Music for 'La montagne infidèle'

How I compose the music for the film 'La montagne infidèle' (1923), by J. Epstein

Last week I had the great opportunity to play at the Filmoteca de Catalunya. It was in a very special session: the film “La Montagne Infidele” by J. Epstein, a film from 1923… A hundred years ago! The film was believed to be lost but thanks to the restoration work of the Filmoteca, it is now possible to be shown in theatres again. You can read more about it here.

Epstein is considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, and this was one of the first recordings made of an erupting volcano. As I already explained in my previous publication, as a pianist and composer for soundtracks, accompanying silent films is another of my activities; one that I really love. There is something very special about giving life through music to images and characters that emerged from celluloid a century ago.

Since for this occasion the main character was the Etna volcano itself, the nature and landscapes of Sicily, I chose to compose something more atmospheric and evocative. I used more descriptive resources and concrete music. To do this, I have used the strings inside the piano as strums and hits, to evoke the sounds of rocks and buildings collapsing. Here you can see and hear an example:

At one point in the film, to increase the rhythm of the film, and wanting to give it a more “modern” touch, I used different basses and electronic synthesisers, which together with the strings of the piano, gave this air of urgency and restlessness, as well as grandeur:

The nature scenes shown in the film are not common. This is not a pleasant and beautiful nature. It is disturbing and mysterious. Nature which knows that a catastrophe can happen at any moment. Taking this into account, and as the main theme of the film, I composed a piece, also using strings on the piano, but this time, I used pizzicatos and a keyboard accompaniment, which through an unsettle harmony and a slow rhythm, aims to provoke this uncomfortable and mysterious feeling, something that is not entirely clear:

One of my favourite moments in the film is without a doubt the images of the rivers of lava and stones. Epstein himself describes the sound of this phenomenon as if thousands of plates were breaking at once, and heard in the distance. As we know, at that time there was no means to be able to hear what the eruption of the volcano would be like, so these examples were really useful. So, I decided to use, thanks to the free sound platform, a bunch of samplers of plates breaking, and make a composition with it, without moving away from reality:

One of my closest friends and colleagues has criticised me for being “too literal”, but I think that if we didn't know in advance, this effect would be really effective and “new” since…. how many of you have been to the top of a volcano to see a river of lava, and to hear how it sounds?

If you want to ask me more questions about how to compose for soundtracks, accompany silent films using prepared piano and electronics, or whatever you want, do not hesitate to write to me or leave me a comment.

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Thanks for reading,

J.O.