Music Behind the Magic: Overview
Disney: The Music Behind the Magic
November 4, 2006 - September 9,
2007
Seattle Center: Experience Music Project • Seattle, Washington
Official Site
Organized by EMP, the exhibition, which will run for ten months before traveling to national and international venues, coincides with the 50th anniversary celebration of Walt Disney Records who have provided unprecedented access into their archives and talent pool expressly for this exhibition.
Disney: The Music Behind the Magic will explore Disney’s legacy and draw inspiration from Disney animation, television programming, theme parks, live-action films and Broadway musicals in addition to the label's artist roster past and present, which includes music sensations ranging from Annette Funicello to Raven-Symoné and The Cheetah Girls. The exhibition will include more than 65 rare artifacts from the Disney Archives and will feature five interpretive videos, including excerpts of key Disney films and interviews with artists and experts such as Richard Sherman, Alan Menken, Phil Collins and Leonard Maltin. In the spirit of past EMP exhibitions, visitors will also enjoy interactive displays where, for example, they can mix their own classic Disney tracks and even participate in a musical interactive challenge.
EMP celebrates the creative process as it pertains to popular music. Disney music has left lasting impressions on generations and generations of people all around the world.
More Info: Artifact Highlights • Historical Timeline and Fun Facts
About Jasen Emmons, Senior Curator
Jasen Emmons has been with Experience Music Project since before its opening in 2000. Most recently Emmons was the curator of Bob Dylan's American Journey, 1956-1966, an extensive, first-ever exhibit dedicated to exploring a critical and transformational ten-year period in this American music legend's career. The exhibit debuted in fall 2004 at EMP and will travel to museums across the country including New York’s Morgan Library and Museum.
Emmons developed interactive kiosks and audio tours for exhibitions such as What Is the First Rock and Roll Record?, Disco: A Decade of Saturday Night, and Sweet Home Chicago: Big City Blues, 1946-1966, among others. In 2004 he curated Beatlemania: America Meets The Beatles, 1964, and co-curated Songcraft: The Art and Craft of Songwriting.
He holds a B.S. in journalism from the University of Oregon and an M.F.A. in fiction from the University of Washington and is the author of the novel Cowboy Angst (Soho Press, 1995; Charles Scribners, 1996).
Following Disney: The Music behind the Magic, he will curate American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music, which debuts at Experience Music Project on October 13, 2007.