TL;DR, What is #LiquidWeber?
#LiquidWeber is a collaboration of musicians, educators, learners, and the public to design and explore processes and possibilities of engaging with the Weber Clarinet Concerto before, during, and after a public performance by Alex Laing and the Phoenix Symphony.
I’m curious. Tell me more. . .
What is #LiquidWeber ?
#LiquidWeber is an experiment to explore what is possible when we open up the process of preparing classical music to all possible forms of engagement. It’s an exploration of how musicians, educators, and learners can collaborate to experience music in new and meaningful ways.
#LiquidWeber asks questions such as:
- What are the many ways that people can participate in the process of (re)creating the Weber clarinet Concerto?
- How might we learn to practice along with a professional clarinetist?
- What happens when we create and produce new music from classical clarinet recordings?
- Which Hip Hop tracks work best at improving a clarinetist’s classical performance?
- How might our relationship to classical music and musicians evolve or change when we engage in new ways?
- How might we make orchestras and classical music equitable?
More specifically, #LiquidWeber is project that involves collaboration with music educators, musicians, and learners enrolled in 1) Learner Centered and Project Based Teaching and 2) Action Research (#LiquidWeber) at Arizona State University along with interested voluntary team members throughout the Spring ‘22 semester leading up to a performance of the Weber Clarinet Concerto by Alex Laing and the Phoenix Symphony. #LiquidWeber is also an example of project-based learning (PBL) and a research project to learn from the process and share what we learn. It is also an ongoing project with opportunities for music educators and teaching artists to earn PD hours.
Who is #LiquidWeber?
Possibly you! But we’ll get to that in a moment.
The #LiquidWeber collaboration is co-facilitated by Alex Laing and Evan Tobias. The project involves design and facilitation team members from Arizona State University, Phoenix Symphony, K-12 schools and community youth organizations in Arizona and across the United States.
We are also collaborating with artist/producer T R U V O N N E on developing #LiquidWeber sample packs as part of our Practice of Creating stream.
Interested in getting involved?
We are currently reviewing requests to join our design team with the option to earn professional development hours (15, 30, or 45 hours) (CEUs) from Arizona State University’s Music Learning and Teaching Program.
You can also participate with any of the activities and projects on our project site.
Reach out to Evan Tobias if you are interested or would like to learn more.
Why #LiquidWeber?
You might know the typical story of people getting dressed up in their nice clothes for an enjoyable evening out to hear the transcendent music of a professional orchestra. They sit politely, immersed in the music, share their enjoyment and appreciation by clapping and then leave the concert hall with a memory. It’s a story we may have experienced or heard about. Many people never experience this story — some indifferent, some curious. But what if that was only one of the many possible stories we tell about classical music.
We need new stories.
What other stories could we create and share?
#LiquidWeber is an invitation to engage differently, to form new participatory relationships with classical music and musicians, to stretch our own comfort zones, grow as individuals and collaborators, and imagine possibilities of how classical performances can be much more and do much more. We are creating and telling new stories.