Peter and the Wolf

Peter and the Wolf (1946) is a Disney animated short you can watch online on iFILM. It brings Sergei Prokofiev's symphonic fairy tale to the screen, with a different orchestral instrument voicing each character.

Young Peter heads into the meadow to catch the wolf that's been prowling near the village. Tagging along are a bird, a duck and a cat — flute, oboe and clarinet. Peter himself is the strings, the wolf growls through three French horns, and his grumbling grandfather is the bassoon. When the wolf steps out of the woods, the carefree outing turns into a real chase. Fifteen minutes, and the tension runs like a full adventure.

Clyde Geronimi, one of Disney's studio directors, helmed it, and the narration comes from Sterling Holloway, the voice behind many Disney characters. It's a gentle way to introduce a child to classical music: here the instruments aren't a lesson but living personalities. Stream Peter and the Wolf (1946) online on iFILM.