During my senior year of college, I took a history course outside of my major that ended up being my all-time favorite course.  In it we studied memory, monuments, and memorials within a historical context, looking at everything from the Holocaust to roadside attractions on Route 66.  At the end of the semester we were given free rein to write a seminar paper on the related topic of our choice.  Having started college as a music major (that didn’t last long!), I quickly honed in on a topic that I thought might be interesting: the relationship between music and memory.  I quickly discovered a subject within the literature of both psychology and history: echoic memory. Introduced by SAIC professor Bob Snyder, the idea of echoic memory is one that suggests a link between what we hear and what we remember.  Not only that, Snyder contends, but echoic memory allows us to remember things more richly than we could through either sight or speech.

Just recently, I was sitting at work, listening to WDW park music while I toiled away on a tedious spreadsheet. Suddenly, a piece of music came on that blasted me out of my spreadsheet reverie.  Just like that, I felt transported back to Lake Buena Vista, feeling an acute, visceral sense of longing brought about by this music.  It got me thinking – as much as we associate certain sights and smells with our fondness for all things Disney, so, too, does Disney park music strongly influence (and form!) our experiences and memories of the parks.

So, today, in no particular order, a smattering of Disney songs that evoke strong and happy memories of my various times at Walt Disney World.  I hope these pieces are pleasing to your ears, but perhaps also get you thinking about your own echoic memories of Disney.

Wondering how to access your favorite WDW park music? At the end of this post I’ll give you a few of my suggestions for the best WDW music sources.

Samite – Ekibobo (from Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge)

• In 2010 CP and I had the good fortune to stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge twice, once in Jambo House and once in Kidani Village.  We absolutely fell in love with AKL and both found the music an integral part of  ambience.  Even hearing the AKL music loop on the bus coming back from a park was enough to relax us and get us ready to be immersed in the quiet savannah atmosphere.  The music was an especially lovely soundtrack at dusk, when we would sit at the fire pit as the animals retired for the evening.

Balafon – I Already Have a Husband (from Adventureland, Magic Kingdom)

• I hear this song and I instantly feel the wooden bridge beneath my feet as I cross into Adventureland from the Hub.  The foliage above me is lush, and the buildings brightly colored. The only thing I need to complete the scene is a Dole Whip in my hand!  Second only to the steel drum band that used to play in Adventureland, this song completely epitomizes the feel of that area of the Magic Kingdom for me.

(c) Samantha Decker

Gavin Greenaway – Tapestry of Nations (from Epcot)

• Tapestry of Nations was, in my opinion, one of Disney’s best parades – entertaining but not childish, imbued with meaning, and possessing a spectacular musical score.  For me, it brings me back to a pre-9/11 era where many of us felt more optimistic about the world and where it was going; the idea of global community was one that still resonated without  being weighted down by the divisiveness and fracture we see today.  The idea of millennium seemed to mean something; for me this music captures that idea of promise and embodies much of what EPCOT  was.

Gavin Greenaway – IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth (from Epcot)

• During the summer of 2000 I worked at Epcot as a member of the Disney College Program. While my experience on DCP wasn’t the best ever, I loved working at Epcot and the chance it afforded me to listen to IllumiNations each night as my colleagues and I closed up the bakery we worked in.  As with Tapestry of Nations, this piece evokes something hopeful that reminds me a lot of that early-2000s era.  Further, it’s a fantastic score that perfectly accompanies the sensory experience of watching IllumiNations on the World Showcase lagoon. I hear this and I instantly conjure torches, the breeze on the water, and the eventual lights and lasers that complement the amazing fireworks.  This is quintessential Disney music, and I love it.

Jai Uttak – Pahari (Discovery Island area, Disney’s Animal Kingdom)

• I love this song for the mood it sets once you arrive on Discovery Island.  When I hear it, I am no longer at my desk in snowy New England; I’m in front of the Tree of Life, looking at the carvings, enjoying the breeze, watching prayer flags float in the wind.  While Animal Kingdom isn’t my favorite WDW park, I think the Imagineers completely outdid themselves on the level of authentic detailing, and the music is a large part of that.  For me, it completely captures the spirit and the experience of the park.

How to Find Your Favorite WDW Park and Resort Music

If you’re trying to identify a piece you heard in one of the parks or resorts, your first stop should be ParkTunes. Here you can not only search by park or resort, but by specific area of each park. Wondering what song you heard near the Universe of Energy? ParkTunes will tell you.  You really can’t stream or download music from ParkTunes, but it provides easy links to iTunes and Amazon for purchasing each track.

If you’d like to stream WDW park music for free, you have a couple of good options. I recommend:

• Sorcerer Radio (website and mobile, I prefer to stream this on my desktop computer). Imagine if your favorite radio station played nothing but Disney music 24/7 and you’ll understand the appeal of Sorcerer Radio.  Each hour is a different format; at 10am you might hear music from the Magic Kingdom; at 11, you might hear a selection of parade music from across the parks. Unless you buy a subscription you will have to put up with some ads, but generally they are unobtrusive.  The sound quality isn’t the greatest, but I’ve found this a great site for streaming at work where I need the music to play quietly.

• DTunes (website and mobile, I prefer the mobile app).  Unlike Sorcerer Radio there is no hourly format (or ads!), instead offering you a selection of “rooms” streaming different kinds of WDW music. One room lets you hear music from the parks and resorts, another parade music, another holiday music.  The mobile app works incredibly well on my iPhone, and is very easy to use.

I’d love to know your favorite musical memories from Walt Disney World. Until then…happy streaming!