Last Friday, music superstar and Disney Legend Elton John played pianos all across North America, Japan, Korea, Australia, Russia, Canada, Germany, United Kingdom, France and Singapore — and he did it all from the stage of the Hyperion Theater at Disney California Adventure park utilizing Yamaha’s groundbreaking DisklavierTV, powered by RemoteLive technology.

Elton John was one of more than a dozen music stars participating in a special private concert event celebrating the 125th anniversary of Yamaha, the official music instrument provider of the Disneyland Resort and the sponsor of our popular All American College Band, Disney’s Performing Arts, and The Community Arts Showcase.

The evening began with the host for the event, Sinbad, introducing performances by an eclectic group of top artists including Amy Grant; Chaka Khan; Dave Grusin; Earth, Wind & Fire; David Foster; Dave Koz; Michael McDonald; Sarah McLachlan; Toto; Lucy Schwartz; and an exciting new artist, LEOGUN. The Trojan Marching Band from USC even made a surprise appearance!

As the finale for this great evening, Sir Elton played five of his classic songs on a Yamaha Disklavier reproducing piano onstage at the Hyperion, accompanied by a 60-piece orchestra. His actual piano keystrokes were faithfully played, note for note, in real time (via MIDI data) on each of the remote Disklavier pianos all over the world just as if he were there, while the entire orchestra was seen and heard on adjacent monitors in perfect sync with the remote piano performance. The result was an amazing blend of artistry and technology.

Backstage, Elton John was presented with a special gift from Yamaha to commemorate his history-making performance.

Disneyland park guests can experience Yamaha’s amazing Disklavier technology every day at the Innoventions Dream Home in Tomorrowland. There, you can imagine legendary musicians playing “live” in your own home! Yamaha pianos can also be heard at some of your favorite locations throughout the Disneyland Resort, including Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel and Spa, The Golden Horseshoe, Refreshment Corner hosted by Coca-Cola and the stage at Big Thunder Ranch.

Tagged: DCA, DLR

Filed: Celebrity Visits, Disney California Adventure Park, Disneyland Resort

Earlier this week, we revealed the latest Disney Dream Portrait by Annie Leibovitz for Disney Parks. Today, we go behind the scenes of the photo shoot with Taylor Swift as Rapunzel.

Last June, just a few days after the grand opening celebration for Cars Land, I found myself in Culver City, Calif., on a small soundstage right next door to where they shot “Gone With the Wind.” A large tower had been constructed on one side of the soundstage and a set of the interior of the tower on the other. Annie Leibovitz and her team of artists and technical wizards had created these magical settings for our latest Disney Dream Portrait.

Soon, Taylor Swift arrived and the real magic began as these two artists began experimenting with different poses and props to bring this moment of Disney fantasy to life. In the end, the interior set was not used for the final image, but as with the character who inspired this portrait shoot, exploring the world of possibilities was the theme of the day.

In this video, come behind the scenes, see the creative process unfold, and hear from Taylor herself what it means to be a part of this iconic series.

Take a look back at previous behind-the-scenes stories from the Disney Dream Portrait series:

• Disney Dream Portraits by Annie Leibovitz: Behind the Scenes with Jack Black, Will Ferrell and Jason Segel as the Hitchhiking Ghosts
• Disney Dream Portraits by Annie Leibovitz: Behind the Scenes with Russell Brand as Captain Hook
• Disney Dream Portraits by Annie Leibovitz: Behind The Scenes With Queen Latifah as Ursula

Tagged: Art of Disney, BtS, DLR, Video, WDW

Filed: Art of Disney, Behind the Scenes, Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World Resort

It was exactly 20 years ago that Mickey’s Toontown first opened its gates to Disneyland park guests and today we’re looking back at photos from the grand opening celebration attended by media from all over the world and some of Hollywood’s top talent including Robin Williams, Sally Field and Steven Spielberg.

Tagged: DL, DLR, Gallery

Filed: Disneyland Park, Disneyland Resort

Today we are letting our hair down to show you one of the most stunning images yet created for Disney Parks‘ ongoing Disney Dream Portrait series. Created by legendary photographer Annie Leibovitz and featuring six-time Grammy winner Taylor Swift as Rapunzel, our latest portrait is captioned “Where adventure awaits.”

This beautiful image can be seen in upcoming issues of Vanity Fair, InStyle and People.

Check back Friday and I’ll take you behind the scenes on the set of this “hair-raising” photo shoot.

Tagged: DLR, WDW

Filed: Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World Resort

Tomorrow we’ll be sharing the latest image by acclaimed photographer Annie Leibovitz for Disney Parks.

Until then, any ideas?

Tagged: DLR, WDW

Filed: Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World Resort

Patti Page, one of the most successful pop singers of all time, passed away this week at the age of 85. It is estimated that she sold more than 100 million records in a decades-long career that included her signature hit, “Tennessee Waltz.” But, it was another popular Patti Page song which surely must have inspired this fun publicity photo taken at Disneyland park in the summer of 1968 – that song, of course, was “(How Much Is) That Doggie in the Window.”

Tagged: DL, DLR

Filed: Celebrity Visits, Disney History, Disneyland Park, Disneyland Resort

Country superstar Brad Paisley recently taped a special performance at Disney California Adventure park for the Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade which airs on ABC December 25.

Brad is no stranger to Radiator Springs. You may remember he joined us for the grand opening of Cars Land in June, and of course, he sang two songs for the original soundtrack of the Disney•Pixar film “Cars.” One of those songs, “Behind the Clouds,” is the song you’ll see Brad perform Christmas Day on ABC. In the Eastern time zone, tune in from 10 a.m.-noon; in the Central, Mountain and Pacific time zones, tune in from 9-11 a.m. to catch all the fun from Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resorts!

Keep an eye on the Disney Parks Blog for more updates on the 2012 Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade and join the conversation on Twitter with the hashtag #DisneyParade.

Tagged: Cars Land, Christmas Day Parade, DCA, DLR, Holidays

Filed: Celebrity Visits, Disney California Adventure Park, Disneyland Resort