Piano Solo - Level 5 - Digital Download
SKU: A0.1023028
Composed by Jonathan Wilson. Contemporary. Score. 9 pages. Fresh Air #6897437. Published by Fresh Air (A0.1023028).
In the early years of film, starting with the first public projection by the Lumière brothers on December 28 1895 in Paris, live music was an essential part of an otherwise silent experience. Typically the accompanyment would be anything from a solo pianist to specially designed theatre organs or an orchestra. Solo piano accompaniment would often be improvised to fit the action on screen requiring a level of skill from the pianist which has largely been lost with the advent of sound in films.
"Score for the Unmade Film" was inspired by a modern jazz quartet's improvised accompaniment to a 1920's black and white silent film. However, in contrast "Score for the Unmade Film" is a scored work in 3 parts which invites today's filmmakers to improvise the film itself around the music.
Part 1 is currently scored for Piano, Violin and Cello but is not currently in a form suitable to publish, but should soon be available as a piano solo. Part 2 is rattling around in the muscle memory for my fingers and will become available as a piano solo in due course.
Part 3 is now available here as a piano solo. The piece consists of two contrasting themes which recurr several times in different variations moving from simplicity to complexity and from straight (or classical) to syncopated in recognition of the emergence of Ragtime around the same time as silent film. The piece is written in Eb and Db major but frequently requires incidentals and is not entirely comfortable in either of these keys. However, a high level of competence in playing most, or all, of the black keys is required. The audio track is based on my original playing but has lost rhythmic variation, dynamics and mistakes through the process of converting to the score on the computer. So, apologies for a somewhat lifeless audio track but I hope it can provide a guide to what is intended along with the notes below.
I would be more than happy for you to use this in a performance, YouTube, social media or other production but please contact me on jl.wilson1145@gmail.com and please include the link below in any online performances. Also, rather than copying or distributing this work, please encourage others to download this and my other compositions from:
https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/publishers/fresh-air/11772
Performance Notes:
Bars 1 to 27 : Theme 1 is stated slowly with weight and rhythmic space. The melody is simple and sombre and the player should avoid the temptation to speed up. Theme 2 is introduced at bar 20 but does not develop any further at this point. At first attempt this section may feel uninspiring but careful use of pedal, dynamics and emphasising the melody, especially from bar 20 onwards, will bring this to life and set the stage for subsequent iterations of the two themes.
Bars 28 to 49 : Theme 1 is developed at a livelier pace with an underlying arpeggio grouped in triplets although the melody, marked with accents in the R.H., remains slow and should be emphasised above the arpeggio and held with careful use of the pedal. Whilst the arpeggio should be generally at a lower volume than the melody, there is a case for emphasising both the 1st note of the 1st and 3rd triplets of each bar to create a ringing effect on beats 1 and 3. Note the dynamics and especially the build up and ritardando at bar 49 to create almost a pause before the Vivace section (my son, who produces Electro-Dance Music, would refer to this as a "Bass Drop" moment).
Bars 50 to 57 : Theme 2 is more fully developed in this section which is dynamically bold with the beginnings of syncopation. Whilst marked Vivace the player should note that thi
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