This absorbing text proposes a novel categorization of visual music forms leading to deeper analysis and understanding of this captivating artform. It situates the reader at the birth of the genre, offering novel insights into its historical reception and subsequent developments. * Dave Payling, Associate Professor of Electronic and Visual Music, Staffordshire University, UK * A foundational study of the film artists who probed the pure primary materials of the universe: sound and light. Henry Balme has contributed an essential work on an under-known chapter of modernism. * Raymond Foye, Director, The Estate of Jordan Belson, USA * Balme's work fills a gap in the research discourse. It not only integrates rarely considered sources but also opens up new perspectives on the reception and socio-cultural conditions of visual music. Production and reception are considered together, revealing the historical development of visual music in all its facets. * Gabriele Groll, Junior Professor of Musicology, Rostock University of Music and Drama, Germany *