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Music for Silent Film: A Guide to Resources at the Library of Congress

Reference Resources

This page describes reference resources, both online and print, that offer access to basic information and quick facts concerning music for silent film.

These online resources provide access to information on the history of silent film as well as access to other digital collections of music and instruction manuals used in silent film accompaniment.

The following titles offer a representative sample and link to fuller bibliographic information in the Library of Congress Online Catalog. Links to additional online content are included when available.

Research on music for silent film has continued to receive robust attention. The following titles offer a representative sample and link to fuller bibliographic information in the Library of Congress Online Catalog. Links to additional online content are included when available.

The following dissertations provide a wealth of information on the history, development, and influence of music for silent film. Many of these dissertations can be accessed through online databases. Links to databases are provided at the bottom of this page.

  • Aldridge, Henry B. "Live Musical and Theatrical Presentations in Detroit Moving Picture Theatres, 1896 to 1930." Ph.D. diss., University of Michigan, 1973
  • Anderson, Shana. "Ideal Performance Practice for Silent Film: An Overview of How-To Manuals and Cue Sheet Music Accompaniment from the 1910s-1920s." Ph.D. thesis, University of Ottawa, 2013.
  • Ford, Fiona. "The Film Music of Edmund Meisel (1894-1930)." Ph.D. thesis, University of Nottingham, 2011.
  • Kraft, James P. "Stage to Studio: American Musicians and Sound Technology, 1890-1945." Ph.D. diss., University of Southern California, 1990.
  • Steele, George. "Scoring Silent Film: Music/Nation/Affect." Ph.D. diss., University of Rhode Island, 2009.