Composer/pianist Robert Bruce performs his live original score to the 1923 classic silent comedy film ‘Safety Last!’ starring Harold Lloyd on Monday, October 21 at 7 p.m. at Kimberly Arts – Centre 64, 64 Deer Park Avenue, Kimberley.

The image of Harold Lloyd hanging from the clock in Safety Last! remains one of the most iconic of all Hollywood films, and not just those of the silent era.  Easily the most successful and far-reaching film starring Lloyd, Safety Last! did indeed seem to capture some particularly subtle yet powerful Hollywood magic, and it also contains quite a number of memorable scenes and gags.  Produced by Hal Roach Studios and released in 1923, this film, like many films starring Lloyd, also really captures something of life in the 20s, particularly cosmopolitan life.

Of particular interest at this time is that this film has just recently been digitally re-mastered and re-released in various formats.  The new version is stunningly clear and sharp and will be shown at this October 21 program.

Composer/pianist Robert Bruce’s live score for Safety Last! follows the story and action pretty closely, weaving in and out of a variety of musical moods and styles ranging from the ‘Jazz Age’ sounds popular in the 1920s to more reflective and descriptive neo-classical pieces which have somewhat become his own musical trademark.

Since the late 1970s composer/pianist Robert Bruce has developed a diverse catalog of original music, which includes piano repertoire for students; music for film, television and animation; orchestral and piano works, and a collection of art-songs which he performs with his “Classical Nouveau” ensemble.

Working for the past decade with two of the largest Film/TV Music Publishers in the world (Sonoton, based in Germany, and Audio Network, based in the UK), Robert’s music has now appeared in hundreds of films and of television shows worldwide.  Last year was particularly active, with his music being used in numerous high-profile projects including the Honda Ad aired during the 2012 Super Bowl that features Matthew Broderick revamping his famous Ferris Bueller role, and in the trailer for the 2012 Hollywood feature The Babymakers starring Olivia Munn and Paul Schneider.

Earlier in 2013 Robert presented a special Live Music/Silent Film program in Hollywood for the film production community as part of a special event presented by Sonoton and their North America distributor APM (Associated Production Music) that, in part, highlighted the Silent Film Piano Music CD he recorded last year.

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