What Type of Sound Was First Used in Film?
Early filmmaking was largely that of the silent film era. While Thomas Edison was involved in the phonograph and had the ability to record sound as early as 1877. It would be several more years before the idea of adding sound to movies or films would even begin to transpire. Even after moving pictures were invented in 1890. There was still no consideration of adding sound to these films. At least not just yet. But what type of sound was first used in film and when?
Introduction of Theatrical Sound & Films
During the very early 1900s, Charlie Chaplin’s silent films would get a boost. Films in theaters would hire musicians to play music accompaniments with the films that were being screened.
The result was a shift in film viewing. Such that while a silent film was playing. Theater goers would have something to listen to as musicians played along to the film.
Sad music to go along with sad scenes. Scary music when there was a hidden monster. And of course, happy music when couples would marry.
Warner Brothers
Warner Brothers would introduce theaters that were wired for sound in 1925. As they sought a way of delivering theatrical experiences that included sound, they began the sound movie system.
This would incorporate sound into the silent movies by pairing recorded music and sound with the silent film. Both would play at the same time, allowing for a much more affordable alternative to the orchestra playing during a film screening.
Don Juan
The movie, Don Juan, would show a typical silent film that was accompanied by a recorded orchestra effect which accompanied the existing footage. Fans loved it, but while Warner Brothers made more and more Vitaphone movies, the technology was expensive.
While other studios wished to produce similar concepts, the technology required to share the sound and the visual was hard to replicate.
Orchestra Sounds
So, what type of sound was first used in film? Theaters first used orchestrated sound that was produced live to accompany the film. Later attempts at adding sound included the orchestra sounds that were recorded and played in tandem with the existing footage.
And finally, eventually, sound would be recorded with the actual filming of the production, allowing viewers to engage in films that actually included pre-recorded sound tracks which made the movies one step closer to what we know them to be today.
