Silent Film/Live Music

Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust presents:
Silent Film/Live Music, a two-part series featuring silent film
accompanied by live music.

#1: Wednesday, June 23 at 7:00 pm
His People (Director: Edward Sloman – 1925, 91 min, 16mm)
World Premiere score written by Paul Shapiro. Performed live by an
all-star band.
Restored 16mm print courtesy of the National Center for Jewish Film at
Brandeis University

Shapiro’s all-star’s: Paul Shapiro (woodwinds), Steven Bernstein
(trumpets), Tomas Ulrich (cello), Brian Mitchell (piano), David Hofstra
(bass), and Tony Lewis (drums)

Edward Sloman’s His People tells the Lower East Side story of David and Rose Cominsky and their two sons, Morris, who is studying to be a lawyer, and Sammy, who is secretly becoming a boxer. Sloman’s compelling vision of the painful depths and joyous heights of immigrant life endow the film with an exuberant vitality.

#2: Wednesday, June 30 at 7:00 pm
The Golem (Directors: Carl Boese and Paul Wegener – 1920, 90 min., 16mm)
With original New York City premiere score by Daniel Hoffman. Performed
live by Davka.

Restored 16mm print courtesy of the Museum of Modern Art.

Davka: Kevin Mummey (percussion), Moses Sedler (cello), Paul Hanson
(bassoon), Daniel Hoffman (violin)

Carl Boese and Paul Wegener’s 1920 German Expressionist film, The Golem, is a parable based on a classic folktale. When the Jewish community of Prague is threatened with expulsion, the rabbi creates and avenging angel out of clay. When the creature spirals out of control, he is terrifying, destructive, and tragic. This raging monster is tempered only by the calming innocence of a little girl.