Constructing the “Golden Dream”: Music and American History at Walt Disney World
Location
Rosen Classroom 111
Start Date
21-6-2024 11:15 AM
Description
Throughout the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, several attractions and areas exist that are dedicated to “retelling” American history. Disney-critical scholar Stephen Fjellman proposes these “Distories” (portmanteau of “Disney” and “histories”) function as curated nostalgic commodities, where guests are introduced to an American mythology of exceptionalism, pioneering innovation, and the American dream. Indeed, critic Mike Wallace suggests that Walt Disney has taught more people history in a memorable way than ever communicated in the American classroom. And yet, as musicologist Gregory Camp has noted, trenchant critique of Disney’s practice often does little to theorize the way these “texts” inform guest experience.
In this paper, I analyze the musical content of several distinctly American locations at the Walt Disney World Resort, such as The American Adventure (EPCOT), Voices of Liberty (EPCOT), The Hall of Presidents (Magic Kingdom), and Disney’s Wilderness Lodge (Resort Hotel). I theorize that the music of these and similar locations can be categorized into a square of binary oppositions defined by the parameters of original/non-original music and the use/disuse of expressly American content. Conceptualizing the music in this manner dismantles a monolithic understanding of “Disney music,” allowing for an appreciation of the musical particularities that affect guest experience in differing ways. In this framework, the use of original patriotic music, film score stylings, the classical canon, and American folk song are put forth as distinct, valuable, and effective means of constructing American “Distories” through sound.
Recommended Citation
Moenning, Andrew, "Constructing the “Golden Dream”: Music and American History at Walt Disney World" (2024). Theme Park Music and Sound. 5.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/tpms/2024/friday/5
Constructing the “Golden Dream”: Music and American History at Walt Disney World
Rosen Classroom 111
Throughout the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, several attractions and areas exist that are dedicated to “retelling” American history. Disney-critical scholar Stephen Fjellman proposes these “Distories” (portmanteau of “Disney” and “histories”) function as curated nostalgic commodities, where guests are introduced to an American mythology of exceptionalism, pioneering innovation, and the American dream. Indeed, critic Mike Wallace suggests that Walt Disney has taught more people history in a memorable way than ever communicated in the American classroom. And yet, as musicologist Gregory Camp has noted, trenchant critique of Disney’s practice often does little to theorize the way these “texts” inform guest experience.
In this paper, I analyze the musical content of several distinctly American locations at the Walt Disney World Resort, such as The American Adventure (EPCOT), Voices of Liberty (EPCOT), The Hall of Presidents (Magic Kingdom), and Disney’s Wilderness Lodge (Resort Hotel). I theorize that the music of these and similar locations can be categorized into a square of binary oppositions defined by the parameters of original/non-original music and the use/disuse of expressly American content. Conceptualizing the music in this manner dismantles a monolithic understanding of “Disney music,” allowing for an appreciation of the musical particularities that affect guest experience in differing ways. In this framework, the use of original patriotic music, film score stylings, the classical canon, and American folk song are put forth as distinct, valuable, and effective means of constructing American “Distories” through sound.