The Music of Charlie Chaplin

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by Jim Lochner

Type

Studies

Subject

Director > Charlie Chaplin

Keywords

Charlie Chaplin, music

Publishing date

2018

Publisher

McFarland & Co

Collection

Silent Cinema

Language

English

Relative size

Physical desc.

Paperback • 450 pages
7 x 10 inches (18 x 25.5 cm)

ISBN

978-0-7864-9611-2

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Book Presentation:
Charlie Chaplin the actor is universally synonymous with his beloved Tramp character. Chaplin the director is considered one of the great auteurs and innovators of cinema history. Less well known is Chaplin the composer, whose instrumental theme for Modern Times (1936) later became the popular standard “Smile,” a Billboard hit for Nat “King” Cole in 1954.

Chaplin was prolific yet could not read or write music. It took a rotating cast of talented musicians to translate his unorthodox humming, off-key singing, and amateur piano and violin playing into the singular orchestral vision he heard in his head.

Drawing on numerous transcriptions from 60 years of original scores, this comprehensive study reveals the untold story of Chaplin the composer and the string of famous (and not-so-famous) musicians he employed, giving fresh insight into his films and shedding new light on the man behind the icon.

About the Author:
Jim Lochner is an arts journalist based in New York City. His music and lyrics have appeared in shows for TADA! Youth Theater, and he has written extensively on film music for Film Score Monthly and FSM Online, and for the record labels Varèse Sarabande, Intrada, La-La Land Records, Quartet Records, and Disques Cinemusique.

Press Reviews:
"A welcome addition to the ocean of Chaplin studies. The book represents that rarest of things, a new Chaplin monograph that actually fills a gap in Chaplin studies. …a fine overview of the entire arc of Chaplin’s musical career and loads of fun detail along the way…meticulously researched…the wealth of information is fresh and entertaining…exhaustive research…impressive…a rich account of the cue sheets and music compilations…Lochner deftly mines the various memoirs of Chaplin’s musical collaborators for descriptions of Chaplin’s working methods when he created his orchestral arrangement."—Film International
"Jim Lochner takes a very fresh approach. [He] analyzes the musical genius of Chaplin and how it enriched his films. This brings an entirely new perspective to our viewing of Chaplin classics"—Pop Culture Classics.
"A rare kind of film and music history book…provides vital insight into a person considered one of the most important figures of early cinema, and reveals an artist with a deep hunger for complete authorship…rich in detail."—The Atlantic

See the publisher website: McFarland & Co

See the complete filmography of Charlie Chaplin on the website: IMDB ...