The Muppet Orchestra

From Muppet Wiki

From the orchestra pit of the Muppet Theatre, the Muppet Orchestra provided the music for the Muppet Show. They are usually seen during the opening and closing credits. Occasionally, they are featured in musical numbers as well.

Contents 1 Musicians 2 Guest Musicians 3 Appearances 4 Trivia

Musicians

• Nigel as the band leader (conductor)
• Floyd Pepper on bass
• Animal on drums
• Zoot on saxophone
• Rowlf on piano
• Crazy Harry on triangle (season 1)
• Trumpet Girl on trumpet (seasons 1 to 4) and trombone (episode 415, season 5)
• Lips on trumpet (season 5)

Guest Musicians

• Janice on banjo or guitar (seasons 4 and 5)
• A pig on clarinet (episode 118)
• A Whatnot flute player (episode 303)
• A Whatnot clarinet player (episode 303)
• Assorted trumpet players (episode 304, episode 306)
• A Whatnot Train Conductor (episode 308)
• A chicken on trumpet (episode 308)
• Tiny on tuba (never seen, but mentioned in episode 403 and the tuba was seen in episode 415)
• Quongo the Wild Mountain Gorilla on cymbals (episode 415) (the opening theme)  

• Dr. Teeth on keyboard (It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie)
• Eugene on tuba (It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie)
• A Whatnot violinist (It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie)
• A Whatnot harp player (It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie)
• A Whatnot conductor (It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie)

Appearances

Besides the opening and closing theme, the orchestra pit and its musicians were seen in the following numbers:

• Episode 101: Juliet Prowse (pilot version): "Animal's Drum Solo" performed quickly by Animal
• Episode 118: Phyllis Diller: "The Entertainer" performed by Phyllis Diller (orchestra on stage)
• Episode 123: Kaye Ballard: "One Note Samba" sung by Kaye Ballard (orchestra on stage)
• Episode 204: Rich Little: "The Boy In The Gallery" (accompanied by Rowlf in an empty orchestra pit)
• Episode 303: Roy Clark: "Yesterday When I Was Young" sung by Roy Clark
• Episode 304: Gilda Radner: "Tap Your Troubles Away" sung by Gilda Radner
• Episode 306: Jean Stapleton: "Simple Melody" sung by Jean Stapleton and Fozzie
• Episode 415: Anne Murray: "Everything Old Is New Again" sung by Anne Murray
• Episode 504: Shirley Bassey: "After You've Gone" performed by the orchestra
• Episode 514: Mac Davis: "I Believe In Music" sung by Mac Davis
• Episode 520: Wally Boag: "Swawnee River" performed by Wally Boag
• Episode 524: Roger Moore: "How High The Moon" performed by the orchestra

Trivia

• The musicians' order from the left to the right: Brass section (Trumpet Girl, Lips, other trumpet players), Floyd, Crazy Harry (season 1), Animal, Zoot, Rowlf. Janice either sat next to Lips or next to Zoot.

• (It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie) features a more extended orchestra. Dr. Teeth, Animal, Floyd and Zoot sat on the left; Eugene the tuba player, a harp player, a violinist and Rowlf sat on the right. The conductor was an unnamed Whatnot as well. This is the first time Dr. Teeth takes place in the Muppet Theatre's orchestra pit. He was also seen conducting in The Muppets Take Manhattan.

• During the first season, Zoot sat on the left of the orchestra pit; during the next seasons, he had his place next to Rowlf.
• Trumpet Girl originally was the third member seated in the orchestra pit during the first season's closing. During the rest of the show's air, she sat in Zoot's original shot on the left of the orchestra pit (even though in episode 520, Lips sat on the left side of the pit, so she sat in her original spot.

• Two episodes feature an instrumental UK spot as performed by the orchestra in the pit: episode 504 and episode 524.

• In two episodes, the Orchestra Pit was seen empty except for Rowlf on his piano. These are episode 123 and episode 204.

• Episode 308 took place at a railroad station instead of the theater. Therefore, the band played the closing theme, as well as the opening theme, on the left side of the station. The closing theme sounded rather off-key, since they were playing a timetable.

• In episode 321, the musicians had caught "Cluckitis" and turned to chickens.

• In episode 514, clones of Beaker took over the orchestra pit.

• Occasionally, a 'continuity goof' occurred on The Muppet Show; musicians from the orchestra pit would be on stage at the same time; a wide shot of the audience would feature musicians in the pit that were not featured, or leave some musicians out; et cetera.

• In The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years, Muppet*Vision 3D and Muppet Classic Theater, the orchestra was played by penguins. The Muppet*Vision orchestra is Nicky Napoleon and His Emperor Penguins. The 'Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years orchestra included both Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem and various penguins, conducted by Nigel.