Joseph Carl Breil | |
|---|---|
 Breil in 1918 | |
| Born | June 29, 1870 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | January 23, 1926 (aged 55) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Alma mater | |
| Occupation | Composer |
| Spouse | Alta Gelvin |
Joseph Carl Breil (29 June 1870 – 23 January 1926) was an American lyric tenor, stage director, composer and conductor. He was one of the earliest American composers to compose specific music for motion pictures. His first film was Les amours de la reine Élisabeth (1912) starring Sarah Bernhardt. He later composed and arranged scores for several other early motion pictures, including such epics as D. W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation (1915) and Intolerance (1916), as well as scoring the preview version of The Phantom of the Opera (1925), a score that is now lost.[citation needed] His love theme for "Birth of a Nation", titled "The Perfect Song", was published by Chappell & Co. in an arrangement for voice and keyboard. It was later used as the theme for the radio show Amos 'n' Andy.[1]
- ^ M. Marks: Music and the Silent Film (New York, 1997)