In 1936, Walt Disney felt that the Disney studio’s star character Mickey Mouse needed a boost in popularity. He turned to the best of classical music for its revival. Walt decided to feature the mouse in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, a short deluxe cartoon based on the poem written by Johann von Goethe and set to the orchestral piece by Paul Dukas, inspired by the original tale.

The concept of matching animation to classical music was used as early as 1928 in Disney’s cartoon series, the Silly Symphonies but, with Fantasia Walt Disney had given birth to a new concept.

Walt Disney approached none other than the great conductor Leopold Stokowski to record the music for added prestige, contracting him to select and employ a complete symphony orchestra for the recording.

In the history of art and entertainment, few have reached the point where one name says is all a – Stokowski was more than a famous conductor – he was a superstar. And thus began the union of Stokowski and his music with the best of Disney’s genius, immortalised in the 1940 Fantasia movie

The Malta Philharmonic Orchestra will be bringing these timeless classics to life during Disney’s Fantasia: Live in Concert, a performance with live symphonic masterpieces by the orchestra, conducted by Brian Schembri.

The concert takes place on Saturday at at 7.30pm at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, Valletta.