‘The History of Sound’ Tells an Eloquent Tale of Love, Life and Song

Sandra Miska

Few things in life unlock memories the way songs can, whether they are tied to romance, grief, or just a nostalgic moment in one’s past. In his latest feature, the soulful and poignant WWI-era romance “The History of Sound,” director Oliver Hermanus explores the power of music and how it relates to memories and human bonds. This moving story is told through the eyes of Lionel Worthing (Paul Mescal, Chris Cooper as an older man), a gifted musician caught between two worlds. He finds a kindred spirit and lover in David White (Josh O’Connor), a sensitive fellow music student who invites him along on a transformative journey.

As a Kentucky farm boy growing up in the early twentieth century, Lionel does not seem like a likely candidate for an illustrious career in the arts, but his extraordinary musical talent catches the ear of someone who knows someone, and in 1917, he begins his studies at the prestigious New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. It is at a crowded bar where he first encounters David. He falls for his voice before he even sees his face, which sets the tone for the rest of their relationship. Although the two men could not be from more different backgrounds – David is an orphan who grew up living a life of privilege – the way they both connect to music on a level most others cannot comprehend leads to a profound bond.

“There’s a really powerful idea at the heart of this film, which is that your life can be reduced to a series of sounds, or series of memories through sound that become defining,” Hermanus told Entertainment Voice. He worked closely with writer Ben Shattuck, who adapted the screenplay from his own short stories. 

The outbreak of World War I temporarily separates the young lovers, but David comes to Lionel afterwards and invites him to join him on a trip. Now a music professor, he has been asked to travel through rural Maine to collect folk songs for his university. Isolated from much of the rest of the world, the pair delight in their time together, though there is a bittersweetness there, as it seems unlikely they can ever be their authentic selves out in the open. Adding another layer is the sense that David is hiding something, perhaps lingering, unspoken trauma from the war, or something else.

Watching the film, it is hard to imagine anyone else besides Mescal and O’Connor, two of the finest actors in their age bracket, playing Lionel and David with such care and sensitivity. Hermanus admitted that both men, as well as Cooper, were his first choices for their respective roles. “[The actors] embodied the kind of tastes and sensitivities that I was after as a director… It’s always a dream when that works out for a director, when you go, ‘That is my dream cast scenario.’ and it works out. That is a home run.”

After the trip, David effectively disappears, becoming a ghost haunting the rest of the film. As much as David is missed, Lionel’s story by itself is riveting. Exempt from military service because he wears glasses, he spends the war back in Kentucky, and there is a stark contrast between his life there and in Boston, and, later, in Europe, where he eventually goes to teach. His parents are hardworking farm folk tied to the land, and his struggle is clear.  Having these different parts of his identity leads to inner turmoil. After the death of Lionel Sr. (Raphael Sbarge), Lionel Jr. makes the devastating but necessary decision to leave his mother (a terrific Molly Price) behind.

Hermanus spoke about Price, who is one of those great character actors who never gets her due. “Molly, she’s such a varied actor. I mean, she’s popped up in ‘Sex in the city.’ She can do anything. And when she came in and embodied this incredibly conflicted and afflicted woman in Kentucky, she was just mesmerizing. It was just a great joy to work with an actor who’s so detailed and, and meticulous.”

Cooper not only appears onscreen as Lionel in the last part of the film, set in 1980, he also serves as the narrator. His taking on this pivotal role was meant to be, because the Oscar winner, who is notorious for being selective when it comes to choosing scripts, not only comes from a musical background himself, but was a fan of Shattuck’s work going into this. He had previously met the writer, and even had his book on him when he was approached by Hermanus. “It’s just wonderful, wonderful stories, and so simply told,” the actor told EV. 

While Cooper and Mescal each brought out different sides of Lionel, they are very much in sync when it comes to the heart of the character and how he presents himself to the world. As is often the case with two actors sharing a role, the pair never had scenes together and had limited interactions on set. However, being the dedicated performer that he is, Cooper revealed the great lengths he went to in order to get Lionel’s accent right.

“I’m from Missouri, and it was, I dare say, rather easy to get a Kentucky accent down. But the mystery was, how are we gonna match our dialects? I was kind of pretty much on my own. Oliver, Paul and Josh were doing their shoot, and I didn’t wanna bug them. They had a lot of responsibility, a lot going on. So I took it in my hands to track down Paul’s accent coach, to talk to him, spell out, ‘After a few weeks, when Paul’s comfortable with his dialect, send me some audio of his, of what he’s come up with, and I will do my best to match it.’ That was the biggest challenge.”

Cooper certainly nails the accent, but he actually shines the brightest in the dialogue-free scenes in which Lionel is left in solitude to reflect on his life. He and Hermanus hit the right notes when it comes to conveying feelings of longing, grief, joy, and a celebration of a life well-lived. It should come as no surprise that the director had complete faith in the actor.

“He gave me free reign to play the character,” revealed Cooper when asked about the scenes in which Lionel is left alone with his feelings and memories. “This is a memory piece about regret and lost love. I could, believe me, certainly relate to a lot of that.”

Finally, the actual history Hermanus brings to life in “The History of Sound” is fascinating. During their song-collecting trip, Lionel and David visit the historical Malaga Island, an interracial community of former slaves and immigrants. There, a gifted woman named Thankful Mary Swain (Briana Middleton) sings the stirring hymn “Here in the Vineyard.” The men depart knowing the government is about to evict these people, although Lionel wants to stay and help. While David empathizes, he has a more cynical view of the situation, and this disagreement between the two gives the viewers a deeper understanding of the differences between them and how they each view the world.

The objects on which the songs are recorded, wax cylinders, come to be very important to the narrative for multiple reasons, and Hermanus shared why he found the history behind them so intriguing. According to him, Edison originally invented his recording device with the intention of it being used to record last wills and testaments. He never intended for it to be used to record music.

The director explained,  “If you think about our lives today, where we have a hundred years of records, musicians and recorded songs, it’s kind of amazing how the guy who invented that technology never foresaw where this would go, and that the power of recorded sound would be an essential [part of] of human life.

But what does Hermanus hope viewers take away from “The History of Sound”? “That the smaller moments in your life could become the biggest echoes in your life and that we should remember that that’s possible. That’s beautiful.” 

“The History of Sound” releases Sept. 12 in theaters nationwide.