Häxan
Encyclopedia
Häxan is a 1922 Swedish/Danish silent
horror film
written and directed by Benjamin Christensen
. Based partly on Christensen's study of the Malleus Maleficarum
, a 15th century German guide for inquisitors
, Häxan is a study of how superstition
and the misunderstanding of diseases and mental illness
could lead to the hysteria of the witch-hunt
s. The film was made as a documentary
but contains dramatized sequences that are comparable to horror films.
With Christensen's meticulous recreation of medieval scenes and the lengthy production period, the film was the most expensive Scandinavia
n silent film ever made, costing nearly two million Swedish kronor
. Although it won acclaim in Denmark and Sweden, the film was banned in the United States
and heavily censored in other countries for what were considered at that time graphic depictions of torture
, nudity
, and sexual perversion.
s and witches in primitive and medieval culture, a number of photographs of statuary, paintings, and woodcuts are used as demonstrative pieces. In addition, several large scale models are employed to demonstrate medieval concepts of the structure of the solar system
and the commonly accepted depiction of Hell
.
, including Satan
(played by Christensen himself) tempting a sleeping woman away from her husband's bed and terrorizing a group of monk
s. Also shown is a woman purchasing a love potion from a supposed witch, and a sequence showing a supposed witch dreaming of flying through the air and attending a witches' gathering.
, it concerns an old woman accused of witchcraft by a dying man's family. The narrative is used to demonstrate the treatment of suspected witches by the religious authorities of the time. The old woman, after being tortured, admits to heavy involvement in witchcraft, including detailed descriptions of a Witches' Sabbath
, even going so far as to "name" other supposed witches, including two of the women in the dying man's household. Eventually, the dying man's wife is arrested as a witch when she admits that she falsely accused the old woman of witchcraft.
and a kleptomania
c, the implication being that these behaviors would have been thought of as demonically-influenced in medieval times whereas modern times recognizes them as psychological ailments. There is heavy irony
, however, in the observation that the "temperate shower of the clinic" i.e. the treatment of "hysterical women" in a modern institution, has replaced medieval solutions such as burning at the stake.
bookshop, Christensen spent two years — from 1919 to 1921 — studying manuals, illustrations and treatises on witches and witch-hunting. He included a lengthy bibliography in the original playbill at the film's premiere. He intended to create an entirely new film rather than an adaptation of literary fiction, which was the case for films of that day. "In I am against these adaptations... I seek to find the way forward to original films."
Christensen obtained funding from the Svensk Film (Swedish Film), preferring it over the local Danish film studios, so that he could maintain complete artistic freedom. He used the money to buy and refurbish the Astra film studio in Hellerup, Denmark. Filming then ran from February through October 1921. Christensen and cinematographer Johan Ankerstjerne filmed only at night or in a closed set to maintain the film's dark hue. Post-production
required another year before the film premiered in late 1922. Total cost for Svensk Film, including refurbishing the Astra Film Studio, reached between 1.5 and 2 million kronor, making Häxan the most expensive Scandinavian silent film in history.
In 1968, an abbreviated version of the film (77 minutes as opposed to the original's 104 minutes) was released, entitled Witchcraft Through the Ages. This version featured an eclectic jazz
score by Daniel Humair
(played by a quintet including Jean-Luc Ponty
on violin and Daniel Humair
on percussion) and dramatic narration by William S. Burroughs
.
On October 16, 2001, Häxan was released on DVD
by The Criterion Collection
. This release features a restored print of the original version of the film, as well as the 1968 Witchcraft Through The Ages version. Also featured are extensive production notes, a re-recorded musical score, commentary by Danish film scholar Casper Tybjerg, a gallery featuring the images used in the film's first section, and the introduction Christensen recorded for the 1941 re-release.
, 18 September 1922), it was accompanied by a score compiled from preexisting compositions; details of the selection, which met with the director's enthusiastic approval, have been lost. It is known, however, what music was used the following November for the Copenhagen premier, where it was played by a 50-piece orchestra; this selection, combining pieces by Schubert
, Gluck
, and Beethoven
, has been restored and recorded with a smaller ensemble by arranger/conductor Gillian Anderson for the 2001 Criterion Collection DVD edition.
It has also been claimed that Danish
composer
and conductor
Launy Grøndahl
composed the film's original score
.
In 2007, two new soundtracks for the film were composed in Britain. One was by the British composer and performer Geoff Smith, to be performed on the hammered dulcimer
. Smith performed the soundtrack throughout the UK in 2007. The other was by the British group Bronnt Industries Kapital
, and was also performed throughout the UK and Europe in 2007. A DVD of the film featuring both soundtracks was released by Tartan Films
on September 24, 2007.
A third soundtrack to be recorded and released in 2007 was a score commissioned from silent film composer Matti Bye by the Swedish Film Institute
. This soundtrack is featured on the DVD release of the most recent restoration of the film, made by the Swedish Film Institute.
Barði Jóhannsson
of Bang Gang
made a symphony over the silent film with the Bulgarian Chamber Orchestra. The Häxan Score was released on CD in 2006.
The French experimental music group Art Zoyd
also created a soundtrack that was released on CD in 1997. This work was commissioned by the City of Copenhagen, the European Union
designated Cultural Capital of Europe 1996. Art Zoyd
members Gérard Hourbette and Thierry Zaboïtzeff composed the soundtrack.
The American film scoring ensemble The Rats & People Motion Picture Orchestra
premiered its new score for the film at the 2010 St. Louis International Film Festival
.
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
written and directed by Benjamin Christensen
Benjamin Christensen
Benjamin Christensen was a Danish film director, screenwriter and an actor both in film and on the stage. As a director he is most well known for the 1922 film Häxan and as an actor, he is best known for his performance in the film Michael , in which he plays Claude Zoret, the jilted lover of the...
. Based partly on Christensen's study of the Malleus Maleficarum
Malleus Maleficarum
The Malleus Maleficarum is an infamous treatise on witches, written in 1486 by Heinrich Kramer, an Inquisitor of the Catholic Church, and was first published in Germany in 1487...
, a 15th century German guide for inquisitors
Inquisition
The Inquisition, Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis , was the "fight against heretics" by several institutions within the justice-system of the Roman Catholic Church. It started in the 12th century, with the introduction of torture in the persecution of heresy...
, Häxan is a study of how superstition
Superstition
Superstition is a belief in supernatural causality: that one event leads to the cause of another without any process in the physical world linking the two events....
and the misunderstanding of diseases and mental illness
Mental illness
A mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern generally associated with subjective distress or disability that occurs in an individual, and which is not a part of normal development or culture. Such a disorder may consist of a combination of affective, behavioural,...
could lead to the hysteria of the witch-hunt
Witch-hunt
A witch-hunt is a search for witches or evidence of witchcraft, often involving moral panic, mass hysteria and lynching, but in historical instances also legally sanctioned and involving official witchcraft trials...
s. The film was made as a documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
but contains dramatized sequences that are comparable to horror films.
With Christensen's meticulous recreation of medieval scenes and the lengthy production period, the film was the most expensive Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
n silent film ever made, costing nearly two million Swedish kronor
Swedish krona
The krona has been the currency of Sweden since 1873. Both the ISO code "SEK" and currency sign "kr" are in common use; the former precedes or follows the value, the latter usually follows it, but especially in the past, it sometimes preceded the value...
. Although it won acclaim in Denmark and Sweden, the film was banned in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and heavily censored in other countries for what were considered at that time graphic depictions of torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
, nudity
Nudity
Nudity is the state of wearing no clothing. The wearing of clothing is exclusively a human characteristic. The amount of clothing worn depends on functional considerations and social considerations...
, and sexual perversion.
Part One
A scholarly dissertation on the appearances of demonDemon
call - 1347 531 7769 for more infoIn Ancient Near Eastern religions as well as in the Abrahamic traditions, including ancient and medieval Christian demonology, a demon is considered an "unclean spirit" which may cause demonic possession, to be addressed with an act of exorcism...
s and witches in primitive and medieval culture, a number of photographs of statuary, paintings, and woodcuts are used as demonstrative pieces. In addition, several large scale models are employed to demonstrate medieval concepts of the structure of the solar system
Solar System
The Solar System consists of the Sun and the astronomical objects gravitationally bound in orbit around it, all of which formed from the collapse of a giant molecular cloud approximately 4.6 billion years ago. The vast majority of the system's mass is in the Sun...
and the commonly accepted depiction of Hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
.
Part Two
A series of vignettes theatrically demonstrating medieval superstition and beliefs concerning witchcraftWitchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
, including Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
(played by Christensen himself) tempting a sleeping woman away from her husband's bed and terrorizing a group of monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
s. Also shown is a woman purchasing a love potion from a supposed witch, and a sequence showing a supposed witch dreaming of flying through the air and attending a witches' gathering.
Part Three
A long narrative broken up into several parts; set in the Middle AgesMiddle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, it concerns an old woman accused of witchcraft by a dying man's family. The narrative is used to demonstrate the treatment of suspected witches by the religious authorities of the time. The old woman, after being tortured, admits to heavy involvement in witchcraft, including detailed descriptions of a Witches' Sabbath
Sabbath (witchcraft)
The Witches' Sabbath or Sabbat is a supposed meeting of those who practice witchcraft, and other rites.European records indicate cases of persons being accused or tried for taking part in Sabbat gatherings, from the Middle Ages to the 17th century or later.- Etymology :The English word “sabbat”...
, even going so far as to "name" other supposed witches, including two of the women in the dying man's household. Eventually, the dying man's wife is arrested as a witch when she admits that she falsely accused the old woman of witchcraft.
Part Four
The final part of the film seeks to demonstrate how the superstitions of old are better understood now. Christensen seeks to make the claim that most who were accused of witchcraft were possibly mentally ill, and in modern times, such behavior is interpreted as a disease. His case revolves around vignettes about a somnambulistSleepwalking
Sleepwalking, also known as somnambulism, is a sleep disorder belonging to the parasomnia family. Sleepwalkers arise from the slow wave sleep stage in a state of low consciousness and perform activities that are usually performed during a state of full consciousness...
and a kleptomania
Kleptomania
Kleptomania is an irresistible urge to steal items of trivial value. People with this disorder are compelled to steal things, generally, but not limited to, objects of little or no significant value, such as pens, paper clips, paper and tape...
c, the implication being that these behaviors would have been thought of as demonically-influenced in medieval times whereas modern times recognizes them as psychological ailments. There is heavy irony
Irony
Irony is a rhetorical device, literary technique, or situation in which there is a sharp incongruity or discordance that goes beyond the simple and evident intention of words or actions...
, however, in the observation that the "temperate shower of the clinic" i.e. the treatment of "hysterical women" in a modern institution, has replaced medieval solutions such as burning at the stake.
Cast
- Maren Pedersen as the Heksen (The Witch). Christensen cast Pedersen in the role of the witch, although she was not an actress but rather a 78-year-old flower seller.
- Clara PontoppidanClara Pontoppidan-External links:*...
as a Nonne (nunNunA nun is a woman who has taken vows committing her to live a spiritual life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
) - Elith PioElith PioViggo Elith William Pio was a Danish actor of stage, screen, radio and television. He is most noted for starring roles in films such as Carl Theodor Dreyer's Leaves from Satan's Book, Johan Jacobsen's Jenny and the Soldier and Benjamin Christensen's Häxan.-Theatre:Elith Pio made his theatre debut...
as Heksedommer (the Young Monk) - Oscar StriboltOscar StriboltPeter Oscar Stribolt was a Danish stage and film actor of the silent era in Denmark. He worked prolifically under director Lau Lauritzen Sr.- External links:*...
as Graabroder, (the Fat Monk) - Tora TejeTora TejeTora Teje was a Swedish theatre and silent film actress. She appeared in ten films between 1920 and 1939.-Filmography:* Gubben kommer * Giftas * Damen med kameliorna * 33.333...
as En hysterisk kvinde (Modern Hysteric), a Kleptomaniac. - John Andersen as the Chief Inquisitor. He was credited as Johs Andersen.
- Benjamin ChristensenBenjamin ChristensenBenjamin Christensen was a Danish film director, screenwriter and an actor both in film and on the stage. As a director he is most well known for the 1922 film Häxan and as an actor, he is best known for his performance in the film Michael , in which he plays Claude Zoret, the jilted lover of the...
as Djævlen (The Devil). Christensen also appears briefly as Jesus Christ during a scene set in a conventConventA convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...
, and he appears as himself in the film's opening credits. - Poul ReumertPoul ReumertPoul Reumert was a Danish stage and film actor.-Filmography:* Afgrunden * Frøken Kirkemus * Søren Søndervold * Afsporet * Det brændende spørgsmål...
as a Juveler (Jeweler) - Karen Winther as Anna
- Kate Fabian as a Gammel jomfru (Old Maid)
- Else Vermehren as a Nonne (Nun)
- Astrid Holm as Anna
- Johannes Andersen as a Heksedommer (Witch Judge)
- Gerda MadsenGerda MadsenGerda Madsen was a Danish film actress. She appeared in 26 films between 1921 and 1982.She was born and died in Denmark.-Selected filmography:* Häxan * Kispus * Be Dear to Me...
as a Nonne (Nun) - Aage Hertel as a Heksedommer (Witch Judge)
- Ib SchønbergIb SchønbergIb Christian Albert von Cotta Schønberg was a Danish film actor, and is considered one of the leading actors of Danish film in the 20th century.-Early life:...
as a Heksedommer (Witch Judge). This role was Schønberg's screen debut. - Emmy Schønfeld as Marie, a Seamstress. She credited as Emmy Schönfeld.
- Frederik Christensen as a Borger (Citizen). He was credited as Frederick Christensen.
- Ella La Cour as the Troldkvinde (Sorceress)
- Elisabeth Christensen as an ældre bondekone (Old Farm Lady)
- Henry Seemann as a Borger (Citizen)
- Alice O'FredericksAlice O'FredericksAlice O'Fredericks was a Danish actress, screen writer, and film director. She is best known for directing the series of Far til Fire comedies and the series of family dramas based on Morten Korch novels. Having written 38 produced screenplays and directed 72 feature films, O'Fredericks was one...
as a Nonne (Nun). O'Fredericks also worked as Christensen's script girl on this film. It was her first job in film production,but she later became one of Denmark's most popular film directors. - Knud Rassow as the Anatomen (Anatomist)
- Ellen Rassow as a Tjenestepige (Maid)
- Holst Jørgensen as Ole Kighul
- H.C. Nielsen as the (Jeweler's Assistant)
- Albrecht SchmidtAlbrecht SchmidtAlbrecht Schmidt was a Danish film actor. He appeared in 13 films between 1911 and 1941.He was born in Copenhagen, Denmark.-Filmography:* Skæbnebæltet * Morfinisten * Atlantis...
as the Nervelæge (Neurologist)
Production
After finding a copy of the Malleus Maleficarum in a BerlinBerlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
bookshop, Christensen spent two years — from 1919 to 1921 — studying manuals, illustrations and treatises on witches and witch-hunting. He included a lengthy bibliography in the original playbill at the film's premiere. He intended to create an entirely new film rather than an adaptation of literary fiction, which was the case for films of that day. "In I am against these adaptations... I seek to find the way forward to original films."
Christensen obtained funding from the Svensk Film (Swedish Film), preferring it over the local Danish film studios, so that he could maintain complete artistic freedom. He used the money to buy and refurbish the Astra film studio in Hellerup, Denmark. Filming then ran from February through October 1921. Christensen and cinematographer Johan Ankerstjerne filmed only at night or in a closed set to maintain the film's dark hue. Post-production
Post-production
Post-production is part of filmmaking and the video production process. It occurs in the making of motion pictures, television programs, radio programs, advertising, audio recordings, photography, and digital art...
required another year before the film premiered in late 1922. Total cost for Svensk Film, including refurbishing the Astra Film Studio, reached between 1.5 and 2 million kronor, making Häxan the most expensive Scandinavian silent film in history.
Re-releases
The film was re-released in 1941 in Denmark with an extended introduction by Christensen. The intertitles were also changed in this version.In 1968, an abbreviated version of the film (77 minutes as opposed to the original's 104 minutes) was released, entitled Witchcraft Through the Ages. This version featured an eclectic jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
score by Daniel Humair
Daniel Humair
Daniel Humair is a drummer, jazz composer and painter.He is widely renowned and became Chevalier des Arts et Lettres in 1986.He has played with many jazz performers notably Martial Solal, Gerry Mulligan and Eric Dolphy....
(played by a quintet including Jean-Luc Ponty
Jean-Luc Ponty
Jean-Luc Ponty is a French virtuoso violinist and jazz composer.- Early years:Ponty was born into a family of classical musicians on 29 September 1942 in Avranches, France. His father taught violin, his mother taught piano...
on violin and Daniel Humair
Daniel Humair
Daniel Humair is a drummer, jazz composer and painter.He is widely renowned and became Chevalier des Arts et Lettres in 1986.He has played with many jazz performers notably Martial Solal, Gerry Mulligan and Eric Dolphy....
on percussion) and dramatic narration by William S. Burroughs
William S. Burroughs
William Seward Burroughs II was an American novelist, poet, essayist and spoken word performer. A primary figure of the Beat Generation and a major postmodernist author, he is considered to be "one of the most politically trenchant, culturally influential, and innovative artists of the 20th...
.
On October 16, 2001, Häxan was released on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
by The Criterion Collection
The Criterion Collection
The Criterion Collection is a video-distribution company selling "important classic and contemporary films" to film aficionados. The Criterion series is noted for helping to standardize the letterbox format for home video, bonus features, and special editions...
. This release features a restored print of the original version of the film, as well as the 1968 Witchcraft Through The Ages version. Also featured are extensive production notes, a re-recorded musical score, commentary by Danish film scholar Casper Tybjerg, a gallery featuring the images used in the film's first section, and the introduction Christensen recorded for the 1941 re-release.
Soundtracks
When the film first opened (in StockholmStockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, 18 September 1922), it was accompanied by a score compiled from preexisting compositions; details of the selection, which met with the director's enthusiastic approval, have been lost. It is known, however, what music was used the following November for the Copenhagen premier, where it was played by a 50-piece orchestra; this selection, combining pieces by Schubert
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
, Gluck
Christoph Willibald Gluck
Christoph Willibald Ritter von Gluck was an opera composer of the early classical period. After many years at the Habsburg court at Vienna, Gluck brought about the practical reform of opera's dramaturgical practices that many intellectuals had been campaigning for over the years...
, and Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
, has been restored and recorded with a smaller ensemble by arranger/conductor Gillian Anderson for the 2001 Criterion Collection DVD edition.
It has also been claimed that Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
and conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
Launy Grøndahl
Launy Grøndahl
Launy Grøndahl was a Danish composer and conductor. Grøndahl studied the violin from the age of eight. His first work as a professional musician was as a violinist was with the Orchestra of the Casino Theatre in Copenhagen when he was aged just thirteen.He was also for a long period of time the...
composed the film's original score
Film score
A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film, forming part of the film's soundtrack, which also usually includes dialogue and sound effects...
.
In 2007, two new soundtracks for the film were composed in Britain. One was by the British composer and performer Geoff Smith, to be performed on the hammered dulcimer
Hammered dulcimer
The hammered dulcimer is a stringed musical instrument with the strings stretched over a trapezoidal sounding board. Typically, the hammered dulcimer is set on a stand, at an angle, before the musician, who holds small mallet hammers in each hand to strike the strings...
. Smith performed the soundtrack throughout the UK in 2007. The other was by the British group Bronnt Industries Kapital
Bronnt Industries Kapital
Bronnt Industries Kapital is a musical project from Bristol, England based around producer and multi-instrumentalist Guy Bartell. It has released three studio albums, Virtute et Industria, Häxan and Hard for Justice....
, and was also performed throughout the UK and Europe in 2007. A DVD of the film featuring both soundtracks was released by Tartan Films
Tartan Films
Palisades Tartan is a US and UK film distribution company, founded by US-based Palisades Media Group to take over the film library of Tartan Films after it folded in Summer 2008.-History:...
on September 24, 2007.
A third soundtrack to be recorded and released in 2007 was a score commissioned from silent film composer Matti Bye by the Swedish Film Institute
Swedish Film Institute
The Swedish Film Institute was founded in 1963 to support and develop the Swedish film industry. The institute is housed in the Filmhuset building located in Gärdet, Östermalm in Stockholm...
. This soundtrack is featured on the DVD release of the most recent restoration of the film, made by the Swedish Film Institute.
Barði Jóhannsson
Barði Jóhannsson
Bardi Johannsson is an Icelandic rock musician, film composer, writer, TV show host , author, clothing designer, film director and more...
of Bang Gang
Bang Gang
Bang Gang is a melodic pop band from Iceland founded by songwriter/producer Bardi Johannsson . The band was formed in 1996, in Johannsson’s hometown of Reykjavik...
made a symphony over the silent film with the Bulgarian Chamber Orchestra. The Häxan Score was released on CD in 2006.
The French experimental music group Art Zoyd
Art Zoyd
Art Zoyd is a French band formed in 1968, mixing free jazz, progressive rock and avant-garde electronica.Like other members of the Rock in Opposition movement, Art Zoyd fuses progressive rock and jazz with contemporary classical music. Like fellow RIO member Univers Zéro, they are also influenced...
also created a soundtrack that was released on CD in 1997. This work was commissioned by the City of Copenhagen, the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
designated Cultural Capital of Europe 1996. Art Zoyd
Art Zoyd
Art Zoyd is a French band formed in 1968, mixing free jazz, progressive rock and avant-garde electronica.Like other members of the Rock in Opposition movement, Art Zoyd fuses progressive rock and jazz with contemporary classical music. Like fellow RIO member Univers Zéro, they are also influenced...
members Gérard Hourbette and Thierry Zaboïtzeff composed the soundtrack.
The American film scoring ensemble The Rats & People Motion Picture Orchestra
The Rats & People Motion Picture Orchestra
The Rats & People Motion Picture Orchestra is an ensemble of composers and musicians based in St. Louis, Missouri. The ensemble composes and performs original scores to accompany films of the Silent Era, and composes and records soundtrack music for contemporary films.- Origins and History:The...
premiered its new score for the film at the 2010 St. Louis International Film Festival
St. Louis International Film Festival
The St. Louis International Film Festival is an annual film festival in St. Louis, Missouri, which has been running since 1992. The coordinating organization changed its name to "Cinema St. Louis" in 2003...
.
External links
- Häxan at Det Danske Filminstitut (in Danish)
- Häxan at Silent Era
- Criterion Collection essay by Chris Fujiwara
- Criterion Collection essay by Gillian Anderson