It's my verypleasantduty to welcomeyouhere...
onbehalfofall the otherartists andmusicians whose combinedtalents...
wentinto the creation ofthis new form ofentertainment, Fantasia.
Whatyou willsee on thescreen...
is apicture ofthe various abstractimages...
thatmightpass throughyourmind...
ifyousatin a concerthall listening to this music.
Now, there are threekinds ofmusic on this Fantasia program.
First there's thekind that tells a definitestory.
Then there's thekindthat, while ithas nospecificplot...
doespaintaseries ofmore orless definitepictures.
Then there's a thirdkind--
music thatexists simply forits own sake.
Thenumberthatopens our Fantasia program...
is music ofthis thirdkind.
You know, what's amazing is that many ofthese musicians...
are playing for the very fi rst time...
thanks to Steve Martin's Two-Week Master Musician Home Study course.
More about that later.
Hello, and welcome to Fantasia 2000.
It's been more than 60 years since Walt Disney and his artists...
teamed up with maestro Leopold Stokowski...
to create a fi lm they titled The ConcertFeature.
I thinkwe're all glad that they changed the name to Fantasia.
You know, Fantasia was meant to be a perpetual work in progress.
Every timeyou went to see it, you'd experience some new pieces...
along with some old familiar favorites.
But that idea fell by the wayside until now.
So let me turn things over to the great ltzhak Perlman...
who, I havejust been informed, plays the violin.
Well, so do l. Big deal. Could I have myviolin, please?
Ah, thankyou.
All right, boys, let's--
Oh, sorry. Could I have another stick thingy, please?
Oh, and camera back on me.
Camera back on me.
When you hear a title like " Pines of Rome"...
you might think oftree-lined streets and romantic ruins.
But when the Disney animators heard this music...
they thought ofsomething completely different.
Here is the Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by maestroJames Levine...
performing Ottorino Respighi's " Pines of Rome."
Beautiful, Ralph.
Hi. Next, we're gonna takeyou to the streets of New York City...
for a piece that's inspired by a couple ofmy favorite artists.
First there's the illustrator AI Hirschfeld...
who's been drawing celebrities and Broadway stars...
for most ofthe 20th century.
And then there's composer/songwriter George Gershwin...
who tookjazz off the streets, dressed her up...
and took her to the concert hall.
My friend Ralph Grierson plays piano on this next number.
And it all starts with a single slinky note on a clarinet...
and a simple line on a piece ofpaper.
Ladies and gentlemen, " Rhapsody ln Blue."
Hi. You may not know this, but over theyears...
the Disney artists have cooked up dozens ofideas for new Fantasia segments.
Some ofthem made it to the big screen this time...
but others-- Iots ofothers--
how can I put this politely-- didn't.
For example, the Danish illustrator Kay Nielsen drew these sketches...
for a segment inspired byWagner's " Ride ofthe Valkyries."
Here they are...
and there they go.
Now, Salvador Dali-- you know, the "limp watches" guy--
he got into the act with an idea that featured baseball...
as a metaphor for life.
How come that didn't work? Makes perfect sense to me.
Let's see. Then we had a bug ballet and a baby ballet...
and for a time, they even considered a sequence inspired by...
The Polka and The Fugue...
from Weinberger's "Schwanda the Bagpiper."
But fi nally, a success.
The Disney artists wanted to create a short fi lm...
based on Hans Christian Andersen's wonderful fairy tale...
TheSteadfast Tin Soldier...
but they could never fi nd the perfect musical match until now.
Here is Yefi m Bronfman...
playing the Shostakovich " Piano Concerto Number 2"...
and TheSteadfast Tin Soldier.
These drawing boards have been the birthplace...
ofsome ofthe most beloved animal characters ofall time.
So it's no surprise that the artists chose for our next segment...
"The Carnival ofthe Animals" by Camille Saint-Sa�ns.
Here, the sensitive strains ofimpressionistic music...
combine with the subtle artistry ofthe animator...
to fi nally answer that age-old question:
What is man's relationship to nature?
Oh, sorry.
That age-old question:
What would happen ifyou gave a yo-yo to a flock offlamingos?
Who wrote this?
Ladies and gentlemen, we'd like to take a moment, ifwe may...
to talk about a little something we like to refer to as magic.
Uh, picture this. You're at home, hosting a birthday party...
foryour daughter, and you've just shelled out 50 bucks...
so some pathetic loser can pull a mangy rabbit out ofa flea market hat.
At fi rst, you might wonder toyourself...
" How did he do that?"
But then you would probably just dismiss it as some sort ofa trick.
And you know something? You'd be right! It'sjust a trick.
It's an example ofwhat we laughingly refer to as stage magic.
We're here to tell you that all stage magic is a fraud, a hoax, a sham.
It's all based on deception and, yep, lyin'. All ofit.
Sleight ofhand-- Iies.
Transformations-- fraud.
Dismemberment-- rip-off!.
Fake! All are illusions.
What we're here to talk about is real magic.
We're gonna bring on a guy now who's the real deal, the genuine article.
In fact, he taught us everything we know.
And he is featured prominently in the next sequence...
from the original Fantasia, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice."
Y-You know, come to think ofit...
"The Sorcerer's Apprentice" is a-- is, is a little guy...
who, uh-- who never speaks andjust kinda messes everything up...
Iike him.
And now-- Wha--
And now, the--
Oh. Hi. Hi, little fella. I gotta-- I gotta--
And now, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice."
Mr. Stokowski. Mr. Stokowski!
Just wanted to offer my congratulations, sir.
Congratulations toyou, Mickey.
Aw, gee, thanks. Well, I gotta run now. So long!
Mr. Levine! Okay, Mr. Levine.
Everybody's in place for the next number.
- Thanks, Mickey. - Psst!
- When-- - But we can't fi nd Donald.
Soyou stay here and stall for time. I'll be right back.
Donald! Oh, Donald!
When we hear Sir Edward Elgar's " Pomp and Circumstance"...
we think ofa graduation ceremony.
- Donald, where areya? - Actually, Elgar composed it...
for many kinds ofsolemn events.
Donald!
This march inspired the Disney artists...
to recreate the age-old story...
- Oh, sorry, Daisy. - of Noah's Ark...
with one slight twist.
Oh, Donald Duck!
- Who is it? - Donald, it's me, Mickey. You're on in 30 seconds. Hurry!
What? You gotta be kidding! I'm not even dressed--
Okay,Jim, he's on his way. Go to the intro.
Ladies and gentlemen, " Pomp and Circumstance"...
starring Donald Duck.
Walt Disney described the art ofanimation...
as a voyage ofdiscovery...
into the realms ofcolor, sound and motion.
The music from lgor Stravinsky's ballet, The Firebird...
inspires such a voyage.
And so we conclude this version of Fantasia...
with a mythical story oflife, death and renewal.
Camera back onme. Uh, camera back onme, please.
Anyone?Hello?Hello?
Couldsomeonegive mearide home?