Elkmont man puts music to old silent film ‘The General’

Published 9:02 pm Thursday, June 1, 2006

Most haven’t lived in a time when silent films accompanied by live music were the only option to watching a movie with sound. Neither has Elkmont resident Ed Hickman.

But, he was inspired after watching the Buster Keaton film “The General,” to write a score for it, a process that has taken him approximately two years.

He said his copy of “The General,” had 1920s dance band music that really didn’t go with the film.

“It was so irritating I cut off the sound,” he said.

Hickman has composed a band of approximately 30 musicians to perform the score along with the silent film in a performance on June 22.

Hickman, 60, who has been involved with music since the age of 12, hand wrote the score, which consists of several types of music including four major marches.

He said it was such a wonderful film and the music was so bad that it deserved much better. Although his piece and the film are separated by 80- years, he said, the score and the film are a unit.

“The music is geared to watch you’re seeing,” he said.

According to the Web site http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silent_film, most films were silent before the late 1920s and the silent film era is sometimes referred to as the “Age of the Silver Screen.” Showings of silent films almost always featured live music. From the beginning music was recognized as essential, contributing to the atmosphere and giving the audience vital emotional cues.

Hickman said it took him a year and a half to write it and six months to copy the parts. The group of musicians includes students, professionals and retired and working band directors. Hickman said it is a wide range of musicians who are very talented and he has complete instrumentation for a concert band but is still accepting musicians, particularly another French horn player.

There are two rehearsals left before the show. They will be held from 7 p.m.-9 p.m. on June 8 and June 19, all at Holy Spirit School. The performance will be at 7 p.m. June 22, at the school located on Airport Road in Huntsville.

“The General,” lasts for one hour and 12 minutes and music will run the length of the film. However, Hickman said that no one group of instruments would be playing the entire time.

Musicians interested in joining the group can visit http://silentmoviemusic.com/, and click on membership form.

Hickman will be directing the musicians. He is a former member of the University of Alabama Million Dollar Band, former band director at Dothan High School and Navarro College in Texas, and currently works as an instrument repairman at Robbins Music Center Inc., in Huntsville.