June 20, 1914' MUSICAL AME~ICA ' 3 MOTION !PICTURlES FlERTIllE .FilElLDFOR COM!POSlER§ II
Scenes In "Samson" Film and Compos.er of Its Music. No.1, Jack Warren Kerrigan as HSamson": No.2. "Delilah" has sheared "Samson's." hair and · the Timarks soldiers are upon him. No.3, Noble Kreider, Com· poser; No.4,' William Worthington as "Sihon," the Timark; No. 5, The dust drifted away, "Samson" groped to "D'e lilah's" body and fell acr'oss her-dead! No.6, The host bent in obeisance before the God Dagon.
hundred feet from the altar in the fore ground. Withbannersfiying and voices raised in the chant, the hundreds of Philistine priests and citizens swept down ' the broad aisle towards us. It MUSIC and the drama have long been was hard to realize that it was only a intimate friends, but music and the Significant Example In Noble Kreider's Incidental Music for picture. photoplay were but so lately introduced "Then came Delilah with her. maids, that they have not even yet decided to Film Version of "Samson" Story-How Composer Absorbed and Sihon and Timark , the cameras whirring steadily all the time. The become staunch friends. Many difficul "Atmosphere" by Watching Processes of Picture-Making priests sprinkled incense on the fires and ties stand in the w.ay of the successful in Studio - Disjointed Nature of Scenarios Necessitates the host bent in obeiuance. The cere arrangement of music as a background monies over, the people shouted to have and accompaniment for the film-drama. Concentration of Musical Efforts on Big Cli~axes Samson brought in that they might be entertained by the ravings of the blind The usual scene lasts but a few seconds, man who had made sport of them while when the action moves to another scene the composer had to make the acquaint introduction; then the Angel announc in his prime. and consequently far different action, ance of all the intricate machinery of ing the coming of Samson to his mother; "Sihon gave in to the clamorings and then back to the original scene. picture-making. First, he went over the appearance of the strong man's first sent for Samson. Jack Kerrigan, who Naturally music written for the first the scenario with the writer, James Day love, Zorah; the banquet music, where played the part of the Biblicalhero, was scene would be incongruous for the sec ton. Scene by scene the author ex Samson's great riddle, "and ~ut of the led in by a small boy. The mob jeered ond one. If John was making ardent plained t)1e play, the length of scene, the bitter clPhilistines" knees before the god. This was all in might use a love motif effectively, but for the beginning of actual production and his terrible slaughter of the enemy teresting, but in the mind of every spec what chance would such music have in came, Kreider was on the ground and with the jawbone of an ass; his visit tator it was only a prelude to the real Scene 43, twenty seconds later, when during the two months before the picture to Gaza and his encounter with the har scene, the actual crash of the temple. B?'other Bobby is swinging a dead cat was finished, director, stagehands and lot; his meeting with Delilah, his tempta " It came at last. Samson prayed for around his head on a string? Until actors came to know the young com tion and overthrow in her house; the strength, then pressed his knees against longer scenes become the vogue, or until poser well. From the preparation of Chant of the Priests of Dagon and the the great columns. They moved. We scenarios are' so written that all action "props" and costumes to the final de Finale. stared, unable to move an eyelid. Slowly in a single sequence bears out one theme, velopment and cutting of the film, Mr. On the day of the final scene, when the the columns buckled. With a mighty the composer's only chance is to develop Kreider studied the motion picture game. blind Samson is given back his strength crash they fell into the heart of the his music for the strongest situation. Kreider, had many amusing experi and pulls down the temple of the God temple. Dust rose in clouds, hiding the A recent blending of music and photo ences during this period. Once a "dol Dagon, killing himself and the Philistine scene. Still we held our breaths. The drama of particular interest to Ameri lar-a-day" extra man, of decidedly horde, Kreider and a dozen spectators dust drifted. Samson st r uggled, crushed can musicians is the incidental music Judaical physiognomy, accosted the com were admitted to the grounds. The com and bleeding over the mass of bodies, written , by Noble Kreider, of Goshen, poser in the grounds. poser took up his stand at a convenient groping blindly till he found Delilah's Ind., for the Universal Film Company's "Say, whatter youse goin' ter be? Yer point, just back of the cameras. body and then fell dead. six-reel feature,· "Samson." The Uni ain't gotter Jew nose. Oh, yes, you're "The scene didn't seem real," he says The cameras stopped and for a mo versal furnished copies of the "Samson" gain' ter be a Fillysteeno. Not fer mine. of the experience. "Five cameras were ment there was silence. Then a per incidental music to each exhibitor, but Yer gotter be in that temple sm-ash. Not perched here and there, their Argus spiring property man behind me said: Kreider holds the copyright for general fer mine. I ain't er goin' to let no temple eyes staring at the crowd of Philistine "'Gosh! Glad that bust is done publication. fall on me for a dollar a day. Nixie." men and women gathered in the court of finished.' When ,it was decided to have special Little of the music was actually con the temple. "Then came the reaction. Most of us music the Universal's Pacific Coast man ceived at the studios. Kreider was simply "Of course, I knew that the pillars laughed, a few wept, and the director ager, 1. Bernstein, looked about for a getting chuck .full of "atmo,sphere" and were only painted cloth, tacked on lath collapsed in a dead faint. I never real composer of sufficient experience and "Samson" enthusiasm. Then he would frames, and the sheets suspended above ized before the t remendous strain, the adaptability to handle the idea. Kreider hurry back to his Pasadena apartment, contained only yellow ochre to simulate planning and work and thought back of was passing the Winter in Los Angeles his grand piano and silence and spend dust and excelsior-filled pasteboard boxes, a motion picture. and his name was chosen' from fifteen the next day or two, or as long as the painted to represent granite blocks. Yet "'Dead' Philistines moved, pillars considered. The Indiana composer was inspiration remained, in concentr ated there was as great 'a tension everywhere were lifted and not a man or woman interested in the novelty of the work and work. Then back to the studios to watch as though the stones and walls were of ' was hurt. Three minutes of action, a accepted. more of the production. solid granite. result of .months of work, but it was Before a note of music was written Bit by bit the music greW. First the "The background entrance was five worth it." RUTH ANN BALDWIN.
