May 2024

Dr David Bednall returns for a night of musical entertainment from the organ console with this macabre 1925 horror!

The Phantom of the Opera, American silent horror film, released in 1925, that starred Lon Chaney in his most famous role. The macabre story is based on French author Gaston Leroux's novel Le Fantôme de l’opéra (1910). A disfigured eccentric genius (played by Chaney) secretly coaches an aspiring opera singer (Mary Philbin) and forces her to learn to sing majestically. The relationship turns tragic when he falls in love with her and kidnaps her to prevent her from being with her fiancé. Via Britannica.com David Bednall has established an international reputation as an exciting and virtuosic organist and is particularly noted for his skills as one of Europe's finest improvisers, especially in providing the soundtrack to silent films. Bednall was formerly the Assistant Organist at Wells Cathedral and is now a Bristol-based performer, composer, and lecturer. His improvised organ accompaniments to Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde at the Oxford Festival of the Arts and The Hunchback of Notre Dame at the Bristol Film Festival were both sell-out performances and widely acclaimed. He has also performed improvised soundtracks to Faust, Metropolis, and J’accuse.