Abstract
This book has thus far explored the visual music film from a theoretical perspective, focusing firstly on how musical philosophy can be used to underpin the visual music film conceptually and secondly on how philosophical or aesthetic concerns can affect the particular aesthetics and form of the visual music film. However, visual music has always been intrinsically bound to technological experimentation and innovation by individual filmmakers as they strive to express music in visual terms. This chapter will explore the technology employed by individual visual music filmmakers in their craft. Although there are many technical processes used in the creation of visual music films, this section will consider what I have deemed to be three major areas of technical advancement. It will begin with the development of colour processing and the effect that it had on the visual music film (illustrated through the example of Kreise (1933–34) by Oskar Fischinger). Secondly, it will investigate the direct-to-film animation techniques used by Norman McLaren and Len Lye by specifically focusing on Begone Dull Care (1963) by McLaren and A Colour Box (1935) by Lye.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Notes
David Curtis, A History of Artist’s Film and Video in Britain. London: B.F.I., 2007, p. 134.
Len Lye, ‘Talking About Film’, Experimental Animation: An Illustrated Anthology, Robert Russett and Cecile Starr (Eds.). New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1976, p. 68.
Norman McLaren cited in ‘Norman McLaren and the National Film Board of Canada’, Experimental Animation: an Illustrated Anthology, Robert Russett and Cecile Starr (Eds.). New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1976, p. 117.
Norman McLaren, ‘The Low Budget and Experimental Film’, Experimental Animation: An Illustrated Anthology, Robert Russett and Cecile Starr (Eds). New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1976, p. 118.
Norman McLaren quoted in William E. Jordan, ‘Norman McLaren: His Career and Techniques’, The Quarterly of Film Radio and Television, Vol. 8, No. 1, Autumn, 1953, Berkeley: University of California Press, p. 10.
Valerie T. Richards, Norman McLaren, Manipulator of Movement. Delaware: University of Delaware Press, 1992, p. 70.
Norman McLaren, Interview, Norman McLaren, Exhibition and Films. Edinburgh: Scottish Arts Council, 1977, p. 25.
Philip Ball, The Music Instinct: How Music Works and Why We Can’t Do Without It. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010.
Richard Severo, ‘Oscar Peterson, 82, Jazz’s Piano Virtuoso, Dies’, New York Times, December 25, 2007. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/25/arts/25peterson.html?_r=1.
Guy Glover, ‘Norman McLaren’, The Canadian Forum, July 1950, p. 81.
Richard S. James, ‘Avant-Garde Sound-on-Film Techniques and Their Relationship to Electro-Acoustic Music’, The Music Quarterly, Vol. 72, No. 1, 1986, pp. 74–89.
Oskar Fischinger, ‘The Composer of the Future and the Absolute Sound Film’, James Tobias (Trans.), Oskar Fischinger 1900–1967: Experiments in Cinematic Abstraction, Cindy Keefer and Jaap Guidemond (Eds.). Eye Filmmuseum/Center for Visual Music, 2012, p. 96.
Holly Rogers, Sounding the Gallery. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013, p. 71.
Fortissimo indicates that something should be played very loudly. ‘Fortissimo’, The Oxford Dictionary of Music, 2nd ed. rev., Michael Kennedy (Ed.). Oxford Music Online [Accessed: 7 February 2011],
1958 McLaren cited by Maureen Furniss, Art in Motion: Animation Aesthetics, rev. ed. Eastleigh: John Libbey, 2007, p. 5.
Guy Sherwin, Kill Your Timid Notion Festival Program Notes 2008, ARIKA. Dundee: ARIKA, 2008. www.arika.org.uk/kytn/2008/the-festival/11-10-2008/21-30.php [Accessed: 21 February 2010].
Guy Sherwin, Optical Sound Films 1971–2007, Guy Sherwin and Sebastiane K. Hegarty (Eds.). London: LUX, 2007, p. 5.
Steve Ball, ‘Conditions of Music: Contemporary Audio-visual Spatial Performance and Practice’, Expanded Cinema: Art, Performance, Film, A. L. Rees, Duncan White, Steve Ball, and David Curtis (Eds.). London: Tate Publishing, 2011, p. 268.
Paul Hillier, Steve Reich: Writings on Music, 1965–2000, Paul Hillier (Ed.). New York: Oxford University Press, 2004, pp. 13–14.
Steve Reich, ‘Conversation with Paul Hillier’, Steve Reich: Writings on Music, 1965–2000, Paul Hillier (Ed.). New York: Oxford University Press, 2004, p. 221.
Michael Nyman, Experimental Music: Cage and Beyond. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999, p. 151.
Steve Reich, ‘Music as a Gradual Process’, Steve Reich: Writings on Music, 2965–2000, Paul Hillier (Ed.). New York: Oxford University Press, 2004[1968], p. 35.
Eric Tamm, Brian Eno: His Music and the Vertical Color of Sound. Boston: Da Capo Press, 1988.
Paul Epstein, ‘Pattern Structure and Process in Steve Reich’s Piano Phase’, The Musical Quarterly, Vol. 72, No. 4, 1986, p. 497.
Brian Eno, ‘Interview’, in ‘Steve Reich’, The Southbank Show (2006, Season 30, Episode 12. London: ITV, 10 December, 53 min).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2015 Aimee Mollaghan
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Mollaghan, A. (2015). Experimentation and Technological Innovation. In: The Visual Music Film. Palgrave Studies in Audio-Visual Culture. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137492821_5
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137492821_5
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-57860-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-49282-1
eBook Packages: Palgrave Media & Culture CollectionLiterature, Cultural and Media Studies (R0)