This thread about cartoons and classical music is a nostalgic delight

24.

The surest way to get a cartoon character to fall asleep is to sing them “Brahms’ Lullaby.” Also be sure to throw the phrase “close your big bloodshot eyes” in there somewhere. pic.twitter.com/dR8KSnmRav

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

25.

And the surest way to make a cartoon character cry is to play them “Träumerei” by Robert Schumann on the violin. Elmer Fudd even cries in time to the music here: pic.twitter.com/ojAg7HVaax

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

26.

Beethoven’s Fifth was used in World War II cartoons for a very specific reason: the Morse Code for “V” is dot-dot-dot-dash, and so the similar motif from the Beethoven piece symbolized “V for Victory” to wartime audiences. pic.twitter.com/lzigsdTCsf

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

27.

The works of Ludwig van Beethoven are all over classic Looney Tunes and Disney shorts. Beethoven is even the hero of a famous cartoon character: Schroeder from PEANUTS. pic.twitter.com/UZZ6CAobMT

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

28.

(I should add as a bit of shameless self-promotion that I used Beethoven’s “Adagio Cantabile” from “Sonata Pathétique No. 8, op. 13” in my cartoon MUSICAL MAN AND THE MAGIC KAZOO.) pic.twitter.com/yfT0kV9Twd

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

29.

Mozart’s “Piano Sonata No. 16 in C Major, K. 545,” re-popularized by Raymond Scott’s jazzy 1939 rendition “In an 18th Century Drawing Room,” was often used in cartoons set in stuffy mansions and became something of a theme for Granny of the Tweety & Sylvester cartoons. pic.twitter.com/EwRJEt9fQX

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

30.

Tchaikovsky’s strongest ties to animation are probably the Disney features FANTASIA and SLEEPING BEAUTY, but his music popped up in dozens of Looney Tunes and MGM cartoons, providing the soundtrack for shoemaking elves, ice skating mice, and suicidal birds. pic.twitter.com/1hdIROGDgS

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

31.

Disney is associated with wholesome family entertainment nowadays, but the studio’s earliest Silly Symphonies focused on dancing skeletons and demons cavorting in the fiery pit of Hell, backed up by macabre melodies from Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg. pic.twitter.com/ega0CkHyJU

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

32.

“Sobre las Olas (Over the Waves)” used to mis-attributed to Strauss, but it was actually the work of Mexican composer Juventino Rosas. It became the go-to cartoon theme for magic tricks and tight-wire acts. “Roota-voota-zoot!” pic.twitter.com/4izREAGKIl

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

33.

German/Jewish composer Leon Jessel was killed by the Nazis and they tried to suppress his work, but his legacy has survived, partly thanks to cartoons. His “Parade of the Wooden Soldiers” is a classic, and there was an entire Betty Boop cartoon formed around the piece in 1933. pic.twitter.com/RneTnWK9UK

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

34.

“Ochi Chernye (Dark Eyes)” is a song by Russian composer Florian Hermann. Cartoons set in Russia or formed around gremlins inevitably feature this unforgettable tune: pic.twitter.com/35WyzBKdSo

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

35.

“Wintermärchen, Op. 366” by Austro-Hungarian composer Alphons Czibulka is another one I assumed everybody knew as a kid because of its frequent use in cartoons. It generally shows up in scenes of over-the-top melodrama, stretching back to the very first Looney Tune in 1930. pic.twitter.com/JizfE9GoEk

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

36.

Jacques Offenbach’s “Valse des Rayons” from “Le Papillon” became associated in cartoons with the French Apache Dance, which reenacts a violent interaction between a pimp and a prostitute. Naturally, it was perfect for a Popeye fight: pic.twitter.com/TZX5grebVX

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

37.

“The William Tell Overture” is probably the piece used most often in all of cartoon history. It frequently plays against chases and galloping horses, likely inspired by its use in the Lone Ranger radio show. Daffy Duck’s rapid-fire interpretation is genius: pic.twitter.com/B2a7veGR4Z

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

38.

The prelude to “The William Tell Overture,” called “Dawn,” plays at the beginning of lots of cartoons to indicate early morning, right before things descend into chaos, as in this classic sequence from PORKY IN WACKYLAND: pic.twitter.com/8SlOFxO4SX

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

39.

The 1935 Disney short THE BAND CONCERT, the first Mickey Mouse cartoon in color, is entirely formed around “The William Tell Overture” and climaxes in the furious “Storm” section. Disney at its best: pic.twitter.com/Oo0jKoYZDK

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

40.

And last – WHAT’S OPERA, DOC?, a brilliant combination of Wagner and Wabbit. This was voted the greatest cartoon of all time by over 1000 professionals and was the first cartoon preserved by the National Film Registry. How can you hear this music and not sing “Kill da wabbit?” pic.twitter.com/dv2Jfza6EQ

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

41.

Thanks for reading, everybody! Here’s a link to my music-themed cartoon: https://t.co/EOgd1csODG

— Vincent Alexander (@NonsenseIsland) March 1, 2021

And just a few of the things people said about it.

An education and a trip down memory lane. https://t.co/c2vR0ZbqLe

— Brady Haran (@BradyHaran) March 2, 2021

This makes me want to watch all the Bugs Bunny shorts all over again. Magic. https://t.co/7jHMfjbpxJ

— edgarwright (@edgarwright) March 3, 2021

https://twitter.com/MrJasonRBrown/status/1366605404487233542?s=20

This is an exceptional thread. It will bring back memories and take you a week to get through the whole thing. https://t.co/PnuBHpZot2

— Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) March 2, 2021

https://twitter.com/Kris_Sacrebleu/status/1366617837570166785?s=20

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People are sharing the hilariously unrealistic things people do in films and TV – 27 favourites

Source Twitter @NonsenseIsland