I sconng __ s\\ence Many people may have thought silent films were a thing of the past, but on Oct. 19, students had the opportunity to see the silent film classic Cops with a slight twist- the Harding University wind ensemble played the movie's score live alongside the film. Cops, a comedy short film starring Buster Keaton, premiered in 1922 and was immediately a success.The story of a young man and a series of comic misfortunes getting him into trouble with the Los Angeles Police Department, Cops was described by the U.S. Library of Congress as "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant," and it remained a classic for decades. Recently, film historian and composer Ben Model recreated a musical score for the film, performed in the style of the silent film era, and allowed the score to be available for purchase for modern bands that appreciated these movie classics. It was an opportunity Dr. Michael Chance, the director of bands and orchestra, could not pass up. "When we found out in the spring that we would have two band directors, that opened up a lot of new performance opportunities," Chance said. "I began looking at new ideas for wind ensemble. I have played with silent films before, and it was fun, so I began searching for possibilities and I came across the silent film score for Cops." So what made Chance decide on the film Cops? "Buster Keaton was one of the great male silent movie stars," Chance said. "He helped write, produce and direct the film himself. He does his own stunts, which is hard on the body, jumping distances, falling. It makes his movies remarkable. Also, after we began 2 2 4 organizations working with the film, I discovered there was a lot of emotion being conveyed,.communicated very vividly with the actors even though there were no words.This was refreshing." According to Chance, the silent film concert was a success, with many students in attendance, and the weekly wind ensemble rehearsals were well worth it. Junior Brady Spencer, a member ofthe wind ensemble, agreed, saying it was just as much fun playing the film score as it was watching the movie. "It was a very cool idea," Spencer said. "It was really apparent that the audience loved it, and it was so rewarding for us." Knowing that silent films would attract the attention of the students, Chance now had high goals for wind ensemble projects in the future. "Now that we have gotten our feet wet, there are some things I would like to change about it," Chance said. "Next year, I would like for it to be not just a concert with a film being shown, but go beyond that and make it a real film event, maybe a day-long series people can come to and talk about filmmaking and the silent movie era." Most importantly, the wind ensemble event helped students and other audience members appreciate music, filmmaking and the silent movie era as a whole. "It combines skills involved in many different fields, collaborating with icons of the film industry in its early years," Chance said. "It helps us understand the mindset of people in the years before the Great Depression in America.We can only know that by these connections with the past." Sarah Eason
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