Lloyd听Whitesell has been on faculty at听the Schulich School of Music for almost twenty years, and is also currently in the second year of his tenure as Associate Dean, Research and Administration. Fascinated with the connections between music and film, literature, and other mediums, his students over the years have enjoyed seminars on topics as wide ranging as Joni Mitchell, queer monsters, style in film music, and Bernard Herrmann (the composer听known for his collaborations with director Alfred Hitchcock). He received a Schulich School of Music Teaching Award in 2011.
The popular professor has just released a new book,听, in which he explores听the various elements that听make听film musicals听glamorous. This is his second book published by Oxford University Press 鈥� The Music of Joni Mitchell was released in 2008.
Most of us will have seen a film musical at some point in our lives, possibly听dating back to听childhood听鈥� the likes of The Wizard of Oz, Grease, Chicago, 42nd Street, West Side Story, My Fair Lady,听or even听Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (featuring Marilyn Monroe's听famous 鈥淒iamonds are a Girl鈥檚 Best Friend鈥�). Whitesell talks about the way that film musicals often听have听visually extravagant d茅cor, and the performances can be听very stylized, involving seamless transitions into dance sequences. Viewers can escape into a world of beauty, elegance, romance, or even make-believe. Alluring personas are common in film musicals: the likes of Rita Hayworth, Marilyn Monroe, and Fred Astaire.
In Wonderful Design, Whitesell discusses what the definition of 鈥済lamour鈥� is, and investigates the various听techniques听used by composers, arrangers, and song writers to create the illusion of glamour. With an academic approach, he leads the reader to layers that are much deeper than just听visual cues of sequins, jewellery, and evening gloves, and听analyses examples where musical orchestration helps to convey a sense of glamour.
Whitesell has categorized Hollywood musicals into what he calls 鈥渟tyle modes,鈥� based on a number of factors including music, staging, costumes,听and lyrics. For example, "ordinary mode" occurs in musicals with simple costumes and music (think "Surrey with the Fringe on Top" from听Oklahoma); "children's mode" can be found in bright numbers like "Ding Dong the Witch is Dead" from听The Wizard of Oz;听"razzle-dazzle mode" brings the sequins, flashy moves, and perhaps even "jazz hands" to light (including songs听from听颁丑颈肠补驳辞,听or the dance moves you may well know from听"Greased Lightening" in听骋谤别补蝉别).听
"Glamour mode" can be seen in this very elegant clip from听Pal Joey听(1957), with听Rita Hayworth singing "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered":
Another gem of glamour is "It's Magic" from Romance on the High Seas听(1948), with leading lights Doris Day and Nestor Amaral:
We asked author Lloyd Whitesell听a few questions to find out more about how听Wonderful Design adds to the existing literature:
What new approaches and research can readers enjoy in this book?
I鈥檓 the first to treat glamour as a sonic experience. This book develops a new theory of style modes (glamour being one), for the analysis of style design in film musicals. It also develops a new definition of the concept of glamour based on three core components (artifice, allure, enchantment). I鈥檝e developed an original analytical framework for understanding glamour as a fusion of four aesthetic qualities (sensuousness, restraint, elevation, and sophistication). The book pursues a transsensory approach, using terms that apply across media (visual, sonic, tactile).
What led you to exploring this topic?
I鈥檝e done research on the importance of ultra-stylishness (style for its own sake) in classical music, particularly that of听French composer Maurice Ravel. It can be a way of retreating from the world, expressing a superior attitude, or creating a transcendent space. Glamour is a way to do similar things in popular genres.
I also enjoyed shining a light on music arrangers and orchestrators in the film studios, the ones who transformed songs into spectacular routines. This meant traveling to Los Angeles and digging in the archives for music scores, many of which are now lost.
Why is this research important from a practical standpoint?
Because style is something we soak up in the background when we are viewing/listening, we aren鈥檛 always paying close attention. This means that it can affect us subconsciously and powerfully. I turn an analytical lens on these powerful unobtrusive effects.
Were there any findings that you found particularly surprising during your research?
One surprising thing was finding glamour in unexpected places: children鈥檚 films (Lady and the Tramp, Wizard of Oz), horror film (Sweeney Todd), and gritty realistic settings (West Side Story). Another was discovering deep religious symbolism in how glamorous stars are depicted.
Lloyd Whitesell's听Wonderful Design: Glamour in the Hollywood Musical听will have an official launch on campus, at 5pm on Friday 5 October in the Schulich School of Music's Marvin Duchow Music Library.听
