This short sees Tom taking to the stage as a concert pianist to play Hungarian Rhapsody #2 by Franz Liszt; it starts well but Jerry has made his bed on the hammers and as soon as Tom hits the low notes Jerry it sent along the length hammers and woken. He gets out to watch Tom play but rather than ignore him Tom pushes him between the hammers before vigorously playing those notes. From then on Jerry tries to disrupt his playing as Tom struggles valiantly to play on
and when the piece finally comes to the end Jerry decides to keep going.
This is one of the best Tom and Jerry shorts; it is not surprising that it picked up the Academy Award. The usual violence is toned down but by no means eliminated; we still see Tom put his finger on a mouse trap and Jerry battered by the piano's hammers. What made it so funny was how Tom managed to continue playing and sounding pretty good, despite Jerry's efforts; of course by the end it is Jerry who is getting the applause! The animation looks great; I'm no pianist but it does look as though Tom is striking the right notes rather than just moving his hands to the music clearly animators took things more seriously back then! If you like classic animation this one is a must see.
This is one of the best Tom and Jerry shorts; it is not surprising that it picked up the Academy Award. The usual violence is toned down but by no means eliminated; we still see Tom put his finger on a mouse trap and Jerry battered by the piano's hammers. What made it so funny was how Tom managed to continue playing and sounding pretty good, despite Jerry's efforts; of course by the end it is Jerry who is getting the applause! The animation looks great; I'm no pianist but it does look as though Tom is striking the right notes rather than just moving his hands to the music clearly animators took things more seriously back then! If you like classic animation this one is a must see.