Every area in Walt Disney World features a carefully themed soundtrack to create the proper ambiance, but some soundtracks fall a little short of the mark and come off more annoying than charming. While you may not notice these background tracks when you’re passing through an area, these pieces can start to get on your nerves if you’re stuck around them for any length of time (as I often was, as a former Cast Member).
These soundtracks are exclusive to park areas outside of the attractions themselves, so you won’t see it’s a small world and other iconic on-ride tracks here. Rather, these are the more subtle pieces that play while you’re walking down the streets or standing in line.
5. Dinorama in Disney’s Animal Kingdom
DinoramaDinorama is the gaudy roadside response to Dinosaur
Everything about Dinorama is a little too bright, kitschy, and abrasive, and the music is no different. This may, in fact, be one area where Disney achieved their goal by creating annoying music, because it’s just as brash as the surroundings and does actually fit perfectly. The loud carnival atmosphere is all out of proportion with what you would expect from Disney, and is especially jarring in a park like Animal Kingdom where most areas are natural and soothing.
The Boneyard, though not actually in the central part of Dinorama, features one of the single most grating area soundtracks in the park – a little ditty known as “Diggin in Dinoland.”
4. Commissary Lane in Disney’s Hollywood Studios
The music on Commissary Lane is a continuous loop of theme songs from ABC television shows. While these little snippets do fine as an intro to a funny sitcom, they lose a lot of their appeal when you hear them for longer than a few minutes.
Not all the tracks are recent, either, so you may find yourself thrown back to themes that haven’t been popular in years, like the music from “Home Improvement,” which ended in 1999.
3. Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin Queue in Magic Kingdom
The queue music for Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin is presumably meant to make you feel a rousing sense of support for Star Command. While the upbeat music has slightly patriotic undertones, it’s highly percussive which can beat the tune into your head in a less-than-gentle way after long.It also includes sirens and other occasional sound effects that can come off more shrill than exciting.
2. The Imagination Pavilion in Epcot
The Imagination Pavilion features two rides with soundtracks that can come off as annoying if you don’t fall into the targeted audience. Journey Into Imagination’s exit area features trilling tunes that are meant to be whimsical. However, the excessive use of the piccolo throughout the tracks kicks the tune up to a whole different level.
The other attraction in the Imagination Pavilion is the recently resurrected Captain EO. If you’d like to be submerged in 1985 again, you may enjoy the music that plays around the attraction. If, however, you’re not a fan of this decade, you’ll want to flee as fast as possible. (To be fair, if you’re not a big fan of the 80’s you probably want to skip this attraction completely and may never have to suffer the outdated area music.)
1. Animation Courtyard at Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Animation Courtyard is home to the Disney Junior Show, popular among the toddling set. The courtyard music features tunes from these Disney Junior shows, like Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Sophia the First, Jake and the Neverland Pirates, and Doc McStuffins.
If your children have watched the Disney Channel for any length of time, you already know how tired these tunes can get over time. If you’re not looking for a throwback to your Saturday mornings while you’re on vacation, you won’t want to hang out in this area for too long.
While these soundtracks are some of the less appealing options in the park, Disney usually knows its mark pretty well, and each bit will have its place with the right audience. There’s probably even someone with a fondness for Diggin’ in Dinoland. The one thing these areas have in common is that the music is more noticeable than in some of the more soothing and subtle areas. Once you hear these tunes, you probably can’t stop noticing them, so if they sound like something you won’t enjoy, try not to pay too much attention as you pass through.
