“Well-timed silence hath more eloquence than speech.” – Martin Fraquhar Tupper
Nosferatu Sightings
We made our debut on cable this past October with at least two screenings of Nosferatu on Turner Classic Movies. The only downside was that Turner forgot to tell anyone involved — we had to find out from our fans. The final screening was top billing on Halloween night at 11:30. It was introduced by Robert Osborne as “the grand daddy of all horror films” and “the film that inspired Shadow of the Vampire.” He forgot to mention our groovy surround score. Maybe next time.
Count Orlok, Nosferatu
October also found me in Hollywood at a screening of Nosferatu at the Silent Movie Theater with organ accompaniment by Bob Mitchell. I have to say that he was amazing. First off, it was a wonderful learning experience. Secondly, he started accompanying silent films in 1924 — when he was 12 years old! The show opening was none other than Film Preservationist David Shepard narrating the French classic, A Trip to the Moon. In case you were wondering just how classy the Silent Movie Theater is, the projectionist was dressed in period clothing and ran a hand-cranked projector for the 1902 film.
DVD News
In September, we delivered the surround score for Salome for an upcoming Image Entertainment DVD. We’ll give you more details when we can. All we can say for now is that our live performance of this film score received critical acclaim from the Washington Post. Naturally, we are thrilled to be able to release it on DVD.
Live from DC
Speaking of performances and French classics, we will be making our return to the National Gallery of Art in January with two films directed by Marcel L’Herbier. On January 18, we will accompany L’Homme du Large (1920), a dramatic tale of one family’s struggles for identity in a small fishing village. On Sunday January19, we will accompany L’Inhumaine (1924). This film was the last Impressionist film produced in France and features some outlandish art deco sets, a stylish female singer who is chased by many men, and a Science Fiction slam bang ending with a scientist that looks like Thomas Dolby and assistants that look like Devo. Our friend Susan Lowell will add her powerful voice to help us bring the film to life. Mark your calendars – it’s going to be a fun weekend.