Connor Award goes to head of Disney Music

Montan created “the soundtrack of our youth,” said Phi Alpha Tau brother Kirk Miller ’12 in his introduction. Montan, who also is a member of the College’s Board of Trustees, began his career at Disney in 1984. Under his guidance as head of music, he oversaw the creation of the soundtracks of nine films, including The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King, and Pocahontas. The Disney studio received Grammy, Golden Globe, and Academy Award recognition for the music from many of these films.

The Connor Award, which recognizes those who have excelled in the communicative arts, is named for Joseph E. Connor, who studied at Emerson shortly before World War I and returned later to teach and advise the Phi Alpha Tau fraternity. Past Connor Award recipients include novelist Dennis Lehane, actor Yul Brynner, journalist Walter Cronkite, and Boston Pops conductor Keith Lockhart.

“People who are successful are not accidents. They are very similar in their focus: Passion is everything.”

–Chris Montan, President, Walt Disney Music

Photo Credit: Aja Neahring