Toot, Whistle, Plunk, and Boom | |
---|---|
Adventures in Music series | |
Poster for Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom
|
|
Directed by |
Ward Kimball Charles A. Nichols |
Produced by | Walt Disney |
Story by | Dick Huemer |
Voices by |
Bill Thompson Thurl Ravenscroft Loulie Jean Norman Charlie Parlato Gloria Wood |
Music by |
Joseph Dubin Sonny Burke (songs) Jack Elliot (songs) |
Animation by | Ward Kimball Julius Svendsen Marc Davis Henry Tanous Art Stevens Xavier Atencio |
Studio | Walt Disney Productions |
Distributed by | Buena Vista Distribution Co. Inc. |
Release date(s) | November 10, 1953 |
Color process | Technicolor, CinemaScope |
Running time | 10 mins (one reel) |
Language | English |
Preceded by | Melody |
Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom is an educational Adventures in Music animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions, and originally released to theaters by Buena Vista Distribution on November 10, 1953. A sequel to the first Adventures in Music cartoon, the 3-D short Melody, Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom is a stylized presentation of the evolution of the four orchestra sections over the ages with: a horn ("toot"), a flute ("whistle"), a guitar ("plunk"), and a drum ("boom").
The first Disney cartoon to be filmed and released in widescreen CinemaScope,Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom won the 1954 Academy Award for Best Short Subject (Cartoons). In 1994, it was voted #29 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field.
The credits roll over a stylised music shop. The names of cast and crew and title of the feature are superimposed over the various instruments and instrument cases. The scene then cuts to Professor Owl, who rushes to the schoolhouse full of his fine feathered students as a drumroll is played on a snare.
A brief musical section introduces us to "the subject for today": the study of musical instruments. Professor Owl explains to the class (and the viewer) that all music originates from four core sounds: toot (brass), whistle (woodwind), plunk (strings) and boom (percussion).
The film then jumps to a group of four cavemen, each of whom have discovered the nuclear form of one of the above sounds. We begin with a portly Caveman Toot who has discovered that blowing through an old cow's horn produces a pleasing "toot". We advance to ancient Egypt in 2000 BC, where Caveman Toot discovers that metal horns produce even better sounds. He celebrates by breaking into a two-note jazz solo as Egyptian characters painted on the walls boogie down.