One Man Band (film)

Plot

Bass, a skilled and proud street performer, plays a routine tune in a deserted Italian village square in the afternoon, waiting for a pedestrian to tip him in his rusty iron cup. Soon, he spots Tippy, a humble and peasant girl clutching a big gold coin, with the intention of dropping it in the piazza fountain to make a wish. Bass, seizing the opportunity, immediately plays an impromptu piece, capturing the young girl's attention.

Just when Tippy is about to drop the coin into Bass's cup, a newcomer steps onto the scene. Treble, a suave and flamboyant street performer, plays a more attractive song, effectively stealing Tippy's attention, much to the anger of Bass. Not to be outdone, Bass ups his ante, with Treble daring to take it even further. As the two rivals unleash their arsenal of musical weapons, trying to vie for the attention (or rather, the tip) of Tippy, the girl cowers in their wild musical cacophony, and in the process, accidentally drops her sole gold coin, which falls down a drain and gets lost in the sewers of the village.

Heartbroken, Tippy sniffles, but then angrily demands from Treble and Bass a replacement coin for the one they made her lose. When both musicians come up empty handed, Tippy insists she take one of Treble's violins and Bass's iron cup in an attempt to get her money back by playing solo. She then tunes the violin and begins to play it like a true virtuoso, prompting a passing pedestrian to drop a large bag of gold coins onto her cup.

Elated, Tippy hugs the bag and approaches the fountain, but not before she pulls two coins out of her bag and tempts Treble and Bass. But as they eagerly reach out to grab them, she tosses the coins into the top of the fountain, out of reach, much to their dismay. A post-credits scene shows that it is now nighttime, with Treble standing on Bass, trying to reach for the coins in vain. As the two start to fall backwards, the film ends.

Music

The violinists featured in the score for the film are:

The score was recorded at the Paramount Scoring Stage in Hollywood, CA. The filmmakers used a 38-piece orchestra as well as several soloists, including the ones listed above.

The music during the credits is Pablo de Sarasate's Zigeunerweisen.

Release

The film premiered on June 11, 2005, at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival in Annecy, France. It was shown with the theatrical release of Cars, which was released in the United States on June 9, 2006.

DVD release

Pixar included the film on the DVD release of Cars in 2006 and as part of Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 1 in 2007.