ESTMIM's Annual Halloween Show – "Nosferatu" A Symphony of Horror

The Empire State Theatre & Musical Instrument Museum is back with its annual Halloween show with a screening of the 1922 silent horror film "Nosferatu" – A Symphony of Horror.

Still one of the top horror films of all time, this silent German Expressionist vampire film is directed by F. W. Murnau and stars Max Schreck as Count Orlok, a vampire who preys on the wife (Greta Schröder) of his estate agent (Gustav von Wangenheim). Murnau's Graf Orlok is a nightmarish, spidery creature of bulbous head and claws -- perhaps the most genuinely disturbing incarnation of vampires yet envisioned. Nosferatu is an expressionist film in that much of it was shot on location. Nosferatu's filmed landscapes, villages and castle were actual locations in the Carpathian Mountains. As a ground-breaking director, Murnau was able to infuse the story with the subtle tones of nature: both pure and fresh as well as twisted and sinister.

As one of the youngest in a rare art form, our film accompanist Brett Miller is an active organist, conductor, and arranger specializing in the art of silent film accompaniment. A finalist in the American Theatre Organ Society’s Young Organist Competition, Brett has continued his academic involvement and advocacy for the education and preservation of silent films through performance “live to picture.” In the spring of 2021, he was appointed Music Director of the Empire Film and Media Ensemble, a nonprofit based in Rochester, NY, that advocates for the education, performance, and production of film music. He was recently appointed Artistic Director of the organization. Brett shares a close relationship between the ensemble and the Beal Institute of Film Contemporary Media at the Eastman School of Music.

He has been featured in the past at various film festivals and has played events in conjunction with film preservationists from the Library of Congress and George Eastman House. Brett has been a featured Artist at the Philadelphia Orchestra and Kimmel Center’s annual Organ Day, an event he attended as a young Organist in its first year. He is a frequent recitalist at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, playing the world's largest Pipe Organ.

Brett studied Organ with renowned organist Jelani Eddington and Piano with Beth Crompton. He studied film accompaniment with Ben Model and Bernie Anderson. Brett is a native of Bedminster, Pennsylvania, and an alumnus of the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra Institute. He is currently studying at the Eastman School of Music and studying Piano with Dr. Joseph Rackers.

Brett will be providing historically accurate live musical accompaniment of the silent film on the circa 1925 Mighty Wurlitzer Unit Orchestra pipe organ; the same way the film was meant to be enjoyed when it was first released in 1922. Come out for a recreation of a fun and frightful time at the movies!

There will be a short reception with the artist and guided educational tours of the Wurlitzer Unit Orchestra pipe organ chambers following the program.

General Admission Tickets: Adults $15, Children 16 and under $5 (cash only)

PLEASE NOTE: Our silent film programs are historically popular, so arriving early will guarantee best seats. Doors open at 1:30pm. All seating non-reserved general admission.

This performance was underwritten by David D. Speck MD, Ophthalmology, Diseases and Surgery of the Eye, 35 Arterial West, Auburn NY 13021. ESTMIM thanks him for his generous support.

The Empire State Theatre & Musical Instrument Museum is located in the Wegmans Art & Home Center on the New York State Fairgrounds. It was established in 1966 as a Nonprofit and Educational Organization, Chartered by the New York State Board of Regents. The Wurlitzer organ was built in 1925 for the former RKO Keith’s Theatre in downtown Syracuse where it was used principally for silent film accompaniment and musical interludes. It was saved and reinstalled permanently in the Empire Theatre at the State Fairgrounds as the centerpiece of the theatre and musical instrument museum. More information is available by visiting our Facebook page www.facebook.com/SyracuseWurlitzer.