Mr. Holland's Opus

Mr. Holland's Opus is a 1995 drama in which Richard Dreyfuss plays Glenn Holland, a musician and composer who takes a teaching job to pay the rent while, in his 'spare time', he can strive to achieve his true goal: to compose one memorable piece of music to leave his mark on the world. As Holland discovers 'Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans' (Lyrics by John Lennon) and as the years unfold the joy of sharing his contagious passion for music with his students becomes his new definition of success.

The movie starts in 1965.

His son Cole (named after John Coltrane) was born deaf and, in the eyes of Glenn, could never appreciate the one thing that he held dear - music. In subsequent years, Glenn spends more time with his students instead of with his son. With the help of his wife, Glenn eventually learns to accept his son's challenges.

This movie was rated PG, for mild language (including cursing in American Sign Language) bythe MPAA.

Two soundtrack albums were released for this film in January 1996. One is the original motion picture score, and includes all of the original music written for the film by Michael Kamen. The second album is a collection of popular music featured in the film:

1. "Visions Of A Sunset" - Shawn Stockman (of Boyz II Men)
2. "One, Two, Three" - Len Barry
3. "A Lover's Concerto" - The Toys
4. "Keep On Running" - Spencer Davis Group
5. "Uptight (Everything's Alright)" - Stevie Wonder
6. "Imagine" - John Lennon
7. "The Pretender" - Jackson Browne
8. "Someone To Watch Over Me" - Julia Fordham
9. "I Got A Woman" - Ray Charles
10. "Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)" - John Lennon & Yoko Ono
11. "Cole's Song" - Julian Lennon & Tim Renwick
12. "An American Symphony (Mr. Holland's Opus)" - London Metropolitan Orchestra & Michael Kamen

The Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation

Inspired by the motion picture, its composer, Michael Kamen, founded The Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation (MHOF) in 1996 as his commitment to the future of music education. It is a foundation supporting music education and its many benefits through the donation and repair of musical instruments to under-served schools, community music programs and individual students nationwide. 

Now it has been renamed:

 VH1 Save the Music

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