Accustomed though we are to speaking of the films made before 1927 as "silent", the film has never been, in the full sense of the word, silent.
盡管我們習慣于將1927年以前的電影稱為"無聲電影",但是就無聲這個詞完整的意義
From the very beginning, music was regarded as an indispensable accompaniment;
上來說,電影從未真正的無聲過,從最初開始音樂就被視為必不可少的伴奏。
when the Lumiere films were shown at the first public film exhibition in the United States in February 1896, they were accompanied by piano improvisations on popular tunes.
and in the larger movie theaters small orchestras were formed.
較大的影劇院里還組成了小型的管弦樂隊。
For a number of years the selection of music for each film program rested entirely in the hands of the conductor or leader of the orchestra,
在很長的時間內,為各部影片選擇配樂完全掌握在樂隊指揮或隊長手中,
and very often the principal qualification for holding such a position was not skill or taste so much as the ownership of a large personal library of musical pieces.
而通常把持這種職位的資格不是技巧或鑒賞品味,而是擁有一個大的音樂作品的個人收藏。
Since the conductor seldom saw the films until the night before they were to be shown(if indeed, the conductor was lucky enough to see them then),
因為直到電影上映的前一天晚上樂隊指揮才能看到影片(如果這個指揮真正有幸能夠看到影片的話),
the musical arrangement was normally improvised in the greatest hurry.
音樂安排通常是在非常匆忙的情況下臨場進行的。
To help meet this difficulty, film distributing companies started the practice of publishing suggestions for musical accompaniments.
為了解決以上的困難,電影發(fā)行公司開辦了為音樂伴奏印制提示單的業(yè)務。
In 1909, for example, the Edison Company began issuing with their films such indications of mood as " pleasant", "sad", "lively".