‘The Soul of Jazz: An American Adventure’ NOW Open At EPCOT
We’ve got some exciting news for those visiting EPCOT this month! There’s a brand new exhibit at the American Adventure that celebrates JAZZ!
“The Soul of Jazz: An American Adventure” invites guests on a musical tour of the United States. You’ll learn more about the colorful, inspiring and constantly evolving genre of music that inspired Pixar’s latest film Soul. The new exhibit features Joe Gardner, the main character from the film who is a musician, mentor and teacher. Joe will take you through the rich and surprising history of jazz tracing its origins to cities like New Orleans, Chicago, New York City, Los Angeles and San Juan.
“Walt Disney Imagineering is thrilled to bring the compelling story of jazz to EPCOT,” said Carmen Smith, Executive, Creative Development and Inclusion Strategies, Walt Disney Imagineering. “Our team was honored to work with jazz experts and institutions across the country to explore the rich history and influence of this truly American musical art form. We hope guests are as inspired by ‘The Soul of Jazz: An American Adventure’ as our Imagineers were bringing this exhibit to life.”
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In putting together this stunning new exhibition, Imagineers collaborated with historians and curators from important jazz institutions like the Historic New Orleans Collection and the New Orleans Jazz Museum as well as the Louis Armstrong House Museum in New York.
Highlights of the exhibition includes:
- Jazz legend Louis Armstrong’s Selmer trumpet
- “Jazz Jubilee” sheet music, handwritten by Jelly Roll Morton, one of the genre’s original performers and composers
- “Skin Deep” percussion sheet music of Duke Ellington drummer Louie Bellson
- Cornet belonging to Bix Beiderbecke, an early jazz soloist from the 1920s
- Drumsticks of Gene Krupa, member of influential jazz groups such as the Benny Goodman Orchestra and Tommy Dorsey’s band
Regina Bain, Executive Director of the Louis Armstrong House Museum had this to say about the collaboration, “Louis Armstrong, affectionately called ‘Pops,’ ushered in a new era of musical innovation that has influenced musicians of all genres performing today. The Louis Armstrong House Museum is thankful to Walt Disney Imagineering for giving light to the impact of jazz as a uniquely American art form.”
David Kunian, Curator at the New Orleans Jazz Museum added, “At the New Orleans Jazz Museum, we work from the idea that jazz is one of the foundations for all American music. We are overjoyed to see a movie that recognizes its importance and are even more happy to participate in an exhibit that celebrates jazz at EPCOT.”
Guests will also soon be able to use the Play Disney Parks mobile app to interact with the exhibit and test their knowledge of jazz.
This new experience is part of EPCOT’s ongoing transformation and Disney’s commitment to celebrating curiosity, discovery and the magic of possibility.
Coinciding with the start of Black History month, we invite you to “Celebrate Soulfully at @DisneySprings” starting today as we honor Black heritage & culture through music, food, art & more. Keep an eye out on the Disney Parks Blog tomorrow for more details. #CelebrateSoulfully pic.twitter.com/nrf9XyJPKa
— Disney Springs (@DisneySprings) February 1, 2021
And don’t miss new offerings at Disney Springs! To coincide with Black History Month, Disney’s downtown shopping district is launching “Celebrate Soulfully.” Starting today Disney World will honor black heritage and culture through music, food, art and more! We expect more details to drop soon so keep following along with us!
And don’t miss you chance to check out the inspiration behind this exhibition, Pixar’s hit film Soul which is currently available to stream on Disney+!
Readers are encouraged to keep following along with MickeyBlog for further Walt Disney World news and updates!
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