The first movie with an original musical score was Le Film d'Art Studio's "The Assassination of the Duke of Guise," first played in front of a Parisan audience in November 1908. (Technically, the very first original film score to be documented was played with a movie shown during a play/stage show called "The Fairylogue and Radio-Play," in September 1908. That movie, considered lost, was the first to bring L. Frank Baum's "Oz" books to the theatre.)
Concerning "L'Assassinat du duc de Guise," French classical composer Camille de Saint-Saens' music was played on a phonograph, accompanying the silent film. When the movie was brought to the United States early in 1909, Nickelodeons had no way of fully capturing the soundtrack since amplification of sound was not advanced enough for the music to be clearly heard throughout the theaters.
Consistent with France's Film d'Art Studio's philosophy, the film d'art's purpose was to hire the best Parisian actors for historical or famous literary/dramatic works using well-known writers to script the plots in elaborate settings. "Assassination's" storyline was written by famous writer Henri Lavedan depicting the 1588 murder of a main rival to the Queen of France. The movie itself was filmed inside the studio and is rather stagey, consisting of a mere nine shots. "Assassination" stands in stark contrast to another film d'art French film, "L'Arlesienne," released just the previous month. Pathe Studios, knowing its French rival was embarking on an aesthetically new cinematic path, began its own production using professional actors and writers, filming in front of actual scenic backdrops. The 43 shots quickened the excitement in "L'Arlesienne," presenting an entirely new and different pacing and look to cinema.
Concerning "L'Assassinat du duc de Guise," French classical composer Camille de Saint-Saens' music was played on a phonograph, accompanying the silent film. When the movie was brought to the United States early in 1909, Nickelodeons had no way of fully capturing the soundtrack since amplification of sound was not advanced enough for the music to be clearly heard throughout the theaters.
Consistent with France's Film d'Art Studio's philosophy, the film d'art's purpose was to hire the best Parisian actors for historical or famous literary/dramatic works using well-known writers to script the plots in elaborate settings. "Assassination's" storyline was written by famous writer Henri Lavedan depicting the 1588 murder of a main rival to the Queen of France. The movie itself was filmed inside the studio and is rather stagey, consisting of a mere nine shots. "Assassination" stands in stark contrast to another film d'art French film, "L'Arlesienne," released just the previous month. Pathe Studios, knowing its French rival was embarking on an aesthetically new cinematic path, began its own production using professional actors and writers, filming in front of actual scenic backdrops. The 43 shots quickened the excitement in "L'Arlesienne," presenting an entirely new and different pacing and look to cinema.