Date of Award
May 2017
Degree Type
Thesis
Department
Music
Advisor(s)
Nicolas Scherzinger
Second Advisor
Theodore P. Cateforis
Keywords
film history, film music, performers, violin performance, violin solos
Subject Categories
Arts and Humanities
Abstract
Solo musicians have been present in film music since the beginning of film history. The extent of the musicians’ involvement has typically varied, from being featured soloists during film changes in a theatre to being featured soloists in a film soundtrack. Sometimes musicians were the subject matter of films, but not all of these films cast musicians in the on-screen role; instead directors selected an actor to portray the musician and had a competent musician train them to look like they could play an instrument on-screen. In many cases, directors asked musicians to record the actual piece in a studio to overdub the actor’s performance. In the last two decades numerous films have featured original solos written for violin, some of them emanating diegetically from the story, and some of them functioning non-diegetically in the support of the film’s narrative. Among the violinists asked to record these solos are such notable names as Itzhak Perlman, Joshua Bell, and Hillary Hahn. Throughout film music history, solo violinists have been visible or invisible (yet audibly present) within Hollywood films to varying degrees.
Access
Open Access
Recommended Citation
Truelove, Caitlan, "The Evolution of Solo Violin Performers In Film Music History" (2017). Theses - ALL. 143.
https://surface.syr.edu/thesis/143
