This May sees the return of Baton Rouge Gallery’s Movies & Music on the Lawn. The series pairs iconic silent films of the 1920s and ’30s (and even some modern ones) with original live music from local bands. It all happens out on the lawn behind the BREC facility.
The theme this year is “Greatest Hits,” showcasing some of the best Movies & Music on the Lawn presentations from past years. That includes an encore of the first-ever Movies & Music event, the 1998 pairing of the film Nosferatu with music from the jazz band The eXpanded Trio. Its members haven’t played together in this form in some time.
We spoke with frequent Movies & Music on the Lawn performer John Smart, keyboardist for The eXpanded Trio and funk group Righteous Buddha, the two bands bookending this year’s lineup.
What’s it like coming back with your current band and then The eXpanded Trio for an encore of the first Movies & Music on the Lawn event?
It’s a very unique opportunity and it’s just fun to do this with a group of people and have everybody’s heads in it together when you can sync up. With The eXpanded Trio, we’re all still in Baton Rouge and we’re all still friends. It feels like we can get back together and do it again any time.
What’s your process for creating the music to pair with the movie?
We get together and all watch the movie and play along with it, at least once or twice before we actually perform it. We just kind of see what we come up with, and when someone has an idea, we stop the film and say ‘I like what you did there, let’s try to remember to do something similar to that.’ We try to keep it really loose so it’s different every time and fresh, as opposed to a film score where you try to match the music to certain action in the frame. We’re like the total opposite of that.
What has being a part of Music & Movies on the Lawn for so many years and with different bands meant to you?
I think it’s a great thing for the community to have an outlet just to go see these films, and then it’s all just enhanced with local musicians. The gallery has done a great job of bringing in almost every local band around to pair with some of these silent movies, and there have been some really outstanding performances over the years. Also, it’s given me a chance to experience films that I’ve never seen. I had never seen Battleship Potemkin. We don’t have an arthouse cinema that shows old silent movies or anything around here. It’s just a special thing to know that it’s still going, and I hope it continues on forever.
What’s your favorite Music & Movies on the Lawn memory?
My favorite movie that we as The eXpanded Trio ever did was Battleship Potemkin. The movie was shot right after the Russian revolution. It’s about a mutiny on the Potemkin, and it’s just one of my favorite movies. It was our second-ever performance and I think that was one of our best performances ever. Collectively, everything we did worked so well with the film, and it flowed together seamlessly. I remember playing that night and time just flew by so fast doing it because everybody was on the same page. We were really playing as one voice through the whole thing.
MOVIE TIME
The lineup for Movies & Music on the Lawn, presented by Whole Foods Market, at Baton Rouge Gallery:
May 27:The Adventures of Prince Achmed with a live score by Righteous Buddha
June 25:The Artist with a live score by Captain Green
July 30:Metropolis with a live score by Matsy
Aug. 26:Peter Pan with a live score by The (New) Zeelanders
Sept. 30: Sunrise with a live score by Minos the Saint
Oct. 28:Nosferatu with a live score by The eXpanded Trio
The screenings begin at 8 p.m. or sundown, whichever comes last, on the lawn behind Baton Rouge Gallery. The $7 price of admission includes free bottomless popcorn. batonrougegallery.org
