Tunes from the Toons: The Conroe Symphony Orchestra Goes Looney

CONROE, TX -- When we were little kids watching cartoons, we didn’t realize the music in the animated works of art with Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Porky Pig, Daffy Duck, Yosemite Sam, and a whole host of others, that it was initially where we heard classical music. Those were the days of ‘Looney Tunes’ and ‘Merrie Melodies,’ which was Warner Bros. answer to Disney’s ‘Silly Symphonies.’ They were times of innocence when cartoons were pure entertainment, and no one was purposely hiding malicious motives in their content. And who knows the rationale for using the classics at the time, but for those of us that got it, and appreciated it; the benefits could be life-changing. The Conroe Symphony Orchestra (CSO) recognized that music associated with animation is vital to setting moods and excitement levels, and wanted us to relive our childhoods, a time when we all sat in front of the television while laughing and enjoying ourselves. Or if you are old enough, you watched the animated shorts in the conditioned air movie theaters prior to the feature. This past Saturday, the CSO began their 27th Season, 2024-2025, with ‘Tunes from the Toons,’ linking Warner Bros., Disney, and other studios, to the cartoons of the past, and allowing us to be kids again; well at least for a few hours. The concert, held at the First Methodist Church in Conroe, was a who’s who of cartoon tunes from The Flintstones to The Incredibles, and everything in between.

The concert featured Olena Blauliac, the beautiful and distinguished Ukrainian pianist, who teaches piano with Lone Star College in Kingwood, and performs when called upon nationally and internationally, as well as at the Kingwood Methodist Church. Dr. Blauliac earned her PhD in Piano Performance from the University of Houston (Go Coogs!). She is a natural, and her performance of Franz Liszt’s ‘Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 in C# Minor’ was mesmerizing. Bugs Bunny also performed the No. 2 Rhapsody as well, in ‘Rhapsody Rabbit,’ a November 1946 Merrie Melodies animated short that featured the cottontail ivory tickler. And in capturing the spirit of Liszt, Bugs Bunny, after the lassan, or short section of a Hungarian folk dance, characteristically eats a carrot.

“In preparing for a performance, you want to be ready to play at any moment,” said Dr. Blauliac in speaking of the work. “I use different types of memory to learn a piece such as visual, audible, and muscle memory, and several hours of practice per day. To me the life of the piece begins when you perform it on stage for the first time.”

Blauliac’s carrotless lassan was entrancing, and set the mood for the friska, or the section with the faster tempo. The Ukrainian performed the poignant piece brilliantly by memory, with no sheet music in sight. Her command of the keys held the audience in awe. It was played with a heartfelt passion. It was dazzling. Done with such softness and precision from an artist whose habit is to play with her eyes closed, as if the sheet music was taped to the inside of her cornea’s. A short part of the rhapsody, if you listen closely, gives rise to Jean Michel Jarre’s 2nd rendez-vous from April 1986’s ‘Rendez-vous Houston,’ concert, which celebrated the 150th birthday, or sesquicentennial, of Texas; the 25th Anniversary of NASA; and a remembrance of astronaut Ron McNair, Jarre’s friend, who perished in the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster just months before.

“Olena was fantastic,” said season ticket holder Ron Liston. “Her hands were overlapping each other and the keys so fast, I was amazed at the sight. She is a very talented artist, and we were fortunate to have her perform here today.”

Incredibly, this was Olena’s first public performance of the piece, and until just a few months ago she had never played it, even in practice. Blauliac was dynamite, and on fire at the same time. She ran the board with such ease, she could probably have played it in her sleep. Every note was perfection, and if you closed your eyes drinking it in, you could easily have found yourself in the Béla Bartók National Concert Hall in Budapest. The CSO made a wonderful choice in Ms. Blauliac as a guest soloist to start off its 27th season, and her performance will not soon be forgotten.

“There are great musicians and then there are those at a very special level like Olena,” said Conductor Gary Liebst, who was sporting new tails for the concert. “Not to diminish the hard work and the hours that she took to prepare the music, but it is like she was born to be a great pianist.”

The Conroe Symphony Orchestra started the audience on their journey of remembrance with ‘The Looney Tune Fugue,’ arranged by Matthew Naughtin Gary. ‘The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down,’ an early 1937 song written by Cliff Friend and Dave Franklin, was the basis for the familiar motif that LT/MM composer Carl Stalling would adopt to all intros and closings with Porky Pig’s ‘That’s all Folks,’’ thrown in at the end. ‘The Barber of Seville Overture,’ by Gioacchino Rossini, parodied in ‘The Rabbit of Seville,’ the 1950 cartoon, in which Bugs Bunny famously made a salad on Elmer Fudd’s bald head. The CSO performed it flawlessly, capturing the masterful essence of Rossini and perfectly controlling the speed of the beats with the organic combination of the string, wind and percussion instruments.

Franz Von Suppé’s ‘The Light Cavalry Overture,’ first performed in 1866, might bring to mind The Charge of Light Brigade during the Crimean War in 1854, and its movements do give the sense of confidence, battle, loss, and tragedy, but it most likely was written with different intentions. Snippets can be found in various LT/MM cartoons over the years with Porky Pig, Foghorn Leghorn, Bugs Bunny and others. It’s a challenging piece to bring to life, but the CSO handled it with ease, and if you didn’t have goosebumps rising, you weren’t listening hard enough. The same can be said of Richard Wagner’s ‘Opera Mash Up,’ which included works from his different operas and included ‘The Flying Dutchman Overture,’ ‘Ride of the Valkyries,’ ‘The Pilgrim's Chorus,’ and ‘Venusberg Ballet.’ All of which can be heard in WB-Merrie Melodies, 1957 cartoon short, ‘What’s Opera, Doc?’ It famously has the leitmotif of ‘Kill the Wabbit,’ with Elmer Fudd spearing down the rabbit hole of Bugs Bunny during Valkyries.

“My wife, Melody, and I agree that this was the best ‘kickoff’ to a season yet,” said three year season ticket holder, Cliff Unruh. “Gary Liebst is getting so much out of his all-volunteer orchestra. We were also very impressed with Olena Blauliak. The virtuosity we witnessed was world class, and the standing ovation was really something to see.”

The musicians also performed splendidly the ‘Dance of the Hours from La Gioconda,’ by Amilcare Ponchielli; as well as Igor Stravinsky’s ‘Berceuse and Finale from The Firebird Suite.’ Following the intermission Liebst started the CSO with music from the 1992 animated movie ‘Aladdin,’ by Alan Menken, and arranged by John G. Mortimer, which included ‘Arabian Nights,’ ‘A Whole New World,’ and ‘Prince Ali’ in the suite amongst others. The challenges of the extended medley were no problem for the CSO. In fact they were in their element, and having had Arabian nights myself, making treks across the desert in the dark, I felt quite at home with the reemergence of goosebumps.

“I thought it was wonderful,” said Sue Moorhead, sister-in-law of the namesake of the Conroe High School Buddy Moorhead Stadium. “Both our symphony, and the Young Texas Artists concerts are wonderful events that are happening here in Conroe.”

The concert was rounded out by renditions of ‘The Incredibles,’ by Michael Giacchino; The ‘Beauty and the Beast’ suite, by Alan Menken, and arranged by Michael Kosarin. The ‘Cartoon Collection’ suite, arranged by Mortimer, included selections from ‘The Flintstones, Inspector Gadget, Tom and Jerry, The New Yogi Bear Show, Tiny Toon Adventures, and Merrie Melodies.’ The entire concert was a true triumph for The Conroe Symphony Orchestra, and they most certainly earned their just reward.

“I thought the orchestra had a particularly good performance especially considering the difficulty level of the music,” said Liebst. “As director I am thrilled that the ensemble continues to get better at playing together and forming a really tight knit group that is developing a beautiful overall sound.”

The concert was underwritten by the Texas Commission on the Arts, the City of Conroe, and the National Endowment for the Arts. The Conroe Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1997, and was created to contribute to the cultural enrichment of Conroe and the county as a whole, assuring a better quality of life for everyone in the area. The CSO’s objective is to provide the region with the best possible musical experience, while creating music lovers and connecting communities. They strive to be recognized as one of the outstanding community orchestras in the state of Texas, and as a non-profit community orchestra, it is supported through individual and corporate donations, grants, and ticket sales.

The next concert is ‘Christmas Around The World,’ to be performed on December 14th.

The CSO website is: conroesymphony.org Please consider donating to this wonderful organization.

Ruben can be reached at: ruben@montgomerycountynews.net