All Ears: Music and Sound in and Beyond Disney Theme Parks

Registration for In-Person and Remote Participation Now Open

Rosen College, University of Central Florida, June 20–21, 2024

A conference to share expertise and research on theme park music and sound.

When Walt Disney created Disneyland, his ambition was to revolutionise the amusement park as a form of entertainment. His design philosophy of the theme park was one of a total multisensory entertainment experience, built on ‘imagineering’ that placed equal weight on creative artistry as technical innovation. Visitors have been flocking to Disney’s theme parks, and those that emulated his approach, for nearly 70 years. Throughout that time, sound and music have been crucial parts of the theme park visitor experience.

Join us in June 2024 to share ideas and perspectives on music and sound in theme parks.

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Conference organized by Dr. William Ayers (University of Central Florida) and Dr. Tim Summers (Royal Holloway University of London).

All Ears will be held in-person, but with options to watch the conference remotely. In addition, we aim to provide an online asynchronous digital provision to host papers by speakers who cannot attend in person.

Contact us by emailing tim[dot]summers[at]rhul.ac.uk

Generously supported by the Royal Musical Association, Indiana University Press, and Liverpool University Press.

Ron is an award winning composer and sound designer for film, video games and theme park entertainment. He has been recognized by BAFTA, Interactive Arts and Sciences, MPSE, Promax, G.A.N.G., Navgtr, and the Thea Awards.

Ron was with Walt Disney Imagineering for eight years. He was responsible for composing music and designing sound for many of the featured rides throughout their theme parks worldwide. As the head of audio for Disney’s Playmation, he worked in the Research and Development Department at Disney on the application of audio in VR and AR, as it applied to the Star Wars Challenge project.

Ron has scored some of the most successful video game franchises, including titles such as Batman Arkham Asylum, Batman Arkham City, and God of War 1, 2, 3.