W.W.&F. Discussion Forum
WW&F Railway Museum Discussion => Museum Discussion => Topic started by: Isaiah Reid on November 05, 2013, 12:38:43 PM
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An first attempt at a short movie by my brother and I, taken in early August I believe, would like some feedback, hope you like it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KF_F49-f55Y
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Hi Isiah,
You have some very interesting shots there - some new angles. Also, how do you do the distortions? Intentional?
My only complaint would be that the music is a rather overpowering. We steam fans like to hear the subtle sounds of the locomotive and its train.
-John
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Very nicely done and I enjoyed the music. A very different and entertaining perspective.
Thanks.
Ira Schreiber
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Thanks! The distortions were not intentional it was some youtube thing trying to steady the shots, since it was with no tripod on narrow gauge it got a bit overdone, but now it is fixed.
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Hi Isaiah,
I wanted to share that I really enjoyed the film overall. The pan up from the locomotive pilot was especially nice and some of your camera angles were very effective. I loved your music and film independently, however the two together left me with a somewhat disjointed overall impression.
A quick note on the music (pun intended). Swing music like you have used (Count Basie's Jumpin' at the Woodside as performed by the Benny Goodman Orchestra for those who are curious) is often used in films dealing with railroads and transportation. Many use it because of its perceived value in evoking a sense of nostalgia. However, big band swing like you have selected is more often associated with urban settings rather than the more bucolic setting of the WW&F. In addition, in terms of era many would say the swing era began around 1933 and its prominence in musical culture was solidified by 1935 Unfortunately, since the WW&F stopped operating in 1933, it is unlikely that anyone ever jitterbugged on the platforms while waiting for a train. So the era of the music and the era of the railroad is again a bit disconnected. Try pairing it with some music of a more rural origin such as fiddle music, folk tunes, etc. and see what you think. Hopefully you find this helpful!
-Steve Piwowarski
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Nicely Done
Maybe the music should have been "Brother Can You Spare A Dime". Since donations are always welcome ...just sayin ;D
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Nicely done. Though it got me thinking, I wonder how a B&W version would work. That music is sets a mood for B&W. Thanks for sharing.
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Being a fan of Big Band music, I really like the music selection. However I agree with Stephen P, the WW&F does not fit into much of the era of the Big Bands as defined by what played on the radio, as much as I'd like it to.
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Interesting video, Isaiah!
I believe the museum tries where possible to have a 1920s look. There's quite a thorough look at the jazz of the 1920s in Wikipedia, the link being http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1920s_in_jazz#StandardsI imagine that even in rural Maine people played grammaphone records recorded by the various well known bands mentioned in the article.
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Hi Isaiah,
I like the video. You have great camera angles, some I've not seen before. I like the music but agree that (1) it could be a bit softer to allow the railroad sounds to come through and (2) the music could be from the mid 1920's into the early 1930's. That would be a better fit. The WW&F at that time served Wiscasset which had electric and rural areas that didn't. That means that some towns people had radios and folks in other areas would have had phonographs as Steve noted. Broadcast music programs would have ranged from jazz and ragtime to classical so there's a lot of choices.
I'd say you really captured the flavor of the WW&F and I hope you do more videos.
Here's a piece on my favorite 3 footer, the EBT and I think the music fits the film.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ePjn5AF554
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Perhaps music from HBO's "Boardwalk Empire" series would be more appropriate to the 1920's aura of the WW&F. I've been to places that play ragtime over their PA systems, and that's too old, and Big Band is too recent. Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks -- just right!
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According to Wikipedia, ragtime was popular 1895 - 1918, with jazz after that. So ragtime and jazz would be completely appropriate to the WW&F.
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I imagine that a fair number of people living along the WW&F in the 1920s had Victrolas or other brands of grammaphone, and listened to hits of the day, such as this one of "The Charleston" issued in 1925 by the Paul Whiteman band.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgrvwCNduus&list=RD02qgrvwCNduus
Various players in that band went on to form their own bands, and I think their number included Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey, both of which led very popular swing bands later.
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Hi Steve,
Thanks for the link. The Charleston still sounds good! I can almost see #9 scooting along with Paul Whiteman music in the background. You're right about folks having wind up "Talking Machines" (record players) back then. They were used in towns and rural areas alike. Another thing that came out during that time was "Farm Set" radios. Radio caught on big time in the mid to late 1920's but there were still large areas in the U.S. without electric service. Radio companies such as Atwater Kent, Zenith and RCA built battery powered radio sets to market receivers to rural customers.
There were people along the WW&F that had farm sets that ran on batteries or DC current from a generator. A story by Harry Percival told of a fellow in Weeks Mills that had a 32VDC radio so there is proof that rural folks could hear the latest music.
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There were people along the WW&F that had farm sets that ran on batteries or DC current from a generator. A story by Harry Percival told of a fellow in Weeks Mills that had a 32VDC radio so there is proof that rural folks could hear the latest music.
.....and the WW&F engine crews could listen to their radios in the cabs of their engines ;D
-John
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The engine crew listening to the radio ?? I guess you could do it with a 32volt set but you may have to turn the headlight on to fire up the radio. It reminds me of the slogan seen on a hat at the Big E Show:
"REAL RADIOS and REAL LOCOMOTIVES have TUBES"
Isaiah, Sorry to hijack your thread so here's something that may help with your next video project. The peak years for the WW&F were from 1907 when Carson Peck took over until about WWI in 1918. As noted before, Ragtime was popular in that era. You may already know this but some of the best Ragtime music was composed by Scott Joplin. Scott's music was featured in the 1973 Universal Pictures movie The Sting.
Start
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Thank you for the great ideas, the music, the music is a bit out of era, and a bit loud I agree. You read my mind, I was thinking that Scott Joplin's-Pineapple rag would work as well, maybe an updated version later. Thanks!
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Just for fun -
For those not familiar with his work, here's one of my favorite Scott Joplin tunes:
Maple Leaf Rag - This is the original version, recorded from a piano roll that was actually played by Scott Joplin.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMAtL7n_-rc
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If you look at some of the later photos of the Albion station, there appears to be some sort of antenna attached to the roof at the north end of the building. Perhaps the family that resided there had some sort of radio.
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Good point Bill. Most radio sets built from the early 1920's into the late 1930's needed an external antenna so it would have been common during the later years of the WW&F to see antennas on homes along the railroad. Harry told me that in the 1930's you could pick up stations from Boston, New York, Chicago as well as Canadian broadcasts. That gave New England listeners access to network programs featuring music. Maine was also a good place for receiving shortwave broadcasts from the UK and Europe.
As has been noted in other posts, there were many advances in communication during the almost 40 years the narrow gauge served the Sheepscot Valley. The new technology would have brought music from other parts of the nation and beyond.