Toronto – When it comes right down to it, Bugs Bunny is the reason I love Classical music. Watching the show was a staple of my Saturday morning routine. It had an ingenious way of melding music with animation to tell a story. There was so much tasteful craft that went into these soundtracks that the music was a character unto itself. This was a fortunate development for a generation of Classical music-lovers.
Bugs Bunny is the reason I love Classical music.
Picture a rising sun over a green meadow with a flock of peaceful sheep, just moments before they would be terrorized by that wily Wile E. Coyote. That music still evokes the gold standard of what “morning music” should be. Who could forget Bugs and Elmer’s antics in The Rabbit of Seville, or that infamous if morbid refrain, “Kill The Wabbit!” From Wagner, to Rossini, to Mozart; Bugs covered them all.
As I embark upon my nostalgic trip down memory lane, I’m still amazed at the level of craftsmanship to be found in those old cartoons. While they were funny and appealed to youngsters, they also offered sophisticated music, and ideas that spanned the globe. Sure, there were some cultural stereotypes that feel dated today, but watching Bugs explore his cartoon world broadened my own horizons. I journeyed with him through the French Alps, the canals of Venice, the arctic tundra, and even Mars! We would be hard-pressed to find that tasteful a mix of entertainment and culture in the shows on offer today.
“Kill the Wabbit!!!” – Elmer Fudd
“Kill the Waaaabbit?” – Bugs Bunny
Thankfully, my trip down memory lane doesn’t have to end here. Conductor George Daugherty has partnered up with Bugs and the whole cast at Warner Bros to bring us Bugs Bunny at the Symphony. The year-long North American tour hits Toronto next Saturday with performances that include The Rabbit of Seville, and What’s Opera, Doc? Mr. Daugherty plays with a number of symphonies throughout his excursion. For the performance at the Sony Centre, he will be accompanied by the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony.
Bugs Bunny at the Symphony plays at the Sony Centre for the Performing Arts on Saturday, April 9th.