The Soul of Jazz: An American Adventure opens officially at The America Pavilion at EPCOT today. According to the Disney Parks Blog, this new exhibit “celebrates the distinctly American musical art form, originated by African Americans and fusing the influences of many different cultures.”
This exhibit features Joe Gardner, who appears in Disney-Pixar’s Soul. Gardner shares the history of jazz with a musical tour through several influential American cities. There are also artifacts in this exhibit from legendary jazz musicians, including Louis Armstrong. The Play Disney Parks mobile app will also soon allow guests to interact with the exhibit and also test their knowledge of jazz music.
Walt Disney Imagineering worked with jazz experts and institutions from around the country to create this exhibit that would “explore the rich history and influence of this ever-evolving genre of music.” Disney hopes that this will be an exhibit that inspires guests as much as it did the Imagineers who worked to bring it to life.
Along with unveiling The Soul of Jazz: An American Adventure today, Disney also released a video from John Batiste. Along with being an incredible Jazz pianist and bandleader, Batiste also wrote the original jazz compositions and arrangments for Soul. In this video, he shares his excitement about this new exhibit.
What do you think of The Soul of Jazz: An American Adventure? Are you excited to see it at EPCOT? Soul is now streaming on Disney+. Share your thoughts of this exhibit in the opinions below!