The film is remarkable for its creative use of sound in such an early period - the first all-talking movie had come out only shortly before this, and most other directors were concerned simply with providing audible dialogue and little else.
Mamoulian not only used complex background sound effect but also used them creatively and non-realistically in the case of Kitty's delirium. The technical aspect was very advanced for the time. The scene in which Kitty sings while her daughter prays was apparently the first time anyone had ever used two microphone at the same time. (This is generally noted about this scene, but in fact there would be no need for two mics. A much more likely candidate is an earlier scene in which Kitty is sitting on the floor surrounded by photos and papers and is singing: there is then a diagonal 'wipe' to a dialogue scene in another set, while the singing continues. This was probably filmed simultaneously with two cameras and would have needed two microphones.)
He also made his staff move the large box in which the cameraman was enclosed during shots to provide tracking with sync sound - unheard of at the time.
Most of the sound effects were created in the studio at the time filming of the action took place. The train moving off is plainly an artificial sound effect, and most of the traffic sound is horns and motors in the studio. Despite claims elsewhere that the scene in the railway station contains sync sound it doesn't - indeed the filming of that sequence was visibly done with a hand-cranked silent camera, the sound being created afterwards. The scene near the end in the subway station is indeed local sync sound, done quite extraordinary well considering the equipment available at the time.
The music was all done live. The extended scene between April and the sailor in the café is all one extended shot because the band seen at the opening of the shot was actually playing in the studio at the same time - indeed the music almost swamps the dialogue. There is sophisticated use of the stage music early on, keeping it in the far background during dialogue in the dressing room - again, advanced use of sound for 1929.
Mamoulian not only used complex background sound effect but also used them creatively and non-realistically in the case of Kitty's delirium. The technical aspect was very advanced for the time. The scene in which Kitty sings while her daughter prays was apparently the first time anyone had ever used two microphone at the same time. (This is generally noted about this scene, but in fact there would be no need for two mics. A much more likely candidate is an earlier scene in which Kitty is sitting on the floor surrounded by photos and papers and is singing: there is then a diagonal 'wipe' to a dialogue scene in another set, while the singing continues. This was probably filmed simultaneously with two cameras and would have needed two microphones.)
He also made his staff move the large box in which the cameraman was enclosed during shots to provide tracking with sync sound - unheard of at the time.
Most of the sound effects were created in the studio at the time filming of the action took place. The train moving off is plainly an artificial sound effect, and most of the traffic sound is horns and motors in the studio. Despite claims elsewhere that the scene in the railway station contains sync sound it doesn't - indeed the filming of that sequence was visibly done with a hand-cranked silent camera, the sound being created afterwards. The scene near the end in the subway station is indeed local sync sound, done quite extraordinary well considering the equipment available at the time.
The music was all done live. The extended scene between April and the sailor in the café is all one extended shot because the band seen at the opening of the shot was actually playing in the studio at the same time - indeed the music almost swamps the dialogue. There is sophisticated use of the stage music early on, keeping it in the far background during dialogue in the dressing room - again, advanced use of sound for 1929.
The subway scene was filmed at Chambers Street on what is now the BMT Nassau Street line in lower Manhattan. Chambers Street was a terminus at the time this movie was made, and the train, consisting of a single Triplex unit, operated from the southern end of the station on the second track from the east side and stopped where the camera was situated. The platform used by the passengers in the movie is still in use today.
The 'old' New York scenes at the beginning of the film were shot using re-dressed Paris street sets left over from Battle of Paris (1929).
One of over 700 Paramount Productions, filmed between 1929 and 1949, which were sold to MCA/Universal in 1958 for television distribution, and have been owned and controlled by MCA ever since.