Hunchback: Esmeralda Says Goodbye
A lyrical, dramatic excerpt shaped live through organ color and instrumental dialogue.
Live improvised film scoreSilent Film · Live Organ Improvisation · Cinematic Storytelling
Silent Film at the Organ.
One instrument. One performer. Every emotion brought to life in real time. Rasaan Hakiem revives the golden age of cinema through live improvised organ accompaniment.
LiveImprovised Scores
ClassicSilent Cinema
OrganAs Orchestra
EventsChurches · Theatres · Festivals
The Art
The organ becomes the orchestra.
Silent film accompaniment is one of the organ’s most thrilling and theatrical traditions. Each performance is shaped live, scene by scene, as the film unfolds.
This is not background music. It is real-time storytelling — improvisation, timing, registration, color, drama, humor, suspense, and emotional instinct all happening in the moment.
What makes it unforgettable?
- Live improvisation created in real time
- Historic cinema experienced as performance
- The organ used as orchestra, narrator, and atmosphere
- A unique score every time the film is screened
- An event format suitable for churches, theatres, schools, and festivals
Featured Performances
Live silent film scores created in the moment.
These performances are collaborations in real time — not prewritten scores. Rasaan Hakiem at the organ and brilliant musical collaborators improvise an entire film score live as the picture unfolds.
A special featured collaborator is Mr. Thomas Giles, horn double, heard here performing on alto saxophone, flute, piccolo, and clarinet. Together, the musicians respond to gesture, drama, comedy, suspense, and motion — composing the soundtrack on the spot.
The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
Gothic theatre, suspense, and spectacle scored in real time at the organ.
Live improvised film scoreOverture to Hunchback of Notre Dame
An opening statement of atmosphere, architecture, and cinematic momentum.
Live improvised film scoreOliver Twist: Silent Film Performance
Character, pathos, motion, and story brought forward through live improvisation.
Live improvised film scoreNosferatu: A Silent Film Performance
A haunting classic shaped through shadow, silence, registration, and suspense.
Live improvised film scoreThe Monster (1925)
Theatrical comedy-horror brought to life through timing, color, and ensemble imagination.
Live improvised film scorePerformance Offerings
Programs for churches, theatres, schools, and arts organizations.
Historic Film Screenings
Full-length silent film events with live organ accompaniment for churches, historic theatres, museums, universities, and arts presenters.
Lecture-Recitals
Educational programs exploring improvisation, film history, theatre organ tradition, and the art of accompanying silent cinema.
Community Concert Events
Accessible, family-friendly programming that introduces new audiences to the organ through storytelling, humor, drama, and cinema.
Seasonal Programs
Halloween screenings, Advent/Christmas cinema programs, arts festivals, community nights, and special parish events.
Film Festival Collaborations
Live scoring for curated silent film programs, historic retrospectives, and festival presentations.
Custom Programs
Tailored screenings based on venue, audience, instrument, season, and available film titles.
“Improvisation is listening — to the film, the room, the instrument, and the audience.”Rasaan Hakiem
Why silent film belongs with the organ.
Long before soundtracks were fixed recordings, music for film was alive. Organists, pianists, and theatre musicians shaped the emotional world of the picture in real time.
Today, live organ accompaniment restores that immediacy. The audience does not simply watch a film. They experience a performance that exists only once.
The Connection
From liturgy to cinema, the musician responds to the moment.
The same skills that shape a great liturgical musician also shape a compelling silent film accompanist: listening, improvisation, pacing, color, and the ability to support something larger than the performer.
In worship, the organist listens to the liturgy and congregation. In silent film, the organist listens to image, gesture, movement, and drama. In both, the music brings a living moment into fuller expression.
Book a silent film performance.
Available for churches, historic theatres, universities, film festivals, arts organizations, and community concert series.