History Main / CartoonConductor

* The "Maestro Minnie" shorts from ''HouseOfMouse''.

* In ''CampLazlo'', Edward conducts a belching orchestra in front of his brothers, and meant for Clam to start singing operatically until Lazlo makes the piece more fun.

[[quoteright:300:[[WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/cartoonconductor_738.jpeg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:300: [-WesternAnimation/BugsBunny, [[BlatantLies taking his work seriously, as usual.]]-] ]]

* In the 1960 JerryLewis movie ''{{Bellboy}}'' he does this ''without'' an orchestra present and still creates music.

* Something similar happens in the comedy ''BrainDonors'' (Fittingly, as it's a semi-remake of the above film), where changed sheet music (which may just be a distraction) and one of the protagonists lighting the conductor's baton on fire (causing him to wave it crazily to put it out), causes the whole orchestra to rapidly speed up their music like they're a giant record player. Why is this done? [[ItMakesSenseInContext To make the ballet dancer on stage throw up.]]

* ''ThePhantomTollbooth'' consciously takes this one UpToEleven with the idea of a conductor who controls '''colors.''' All Hell breaks loose when Milo tries to wing conducting a sunrise.

* The above mentioned sheet music switch to "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" takes place in ''ANightAtTheOpera'', only the original score was for ''Il Trovatore''("The Troubadour") by Verdi (later the MarxBrothers mess about with The Anvil Chorus). Once the boys pull a switch with the sheet music, Chico and Harpo start playing baseball in the orchestra pit while Groucho roams the audience shouting, "Popcorn! Peanuts!"

** The ''WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs}}'' short "Three Tenors and You're Out" subverts this by having Slappy and Skippy switch ''all'' the sheet music (to "[[ANightAtTheOpera Take Me Out To The Ballgame]]"), and Slappy taking over the role of the conductor.

* In a Disneyland television special, [[WhoFramedRogerRabbit Roger Rabbit]] asks to give conducting the orchestra a try, claiming he knows what to do - "wave the stick!". When he demonstrates the orchestra instantly starts playing tuneless noise. The real conductor then explains how it's done.

* In the GrandFinale of ''{{Chuck}}'' [[FakeBand Jeffster!]] takes over an orchestra concert with a cover of A-Ha's "Take On Me." Morgan grabs the baton from the befuddled conductor and starts waving it around, causing the orchestra to join the song perfectly.

[[caption-width-right:300: [-BugsBunny, [[BlatantLies taking his work seriously, as usual.]]-] ]]

* The ''ColorClassics'' short "A Car-Tune Portrait" features an orchestra made up of FunnyAnimals led by a lion in an effort to prove to the viewer that cartoon animals are not limited to slapstick comedy. Naturally, [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption you can see where it will all go.]]

* In the finale of the Mickey Rooney[=/=]JudyGarland film ''Strike Up the Band'' Mickey's character leads all the orchestras combined in a big production number, for which nobody has any sheet music.

* One Creator/TexAvery short, "Magical Maestro", featured a magician who switched places with a conductor so he could get revenge on a performer during a concert. Since the magician was using a ''magic wand'' for a baton, he not only had CartoonConductor power over the orchestra, he could also physically change the performer into whatever embarrassing form he wanted.

* In a Disneyland television special, [[WhoFramedRogerRabbit Roger Rabbit]] asks give conducting the orchestra a try, claiming he knows what to do - "wave the stick!". When he demonstrates the orchestra instantly starts playing tuneless noise. The real conductor then explains how it's done.

* Based on the {{Literature}} example above, ChuckJones' AnimatedAdaptation of ''ThePhantomTollbooth'', Chroma the Great is a conductor who determines not music, but all the colors of the world; when the protagonist Milo uses his baton, he wreaks havoc on the sunrise he is attempting to conduct.

* One TexAvery short, "Magical Maestro", featured a magician who switched places with a conductor so he could get revenge on a performer during a concert. Since the magician was using a ''magic wand'' for a baton, he not only had CartoonConductor power over the orchestra, he could also physically change the performer into whatever embarrassing form he wanted.

* The MickeyMouse cartoon ''TheBandConcert'' features several variations. First, Mickey's band, playing the William Tell Overture, is distracted by DonaldDuck playing "Turkey in the Straw" on the fife, and as the two pieces are similar, they start following Donald instead. Later, Mickey gets ice-cream down his collar, and his attempts to shimmy it out leads the orchestra to play belly-dancing music. Then a bee appears and Mickey swats at it, with the music changing tempo accordingly. For the climax, the entire orchestra is picked up by a tornado (just as the storm section of the overture is playing) while Mickey continues to conduct as if nothing has happened. Mickey then motions the band to stop... and the ''tornado'' stops as well, depositing the musicians back on the ground.

* One ''WesternAnimation/TomAndJerry'' short ("Carmen Get It", directed by [[FanonDiscontinuity Gene Deitch]]) takes the "switching sheet music" gag to ridiculous extremes. As Tom tries to conduct an orchestra, he fails to realize that his sheet music is actually a blank page covered by an army of ants. As the ants repeatedly switch into different patterns, the orchestra correspondingly switches to a random song, causing Tom much confusion.

* One cartoon whose title escapes me features a lion conducting an orchestra of wild animals, ''while facing the audience'' and cuing musicians with his tail.
** Terrytoons and Paramount-Famous each did such a cartoon. Terrytoons' was "One Note Tony" (about a monkey who only has one note to play on a timpani drum); not sure about the Paramount cartoon, but it was a Screen Songs cartoon that had "Alexander's Ragtime Band" as the "follow the bouncing ball" song.

* In the ''MrBean'' episode "Merry Christmas, Mr. Bean", Bean conducts a Salvation Army brass band playing "God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen" using a highly complex series of gestures, including fast twitchy movements to indicate a light tempo, sweeps for a more Wagnerian feel, and a funky pace to turn it into a jazz number. It culminates in him modifying the volume by making a gesture indicative of turning down a volume dial on a radio, making the band stop playing. He continues conducting, but nothing is heard until he ''remembers to turn the band on again''.

* A ''WesternAnimation/ThePinkPanther'' short in which the Panther keeps sneaking into the orchestra pit and playing "The Pink Panther Theme" on various instruments before being ejected by the conductor. Eventually, he switches the conductor's score, and after dispatching of the conductor, the Panther conducts a full orchestral version of the theme. Much to the delight of the only person in the audience: Music/HenryMancini.

* A ''WesternAnimation/ThePinkPanther'' short in which the Panther keeps sneaking into the orchestra pit and playing "The Pink Panther Theme" on various instruments before being ejected by the conductor. Eventually, he switches the conductor's score, and the bewildered man conducts a full orchestral version of the theme. Much to the delight of the only person in the audience: Music/HenryMancini.

* WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes. Bugs Bunny himself was fond of the Omnipotent CartoonConductor act. ''Baton Bunny'' is a classic example of this and a rare example of a dialogueless Bugs Bunny cartoon. The page image above comes from another, ''Long-Haired Hare''.

* WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes. Bugs Bunny himself was fond of the Omnipotent CartoonConductor act. ''Baton Bunny'' is a classic example of this and a rare example of a dialogueless Bugs Bunny cartoon.