theatre in Boise, with Boise Philharmonic Chamber Ensemble, release of Marcel Perez DVD, Hal Roach at Silent Clowns, Zorro in Bklyn, Keaton at Wesleyan, and more – Closing. Somewhere back in 2017 when I absorbed my blog and podcast into my website, episodes 1-8 of the podcast became unexplainably unavailable. Some listeners have inquired about getting to hear the

This is a re-posting "flashback" of episode 7, which originally posted on January 21, 2015. Welcome – News from the road – December 2014 recap: the Silent Clowns Film Series, Chaplin Mutuals, Library of Congress holiday party, the Powers kids in "The Skeleton" – Recording: live performance, accompaniment to "Peter Pan", Peter saves Tinkerbell –Using ragtime to accompany silent films, then and now, pros and cons – On accompanying the murder scene in "Blackmail" – Recording: live performance, from Hitchcock's "Blackmail" at Alden Theater – Silent film series at the Alden Theatre in McLean, VA – Upcoming performances, Egyptian Theatre in Boise, with Boise Philharmonic Chamber Ensemble, release of Marcel Perez DVD, off-Broadway show "Everybody Gets Cake" – Closing. Somewhere back in 2017 when I absorbed my blog and podcast into my website, episodes 1-8 of the podcast became unexplainably unavailable. Some listeners have inquired about getting to hear these early shows from 2012-2015 and the easiest thing for m

Ben relates the journey of playing piano as part of a full orchestra live accompanying Chaplin’s City Lights under the baton of the score’s restorer, Timothy Brock, during the Silent Film Days Festival in Tromsø, Norway. Ben explores how he experienced Chaplin’s score “from the inside” and what he learned about making music to support silent film as a result. He describes the technical difficulty of playing live accompaniment with a large group, and analyzes Chaplin’s choices of accompaniment, the structure of his melodies, matters of authentic technique and style in a 1931 score for a 1931 film, and Chaplin’s innovations in scoring at the dawn of synchronized sound. Episode 44 Show Notes: IntroductionHow Ben was invited to play piano and celeste with the Arctic Philharmonic playing the score of City Lights by Charles Chaplin live under the baton of Timothy Brock, music restorer and consultant to the Chaplin estate.Timothy Brock on restoring the score of City LightsLearning to play the piano

This is a re-posting "flashback" of episode 6, which originally posted on January 7, 2015. Welcome — Mea culpa, and welcome to the podcast reboot — The Silent Film Sound and Music Archive — My new DVD label Undercrank Productions and the LoC — Live performance: "My Best Girl" at St. Francis College — Using pre-existing music in film accompaniment — The Herb Graff show: silent comedies on public TV in the 1970s — Recording: Arthur Kleiner playing "The Philanderer" — Arthur Kleiner, MoMA's first silent film pianist — Composing silent film scores for concert band — Recording: the Palisades Virtuosi playing my "Spice of the Program" — Upcoming performances, release of Marcel Perez DVD, off-Broadway show "Everybody Gets Cake" from Parallel Exit — Closing. Somewhere back in 2017 when I absorbed my blog and podcast into my website, episodes 1-8 of the podcast became unexplainably unavailable. Some listeners have inquired about getting to hear these early shows from 2012-2015 and the easiest thing for me to do (te

This is a re-posting "flashback" of episode 5, originally posted on March 18, 2013. Welcome – A whirlwind week of performances and travel - 7 shows in 8 days Live performance: "The Mark of Zorro" at Central Baptist Church – Preparing for a performance: music prep, bench height, piano light, etc – Live performance: "My Best Girl" at Port Washington library – Upcoming performances, including a week of Mary Pickford in April – Closing Somewhere back in 2017 when I absorbed my blog and podcast into my website, episodes 1-8 of the podcast became unexplainably unavailable. Some listeners have inquired about getting to hear these early shows from 2012-2015 and the easiest thing for me to do (tech-wise) was to re-post them. Here's episode 5!

This is a re-posting "flashback" of episode 4, originally posted on January 14, 2013. Welcome – Playing the organ at the Library of Congress theater – My Kickstarter project to release rare/lost silents on DVD and YouTube – Live performance: Raymond Griffith in "You'd Be Surprised" at Silent Clowns – Listening to a film's spoken intro can give clues for a score – Thoughts on scoring "Oliver Twist", W.C. Fields in "It's the Old Army Game" and Larry Semon in "The Wizard of Oz" – Live performance: "Oliver Twist" at MoMA – Upcoming performances and orchestral scores in Boise – Closing Somewhere back in 2017 when I absorbed my blog and podcast into my website, episodes 1-8 of the podcast became unexplainably unavailable. Some listeners have inquired about getting to hear these early shows from 2012-2015 and the easiest thing for me to do (tech-wise) was to re-post them. Here's episode 4!

This is a re-posting "flashback" of episode 3, originally posted on July 12, 2012. Welcome – Playing for "The Avenging Conscience" and "Paths to Paradise" – Live performance: "Paths to Paradise" at Silent Clowns – Thoughts on scoring "The Saphead" and "The Devil's Needle & Other Tales of Vice and Redemption" on DVD from Kino Lorber – Downloadable mp3 scores – Live performance: "Cat and the Canary" on Steere & Sons orchestral organ – Upcoming performances, and preparing to work with funeral organists in Oslo – Closing Somewhere back in 2017 when I absorbed my blog and podcast into my website, episodes 1-8 of the podcast became unexplainably unavailable. Some listeners have inquired about getting to hear these early shows from 2012-2016 and the easiest thing for me to do (tech-wise) was to re-post them. Here's episode 3!

This is a re-posting "flashback" of episode 2, originally posted on June 29, 2012. Welcome – report on what was the first “Mostly Lost” film identification workshop – live performance recording "Ten Commandments" on Steere & Sons organ in Brooklyn – an ethical issue on uploading silents to YouTube from DVDs – on quoting popular songs of the day in silents – a record "heard" in Vidor's "The Crowd" – upcoming performances: films by both silent Griffiths – closing. Somewhere back in 2017 when I absorbed my blog and podcast into my website, episodes 1-8 of the podcast became unexplainably unavailable. Some listeners have inquired about getting to hear these early shows from 2012-2016 and the easiest thing for me to do was re-post them. Here's episode 2!

This is a re-posting "flashback" of the very first episode of The Silent Film Music Podcast, originally posted on June 9, 2012. Welcome - score for "The Eagle" - new web series - Mabel Normand - Raymond Griffith at The Silent Clowns - score for "The Night Club" - playing for Ernie Kovacs - unidentified silents at Library of Congress - King Vidor's "The Crowd" - score for "Chicago" - underscoring cross-cutting - closing Somewhere back in 2017 when I absorbed my blog and podcast into my website, episodes 1-8 of the podcast became unexplainably unavailable. Some listeners have inquired about getting to hear these early shows from 2012-2016 and the easiest thing for me to do was re-post them. Here's episode 1!

In the second half of this 2-parter, Ben Model recaps the past pandemic year: producing and releasing the Edward Everett Horton DVD set, a handful of DVD release projects in development, remembering MoMA's Eileen Bowser, and looking toward the future of silent film live-streaming in 2022. Episode 43 Show Notes: Announcement: Episodes 1 through 8 of the Silent Film Music Podcast will be reissued in the podcast feed.Discussion of the development of the Edward Everett Horton short comedy project; filming locations and thanks to Richard Simonton in connection with the films; getting to hear audience reaction to the filmsMusical Interlude: excerpt of Ben’s performance of The Kid Brother at The Linda, WAMC’s Performing Arts Studio on November 4, 2021. Ben’s blog series about The Language of Silent FIlm begins here. Will it become a book? Underwriting Announcement:Beauty’s Worth starring Marion Davies, on DVD by Undercrank Productions/Library of Congress in association with Ed Lorusso Upcoming release fro

"End of the Year 2021 Recap" – in the first half of this 2-parter, Ben Model recaps the past pandemic year of silent film live-streaming, rediscovering the meaning of providing entertainment for fans, the return to in-person accompaniments, and ponders the future of the silent movie virtual cinema. Episode 42 Show Notes: Live shows return in early summer; re-adjustment to in-person performance; getting to leave the house; no longer having to be “the booth” as with the Silent Comedy Watch Party; variations among keyboard instruments - need for flexibility; meeting fans of the SCWP - Wearing the MerchandiseMusic Interlude - Metropolis on the Estey pipe organ at Episilon Spires in Brattleboro, VT, August 30, 2021What the Silent Comedy Watch Party means to its viewers: a respite, some laughter, and an anchor to the week; comparison to Bob Hope entertaining the troops; no longer just another film show; with all the difficulty in pulling the SCWP off, the audience counts on the show; that appointment is

"Live-Scoring for the Virtual Cinema" – in part two of this conversation, Ben Model discusses what it's been like to accompany silent films throughout 2021 via live-streams he's produced and presented out of his home. Ben and co-host Kerr Lockhart discuss: the differences for Ben between the creative mindsets of scoring a silent film while performing in a theater, when recording a score and when hosting a live-stream; the reasons Ben prefers live-scoring a stream to pre-recording the music; thinking of the home viewer as the audience, and more. Episode 41 Show Notes: To preview or not to preview films before accompanying themview The Eagle with synthesized orchestral score based on cue sheetsEyewitness account of accompanist in the silent era preparing by looking at the poster and lobby picturesWhy authentic compiled scores are often not suitable; often repetitiveSilent Film Sound and Music Archive (sfsma.org)Score materials for The Birth Of A NationThe Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra, Rodney Sa

"Live-Scoring for the Virtual Cinema" – in part one of this conversation, Ben Model discusses what it's been like to accompany silent films throughout 2021 via live-streams he's produced and presented out of his home. Ben and co-host Kerr Lockhart discuss: the differences for Ben between the creative mindsets of scoring a silent film while performing in a theater, when recording a score and when hosting a live-stream; the reasons Ben prefers live-scoring a stream to pre-recording the music; accompanying Keystone comedies so they work and entertain better; playing the audience into the film, in the virtual realm, and more. Part two of this conversation will be posted next month.

"Adventures In Sound!" - Ben tracks his own journey to find the digital devices that best re-create or at least evoke the classic theater pipe organ experience under modern screening conditions. Topics Ben discusses the “temporary” theme for the podcast, “Those Keystone Comedy Cops” Ben’s instrumental evolution  Learning to play the organLee Erwin, theater organist, as a mentorDifference in technique between piano and organExpanding colors and instrumentationDeveloping the Synth-Org (Sample sounds included)Synth(esized) sounds vs. Digital samplesLimited availability of real theater organsDeploying the Kurzweil PC-2 system with a MIDI pedal unitExamples from two scores for Edison: Invention of the Movies Underwriting announcement: The Alice Howell Collection on DVD from Undercrank Productions Ben’s musical journey continued Jim Henry introduces Ben to the MiditzerAn excerpt from a Miditzer score Ben created for The PenaltyThe difficulty of recording and reproducing a real theater organ

On this episode Ben talks about meeting an audience's expectations of a score when a certain piece of music or style is indicated onscreen, and in a rare case of a non-narrative film made after the silent era. Also covered are silent era mood cues and cue sheets, Marion Davies in "When Knighthood Was in Flower", techniques in performance to match music to action, this episode's FAQ, and more. Live performance clips include Valentino's tango dance in "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse", Keaton's pantomime to "The Prisoner's Song", and Ben's new score for Helen Levitt's "In the Street" (1948). episode 38: Existing Music, Mood Cues and Cue Sheets Historically authentic accompaniment vs. modern scores for silent filmsTango, dancing on-screen and staying in synch with the dancersBen’s score for Four Horsemen as played at MOMA in November 2019Improvising so that it sounds like a piece that had already been writtenListener Erik Andersson talks about The Silent Comedy Watch Party from Salem, OregonAccompanyi