My favourite fun fact about the Disneyland Band is they were originally hired only for the opening of the park under a two-week contract, but yet, due to their immense popularity, they’re still a beloved part of Disneyland’s daily entertainment 65 years later.
Walt wanted a classic hometown marching band to play on Main Street to further bring the Turn of the Century feel to life, and the Disneyland Band fit in seamlessly. Since there was no sound system in the early days of Disneyland, the band quickly learned where to play for the best projection and became the soundtrack of the park.
The original conductor, Vesey Walker, led the band for fifteen years before his retirement in 1970. His only instruction from Walt was “If the people can’t go away whistling it, don’t play it.” Vesey was hired by his son, Tommy Walker, who was the Entertainment Director of Disneyland. Tommy’s major claim-to-fame was introducing fireworks with synchronized music at Disneyland (he also invented the “Charge” fanfare which is frequently played at sporting events, though this was before he worked for Disney.)
In July 1982, the band celebrated its 50,000th performance and over the years they have travelled to dozens of cities to represent Disneyland and give musical education performances at schools. The Disneyland Band is most often a sixteen-piece band, but the number of players can range from fifteen to twenty. They play both classic marching band songs as well as Disney songs. Their Disneyland attractions medley is my favourite!
In preparation for Disneyland’s big 60th Diamond Celebration in 2015, the band underwent some major changes. The current band members were all asked to re-audition to be part of the new Disneyland Band which was going to be showier and flashier than before. The costumes were changed to fit with the blue and silver Diamond Celebration look and were kept after the celebration was over instead of returning to the white costumes.
The Disneyland Band usually plays four times a day: in Town Square on Main Street, in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle, in front of the Golden Horseshoe in Frontierland, and during the daily Flag Retreat (sometimes with or alternating with the Dapper Dans.) The Sleeping Beauty Castle performance usually involves Disney characters including Belle and Beast dancing to their song. Other locations the Disneyland Band sometimes plays are: on the Mark Twain Riverboat, in front of floral Mickey at the park entrance, or in front of It’s a Small World. Check the daily Times Guide for showtimes and locations.
Is catching the Disneyland Band a must for you when you go to the park? Which song or performance location is your favourite?
Leave a Reply