(PP. 80-85) Music Section III: Jazz in the Movies → Listening Guide 9 (ACADEC '25-'26)

When were the first public demonstrations of “moving pictures”?

1895

What were the first public demonstrations of “moving pictures” described as?

Exciting

What were the cameras that had filmed the first public demonstrations of “moving pictures” capable of?

Only capturing images; they had no mechanism for recording sounds

What was performed to accompany the silent movies of 1895?

Live music

What was the initial purpose of the music accompanying silent movies?

Practical: it hid the sound of noisy projectors

What did one early filmmaker refer to his noisy cast-iron camera-projector as?

A “coffee grinder” and “machine gun,” due to the racket it made

What happened as theater owners started to screen films on a regular basis?

The musicians in their theaters began choosing preexisting popular and classical music to suit the moods of onscreen scenes and stories

What did a 1918 silent film reviewer who commented on the caliber of the various NY theater orchestras mentioned?

The number of classical composers he heard represented in the performances and noted that one theater had “a library of over 8000 numbers to select from”

What composers did a 1918 reviewer of silent films hear in performances?

Strauss, Saint-Saens, Liszt, Chopin, Grieg, Beethoven, and Wagner

Could the actual compositions performed for each film in silent films vary widely from theater to theater?

Yes

What equipment was used to create Don Juan?

Vitaphone

What company created Don Juan?

Warner Brothers

When was Don Juan released?

1926

Did Don Juan have spoken dialogue?

No, only music

When was The Jazz Singer released?

1927

What did some directors, bit by bit, start asking composer to create to complement specific movies?

Custom scores

What is an alternate name for a custom score?

An original score

What is a custom score?

Music that was newly written to suit the scenes of a particular film

What could filmmakers not ensure when directors asked for custom scores?

That local theater orchestras had the necessary skills to play custom scores, and some small theaters did not have an orchestra at all, relying instead on just a solo pianist or organist

What did filmmakers begin to develop in the mid-1920s?

The first efforts at presenting recorded music that was synchronized to a specific film—thus enabling viewers in different theaters to see and hear identical versions of that moving picture

What were the two competing methods of synchronizing music and film for a while?

“Sound-on-film” technology and “sound-on-disk” technology

What is sound-on-film?

Technology that converted musical sound waves into visual images that were imbedded in a narrow track along the edge of the film footage

What is “sound-on-disk”?

Technology that allowed a single motor to operate both a projector as well as a turntable holding a disk that corresponded in length to a reel of film

What did sound-on-disk especially offer?

A richer, fuller resonance than the sound-on-film approach

Who was the most prominent studio to develop “sound-on-disk” films?

Warner Brothers

What did Warner Brothers use to develop sound-on-disk films?

The Vitaphone

Was sound-on-disk/film still regarded as being silent?

Yes, despite the ability of these new technologies to record sound

Whose life story provided the premise for The Jazz Singer?

Al Jolson

What song was popularized when added to The Jazz Singer?

“Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”

When did Samson Raphaelson see a live performance featuring Al Jolson?

1917

What was Samson Raphaelson’s lifespan?

1894-1983

What was Al Jolson’s lifespan?

1886-1950

What was Samuel Raphaelson mesmerized by when he saw Al Jolson?

The intensity of Jolson’s singing

What was Raphaelson reminded of when he heard Al Jolson?

The emotional power of Jewish cantors in synagogues

What did Jolson’s father want him to be?

A Jewish cantor, and he was disappointed when Jolson chose “show business”

What two pieces of media were loosely based on Jolson’s life?

Raphaelson’s short story “The Day of Atonement” and then a play “The Jazz Singer”

Did The Jazz Singer enjoy a surprisingly successful run on Broadway?

Yes, which attracted the attention of Warner Brothers

What did Warner Brothers decide that a film with “synchronized” popular songs would be a good vehicle to promote?

Their Vitaphone sound-on-disk machine

What did The Jazz Singer showcase?

A man who sang repeatedly

After what was jazz about to go “mainstream” in American entertainment?

Warner Brother’s The Jazzz Singer

What did the Warner Brother’s contract with Jolson call for?

Him to sing 6 songs in the film that would be recorded with the synchronizations equipment; a list was provided in the contract although it stipulated that mutually acceptable substitutes could be performed instead

What was one example of a substitute in The Jazz Singer?

“Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)

Since when had Jolson been singing “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

1922, when he had interpolated it into the largely forgettable musical comedy Bombo

When was Bombo released?

1921

What were Al Jolson’s most popular songs?

“Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”, “April Showers,” and “California, Here I Come”

What other songs had Al Jolson interpolated into Bombo?

“April Showers” and “California, here I come”

What is the storyline of The Jazz Singer?

Al Jolson’s character Jack Robin is persuaded to sing some songs to entertain diners in a restaurant

What was the filmmakers’ plan for Jolson in The Jazz Singer?

To perform “Dirty Hands, Dirty Face,” followed “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”

What songs in The Jazz Singer would be recorded “live” during the visual filming?

“Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye) and “Dirty Hands, Dirty Face”

What did Jolson do to surprise Warner Brothers?

He improvised a few spoken words between the two jazz songs—and the studio decided to retain his spontaneous lines: “Wait a minute! Wait a minute! You ain’t heard nothin’ yet”

How much money did The Jazz Singer earn?

3 million dollars

What movie set a record for a low-budget film and exposed an even wider swath of the American public to the still-new phenomenon of jazz?

The Jazz Singer

Where did technicians set up the projector and turntable (that would play the synchronized sound disk) for the screening of The Jazz Singer?

Australia

Who created “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Gus Kahn, Ernie Erdman, and Dan Russo

What two years were “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)” released?

1922/1927

What illustrates how far jazz had already come from its initially negative associations with the red-light-district?

The presence of the word “jazz” in The Jazz Singer

What is the soundtrack within The Jazz Singer a typical mixture of?

Popular features and jazz characteristics

What is the form of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Verse-chorus

What song form is very common for Tin Pan Alley?

Verse-chorus

How does the subtitle of the published sheet music labels “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)” as?

“A Cute Fox Trot Song”

What was the foxtrot?

A social dance in 4/4 or 2/4 time, and thousands of pieces were able to suit its rather simple dance movements

What time was the foxtrot in?

4/4 or 2/4

What was Gus Kahn’s lifespan?

1886-1941

What was Ernie Erdman’s lifespan?

1879-1946

What was Dan Russo’s lifespan?

1885-1956

What composers were clearly marketing “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)” to the widest possible audience?

Composers Gus Kahn, Ernie Erdman, and Dan Russo

What does Jolson add in the 1922 commercial recording of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

He adds numerous embellishments that are drawn from the jazz tradition

What does the accompanying ensemble busy itself with in “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Heterophony in several portions of the tune, and the trombone interjects several glissandos during the introduction, interlude, and coda

How is “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)” similar to “Sweet Georgia Brown”?

The composers created a hemiola of a triple-meter effect against the notated cut-time

How did composers draw attention to the hemiola in “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

By using this rhythmic device for the title phrase within the repetitive chorus

How are the quarter-note/half-note groups counted in “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

1-2-3-1-2-3

How is the meter counted in “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

1-&-2-&-1-&-2-&

What is the key of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)’s” hemiola rhythm?

Eb Major

How does Jolson fills his performance of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

With other types of syncopated rhythms, especially in the 2nd chorus

How does Jolson repeat “bye” in “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Almost in the manner of scat-singing

How is “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)” similar to “Lost Your Head Blues”?

Al Jolson bends a few pitches

Does the steady pulse in “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)” remain danceable?

Yes

What is no wonder about “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

“This song has become associated with the age and image of the flapper during the Roaring Twenties”

What happens in the introduction of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Treble instruments play syncopated melody from chorus; heterophony in background ensemble; prominent trombone glissandos

What happens in the verse of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Heterophony continues in the background

What happens in the first verse of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Heterophony continues in background

What happens in the first part of the first chorus of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Syncopated melody creates hemiola effect; heterophony continues

What happens in the second part of the first chorus of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Slide on “Oh” and “cry”; increasing chromaticism

What happens in the interlude of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Material from introduction returns

When is the interlude in “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

After the first chorus

What happens in the second verse of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Heterophony continues in background

What happens in the second chorus of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Jolson makes a few text changes and adds numerous vocal embellishments (bends and slides)

When is the coda of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

After the second chorus

What happens in the coda of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

Material from Introduction returns

When is the tag in “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

After the coda

What happens in the tag of “Toot, Toot, Tootsie! (Goo’ Bye)”?

A rhythmic unison