Fragment 1: Hutter’s Journey to Count Orlok’s Castle

A real estate employee (Hutter), staying at an inn, who has travelled to Transylvania for the purchase of a property by a count (Orlok), who is a vampire (Nosferatu). In the land of the Carpathians, strange events take place (00:17:57-00:25:26).

Musically, it has a descriptive tonal melody, with a refined orchestration work of symphonic instrumentation (strings, woodwinds, and brass for two, percussion and piano) , and melodic and thematic development inspired by previous eras (baroque, classicism, etc.). The beginning is reminiscent of an overture in the style of Verdi, dialogued between string and woodwind (oboe, flute, and clarinet solos).

The scene begins with Hutter waking up in the inn bedroom. The rays of dawn enter through the cracks in the window and fill the bedroom with a luminous gold reinforced by sepia tinting of the frame while listening (sound off) to the birds singing. Upon opening the window, you see a large general shot and depth of field of the horses trotting freely through the countryside, while a mountain range can be seen on the horizon (an allusion to the Carpathian Mountains). It is a bucolic, pastoral landscape where the music provides an idyllic atmosphere, accompanying the imagery where the instruments fulfil a “referential function” with the landscape (^{Jakobson, 1981}, pp. 347–395).

Musically it begins with a very high-pitched triangle (struck in a military fashion), to wake Hutter from a deep sleep. The timbre of woodwinds and violins identifies with sounds of nature (birds chirping). A resource that is very present in the history of music: The Song of the Nightingale by Sarasate, The Four Seasons by Vivaldi or An Alpine Symphony by Strauss.

Once again, the penetrating triangle (repeat of the initial theme) breaks in and a ritardando leads to a new clarinet motif (Graph 1, Figure 1), supported by a rhythmic ostinato on snare and tambourine (Graph 2, Figure 1). Coinciding with Hutter’s discovery of a bedside book on vampires, the strings permeate the scene with a halo of mystery. Then, laughing, Hutter throws the book on the floor, while washing himself to the sound of a joyous melody of clarinets that reinforces his actions and mood.

Source. Nosferatu, Eine Symphonie des Grauens (^{Friedrich Murnau, 1922})

Figure 1 Hutter’s journey to count Orlok’s castle 

By parallel montage, the coachmen prepare the carriage, while the lyrical and expressive character of the strings gives credence to the imminent journey. Musically, it begins with a scherzo character, lively and agitated tempo, imitating the accelerated movement (undercranking) of the carriage. An ascending progression, in crescendo on the strings, leads us to a new motif. The piano (soloist) produces a theme in ascending arpeggio (octaves), dialoguing with strings and woodwinds, repeating the same phrase in question-answer form (Graph 3, Figure 1), recalling Beethoven’s Eroica.

While the light of dusk is accentuated in the imagery with the frame tinted from shades of pink to ochre, it musically sees a change of motif, as a clarinet call (descending arpeggio) is repeated up to four times (Graph 4, Figure 1). Two musical proclamations are produced in tutti (major and minor mode), providing greater drama. A prolonged ritardando keeps the tension in a semi-cadence. The coachmen have a bad premonition and suddenly stop the carriage while saying to Hutter (script text): “pay what you want. We won’t continue on”. For a second there is a shocking silence, the feeling of emptiness to emphasise the disturbing moment. A cello solo on a string pad envelops the inhospitable atmosphere of the rugged landscape, as a parenthesis in scherzo as, while the incredulous Hutter laughs out loud, the main theme returns with a motor rhythm on strings and a melody on woodwinds (clarinets and flutes). The same ascending string progression is repeated, culminating in timpani with a staccato string ending (stately character).

This soundscape accompanies Hutter through a bleak rocky landscape. He travels alone, walking, and crosses the bridge that leads to Orlok’s castle. It is an image of strong symbolic weight since the bridge separates the world of the living from that of the dead and that threshold is reinforced with silence (acoustic effect) to further highlight the division of both worlds (the real one and the one beyond). Faced with the need to express gloomy moments and sinister landscapes, Erdmann uses repetitions and passages that evolve through joint movement, presenting chromaticism in brass as a novelty.

The imagery is accompanied by brushstrokes of the full romanticism of Liszt and Chopin. With a change of melody, character, and atmosphere, starting in the low register and the timpani (constant motor as a funeral march). The trumpets develop a motif (Graph 5, Figure 1), on a powerful string motor rhythm that approaches the climax, creating a contrast that evokes Mahler, emphasising Hutter’s desolation through the use of mute (harrowing and macabre effect).

After the script text “as soon as Hutter crosses the bridge, he is taken aback by haunting visions”, the darkness of the night permeates the forest with a tinted dark blue frame and the castle’s great tower can be seen imposingly at the top. A new black carriage rapidly approaches (undercranking) down the winding road to meet Hutter, enlivened by waves of the sound of violins imitating flashes and whirls, in continuous crescendos and diminuendos, reminiscent of Debussy. A descending progression in violins increases their sound mass until the low register, accompanying the descent of the carriage towards Hutter, culminating in a note played in brass and a timpani roll, while an enigmatic coachman is shown in the foreground who camouflages his face with a huge hat and the high collar of his cape. An intense poetic silence intensifies the intrigue of the encounter, while he indicates to Hutter, with a hand gesture wielding the whip, to get into the carriage. The string progressions are resumed to the dizzying rhythm of the carriage, and the sound bursts reflect the fantastical and dreamy atmosphere of the impressionist music that envelops the journey. In the thick mist of the night, you can see the black silhouette of the carriage that becomes more visible as it approaches, protected by the musical envelope (the orchestration and sound volume increase).

With his arrival, a succession of accents in tutti begins that pass on to the piano. The coachman wielding the whip orders Hutter to enter the castle, and a very close-up of the tower bursts into the image, accompanied by a string motif in a low register, a mysterious melody, aided by sudden timpani interventions (sinister atmosphere). Hutter watches as the carriage rushes away and the enormous gates of the castle swing open by themselves, with an expressive melody in a tone of resignation. A timpani beat announces his arrival, while the gates magically close. Orlok comes out to greet his guest amidst a gloomy atmosphere with expressionist lighting, shadows highlighted by the dark blue of the frame that accentuates his presence at night, as his body emanates a huge shadow of a ghostly image. When they meet, a call of violins envelops the scene, highlighting the perplexity of the moment, since the enigmatic coachman and the count are the same person.

After a new intertitle “you have made me wait so long. It is almost midnight”. The servants are sleeping while the host gives way to the guest. The climax arrives with a smashing of plates. As they enter the castle, the oboe accompanies with an increasingly distant melody that loses energy, volume, and intensity, to conclude and close the scene in tutti.

The movement of the action runs parallel to the music, generating tension with long phrases. The relationship between the accompaniment and the main theme, as well as the relationships between instrumental families, timbral contrasts and effects are the basis of the orchestration of this fragment that sets a precedent in composition for film (Figure 1).

Fragment 2: Ellen’s Trance

Hutter is staying at Orlok’s (Nosferatu’s) castle, while he carries out real estate management for the purchase of some properties in Wisborg. After midnight, the count (vampire) bursts into Hutter’s bedroom, intending to bite him and suck his blood. But, in the far distance, his wife (Ellen) portends that something terrible is going to happen to her husband and enters a trance, wakes up screaming at midnight and wanders barefoot through the rooms. In an altered state of consciousness, she enters a telepathic connection with the vampire who leaves her husband’s bedroom (00:33:11-00:37:58).

It is a scene of great lyricism, where despite the prevalence of tonalism, the contrast effects reinforce the content. After a passage of notable expressive value on string (F major), as a cry, the first effect appears with a powerful chromaticism, functioning a posteriori as the main element (Graph 6, Figure 2).

Source. Nosferatu, Eine Symphonie des Grauens (^{Friedrich Murnau, 1922})

Figure 2 Ellen’s trance 

In the privacy of his bedroom, Hutter kisses his wife’s portrait on his pocket watch, where candlelight in a sepia ochre colour of the frame warms the moment accompanied by a violin motif, a loving melody while remembering his beloved wife, interrupted by a descending string and xylophone scale (Graph 7, Figure 2). It coincides with the showing of the vampire book that Hutter had found in the inn and takes out of his satchel in surprise. It is a strange occurrence that produces uncertainty and is supported melodically by chromaticism that introduces the theme in the tonic (inconclusive cadence), creating instability and suspense (Graph 8, Figure 2).

A rhythmic base starts in contrabass, with sudden sforzando on string. Hutter sneakily peeks through the book trying to figure out what is happening while reading (script text, diegetic text, gothic calligraphy, tinted blue-green frame) “at night Nosferatu wounds his victim with his claws and sucks his blood, the diabolic vital brew”, turns his head looking towards the door of the room, scared and afraid of being found. He continues reading (script text) “make sure that his shadow does not interfere with you, like a frightening nightmare”.

A refined and balanced melodic line is drawn, creating new instrumental colour effects (chromaticism takes us to the dominant one), seeking its full sound to create specific effects and atmospheres. The descriptive melody associates instruments with decorative elements of the props. Thus, the very high-pitched triangle identifies with the hour mark of the clock. There is elaborate staging of a close-up of a mechanical table clock made of gilt bronze and a round dial with Roman numerals, decorated in the upper part by a figure of a human skeleton that strikes a bell to mark the hours. At midnight exactly 12 counter-beat triangle strokes (one stroke for each chime) and a descending xylophone scale are heard. It is a moment of exquisite film and music plasticity as, together with the expressive force of the melody, an artistic direction of everyday objects with gloomy shapes and expressionist lighting is devised, where the shadow of the macabre clock generates an animated ghostly image.

Hutter creeps towards the door of the room and when he opens it he sees Nosferatu amidst the darkness. He has a hieratic, emaciated body that personifies ugliness, with a huge shadow reflected on the wall that further accentuates the darkness of the room. Musically, the descending xylophone scale is heard, when a frightened Hutter closes the door. A four-note motif is constantly repeated on string until the door magically opens, with Nosferatu approaching with robotic strides, culminating in a dissonant chord (Graph 9, Figure 2).

The vampire approaches the bedroom, passing through the pointed arch of the door, accompanied by a static xylophone and string melody, alternating with flute trills. The xylophone identifies Nosferatu, although he is not visible in the scene, by his inexpressive character (an instrument without resonance) which contributes to describe slow, robotic, dry, incisive, and inhuman movements of the vampire. A sforzando in tutti, accompanied by a timpani roll, reflects Hutter’s fear as he covers his face with the sheets in terror.

When Nosferatu freezes at the entrance to the room, an intense silence envelops the scene. Erdmann insists on its use for rhetorical purposes to emphasise the moment of desolation. A change of location, by parallel montage, takes us from Transylvania to Wisborg, where Ellen is sleeping in her bed at that moment. The piano and the low register of the strings accompany her dream, which, due to its disturbing chords, does not seem pleasant. The darkness of the night, with the tinted dark blue frame, invades the bedroom, as she wakes up, gets up sleepwalking, walks barefoot on her tiptoes, goes out onto the terrace, and begins to walk along the balcony railing. She is beside herself, on the edge of the abyss and passes out. Flute and xylophone melodies alert Hutter’s friend that something bad is happening. The instruments function as a leitmotif. The xylophone (representing Nosferatu) present in the action through music is heard in the background while Ellen is the flute (innocent and warm timbre).

The imagery takes us to Transylvania, to Hutter’s bedroom. The dissonance in piccolos tense the atmosphere and accompany the enormous shadow of Nosferatu, who comes to life and slowly pounces on Hutter, curled up in the corner of the bed, giving a ghastly dimension to the scene. The xylophone is reinforced with the combination of chromatic elements and muted trumpets. The melodic discourse is directed towards the climaxes, highlighting flute motifs on a melodic pad in low strings, creating a motor that generates tension as a double image of the shadows.

At the same time Ellen, waking up from a horrible nightmare, rises from the bed spreading her arms and shouting her husband’s name. A clarinet motif (an instrument that identifies Hutter) accompanies her call for help. The shadow of Nosferatu, alerted by Ellen’s desperate cry, vanishes, with the sound density decreasing. The vampire turns and directs his gaze (off field) towards Ellen, highlighting the existence of a bond between them. Nosferatu leaves the room slowly, accompanied by the xylophone, with the door magically closing behind him. At that moment, in the distance Ellen falls onto the bed exhausted, and an oboe and clarinet melody slowly fades until she rests (Figure 2).

Fragment 3: Death of Nosferatu and Ellen

Orlok has settled into his new mansion opposite the Hutter’s marital home. Ellen succumbs to Nosferatu’s fatal attraction. At dawn, the vampire enters her bedroom while her husband goes in search of the doctor (Bulwer). Nosferatu and Ellen desirously lie on the bed. Daybreak surprises them, as the first rays of dawn invade the room and end the vampire’s life, while Ellen is reduced to the same fate (01:25:37-01:33:20).

It is a sentimental scene in the pure Romanticism style, which is musically descriptive, with constant motor rhythms. The use of the gong stands out to highlight moments charged with drama, whose purpose is to attract attention (Jakobson’s “factual function”). It is used as an effect associated with movement, which culminates in the string calls, creating a strong contrast with the nocturnal atmosphere accentuated in the imagery with the tinted dark blue frame (Graph 10, Figure 3).

Source. Nosferatu, Eine Symphonie des Grauens (^{Friedrich Murnau, 1922})

Figure 3 Death of Nosferatu and Ellen  

At night, Nosferatu waits motionless, resting his hands on the bars of the dilapidated window of his new abode. It is a symbolic image of the prisoner deprived of freedom and the expectant vampire waiting for his new prey. Musically, the atrocity materialises in the low strings (octaves). With the second strike of the gong Ellen wakes up startled. Two physical spaces alternate by parallel montage, which are the Hutter’s bedroom and the large window of Orlok’s mansion, where a third space is implicitly created, the psychological one, since the vampire and Ellen communicate telepathically.

The low register and the sforzando show Nosferatu’s lack of vigour, highlighting the slowness with which he walks. While Hutter, asleep in the armchair next to the bed, watches over his wife, who is dejected, resigned and powerless in the face of the situation. Ellen cannot resist the attraction of the vampire and, distressed looking at her husband, opens wide her bedroom’s window uncovering her heart. Nosferatu goes towards her, at which time the door of the mansion suddenly and magically opens and he leaves the house, a moment reinforced by a note played on contrabass (increase in sound tension). The sound of the gong, as a call to a ritual, accompanies him to the house of a tormented Ellen, whose thoughts mortify her, enlivened by overwhelming music, dialogued strings, and a descending three-note motif, supported by a timpani roll in crescendo that culminates with the gong.

Her husband wakes up, he is scared to see her in that state of unease, he lies her down in bed and she begs him to call Bulwer. Hutter runs off (descending string motif), but Ellen gets up, tricking her husband into leaving the house. The theme is introduced with a call of timpani, repeated throughout the section (three notes that descend in semitones, add tension, and increase the sound density).

Nosferatu is present through his immense black shadow reflected on the wall, fused with the shadow of the staircase bars, a metaphorical image of the prisoner of love. He enters Ellen’s bedroom accompanied by the expressive force of the music, the tension grows, with the register, sound density and orchestration expanding, and the brass joining in fortissimo, creating a contrast of colours with the instrumentation used. Ellen can no longer bear the anguish and falls onto the bed exhausted (sforzando in fortissimo of the orchestral tutti). She knows her end is near. A forte piano on the timpani accompanies the shadow play of the vampire’s hands on Ellen's white nightgown. It is staging that is reminiscent of shadow puppet theatre, since the shadow of the vampire’s moving hands projects onto the woman’s chest animated figures of flying animals that hold her heart tightly, culminating the state of anxiety with a gong strike.

Hutter wakes up Bulwer (same mysterious string motif). In the parallel montage, Nosferatu lays on Ellen’s body stretched out on the bed. The appearance of the different characters musically shows elements of surprise, and a mixture of simplicity and complexity. Timbral contrasts blend with distinctive rhythmic patterns and sharp, overlapping melodies. Erdmann, in an extraordinary attempt to support the ending, employs a processional-style rhythmic element, defining the funereal character in the low brass (Graph 11, Figure 3).

The first rays of dawn appear on the horizon, subtly permeating the bedroom (section highlighted by the change in the colour tint of the frame from dark blue to sepia). The cock’s crowing announces dawn twice, parodying its sound with different instruments (frullato on clarinet) and alerts not only Nosferatu, but Knock (his faithful servant and estate agent) too. This alert brings him back to reality. He spent the night with his beloved, but daylight comes and he will die with the first rays of the sun. He rises slowly from Ellen’s bed, and walks in a stately manner, with his left hand on his chest resting on his heart in an attempt to preserve his love forever. He turns his face towards the window and while looking (field out) at the morning twilight, his body dissipates.

The sacrifice for love, fear and resignation of the moment are reflected with long phrases, motifs and rhythmic cells that move through different instruments, showing the desperation of the characters. Thematically, clear ideas and defined tonal structures are developed that lead to different sections, accentuating the anguish (inconclusive cadences), producing a sensation of instability and an endless whirlpool.

The final theme outlines an intense and passionate melody that is typical of Romanticism, while Knock shouts (script text) “master! Master!”. The sweet song of the flute represents the sunrise, gives the scene a bucolic air and the mysterious chromaticism accompanies the dawn. The first rays of the sun flood Nosferatu’s body, like luminous splinters that end his life, while a descending scale announces his descent into hell. To the melancholic string melody, lament like a sigh, a sad motif is played on cellos, with a response from violins and violas that reaffirm his tragic death (script text) “the master is dead”(Graph 12, Figure 3).

After a fade to black, the scene returns to Ellen’s bedroom who, in her dying breath, wakes up looking for her husband. Her delusional state is accompanied by a melancholic clarinet melody which is symbolic of her love when Hutter takes her in his arms and she passes away. Feelings of profound sadness and immense love merge into an intense melodic motif, repeating in duet on violins (a romantic instrument par excellence).

The orchestration draws the colourful play of light and shadows present, exploring the instrumental limits in the low extremes (darker timbres and less intense sound) and high-pitched extremes (squeaky and sharp), looking for new effects (instrumental colour and atmosphere). The scene closes by breaking with the lived drama, reaching a tonal cadence that releases all the accumulated tension, while the prophecy is shown in the image (script text, diegetic text, gothic calligraphy and tinted blue-green frame) “and according to the truth, the miracle is documented: the great death ceased at the same time and, as before, the victorious rays of the sun, full of life, dispelled the shadows of the prophet of doom”. It closes with a general shot of count Orlok’s castle in Transylvania, and with a fade to black the film ends (Figure 3).