'America's Musical Journey' debuts at Imax 3D Theater

Willow Osborne, a featured musician in the film, will attend Tennessee Aquarium premiere

The Beale Street Flippers in Memphis. (Photo by MacGillivray Freeman Films)
The Beale Street Flippers in Memphis. (Photo by MacGillivray Freeman Films)

From blues, jazz and country to funk, rap and rock and roll, the United States is as much a patchwork quilt of musical genres as it is a cultural melting pot. A new film at the Tennessee Aquarium's Imax 3D Theater shows how these styles came together to create America's musical song.

The Tennessee Aquarium will cap off a day-long celebration of Make Music Chattanooga Thursday, June 21, by hosting an evening of musical performances at the Imax 3D Theater leading up to the premiere of "America's Musical Journey." The event will take place from 5:30 to 8 p.m.

This film is narrated by Morgan Freeman and hosted by Grammy Award-nominated R&B artist Aloe Blacc. From the sound of New Orleans jazz bands to the sizzling beat of Miami's salsa and conga artists, Blacc embarks on a musical road trip that reveals how the intermingling of cultures gave birth to styles and sounds.

"A movie about American music is really a movie about the human experience," says screenwriter-editor Stephen Judson. "There's something exciting that happens when different cultures come together as they have through the last couple hundred years of American history, and one of the things that happens is incredible creativity.

"In America, we have always experienced how music brings us together. You have a nation where people can have many differences of opinion and lifestyles, but then you can go to a concert and everybody's there sharing equally in that joy."

Among the film's featured artists is Tennessee singer and banjo player Willow Osborne. In the film, the 17-year-old Pigeon Forge native visits the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville with Blacc to discuss the origins of bluegrass and country music. Osborne will be the featured artist and speaker at the Imax Theater Thursday night.

"I really hope that kids see this film and say 'I want to play music,'" she says. "Music is so important. Life should be filled with music."

Osborne's appearance will cap off an evening packed with music to enjoy and to create. Before the 7 p.m. debut of "America's Musical Journey," West African percussionist and singer Kofi Mawuko and acoustic art-pop trio Spinster will perform in the Imax lobby.

For those interested in making music, the Creative Discovery Museum will be on hand with boomwhackers and a make-your-own instrument activity for children. The Chattanooga Symphony and Opera will offer a musical petting zoo, where guests can lay hands on a variety of instruments.

Register online for Thursday's premiere event at tnaqua.org/events-programs.

"America's Musical Journey 3D" will be shown daily at the Tennessee Aquarium IMAX 3D Theater at 6 p.m., with additional screenings at 9 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

Ticket prices are $11.95 adults, $9.95 children. Aquarium/IMAX combo tickets are $37.95 adults, $26.95 children.

For more information or to purchase tickets: tnaqua.org/imax/americas-musical-journey-3d.

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