Besides the tape reels and perforated disks of early sound reproduction machinery, the Museum also possesses more than 1,900 discs of soundtracks created from the 1920s to the early 1980s. Passing from one title to the next, the listener is exposed to vastly different musical experiences ranging from symphonies to tunes from American musicals.
The soundtracks of Italian films are dominated by three great composers who worked for Cinecittà: Armando Trovajoli, Riz Ortolani and Ennio Morricone, who has written music that is featured on over thirty albums. The collection dedicated to the actors and actresses who have lent their voice to films, like Totò, is just as important. For instance, the Museum is in possession of a richly illustrated box containing many of Totò’s famous songs and comic sketches.
Even though the majority of the musical content of these discs can be easily found in modern formats, these artifacts are nevertheless precious, thanks to the information that can be found on their covers. Whether they simply reproduce the film’s poster or whether they feature a new design that was specifically created for the occasion, they are, nonetheless, a testimony to their age, just like the techniques of production and promotion that were used to create them. When viewed in this light, these objects assume an important role in promoting the seventh art and are able to attract the attention of the public to this lesser known aspect of the film industry, music that was written to illustrate or accompany a film.
Above and beyond the obvious beauty of most of these works, one can find all the ties that the film industry maintains with many musical trends and their audiences. These disks, therefore, constitute an additional documentary source to help penetrate to the very heart of the complex artistic machine of images in movement.
(Florent Fourcart) |
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Contacts
Claudia Bozzone
Tel. +39 011 8138 526
Fax +39 011 8138 575
bozzone@museocinema.it
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