GBH Kids plays with Acoustic Rooster

US public broadcaster GBH Kids in Boston is developing a TV version of Kwame Alexander’s children’s book about a jazz-loving rooster.

Kwame Alexander

GBH Kids and Alexander have partnered to develop an animated series based on Acoustic Rooster & his Barnyard Band, with Newbery Medal winner Alexander executive producing alongside GBH’s Marcy Gunther.

Alexander is a poet, educator, publisher and New York Times Bestselling author of 35 books, including Swing, Booked, Rebound, The Undefeated and The Crossover, which is being turned into a series on Disney+.

Acoustic Rooster & his Barnyard Band, originally published in 2011, was his first children’s book.

The team working on the adaptation also includes Kay Donmyer, writer for children’s show Curious George, who will also serve as the series’ co-creator and head writer, plus executive producer Angel Tyree and musical consultant Randy Preston, both from Alexander’s Big Sea Entertainment.

In the show, Acoustic Rooster will apply the principles of jazz – improvisation, collaboration, turn-taking, sharing, listening and creativity – to face and solve everyday barnyard challenges with his friends and bandmates.

The show will aim to teach important fundamentals of music education, from how different instruments sound to how music can capture emotion. Audiences will also get an introduction to the history of jazz, which is interwoven with American and Black history, the producers said.

They added that the development of the series comes at a time when many schools in the US are being forced to cut their music education programmes.

“Wynton Marsalis captured it best when he said that jazz is a metaphor for democracy in America – it’s a genre where a diverse and eclectic set of instruments play together to create a melody while also giving space for individual musicians to have a solo, as the rest of the band is there as support,” said Alexander.

Gunther, director of media development at GBH, added: “Kwame Alexander is one of those rare and brilliant literary minds whose work is highly respected across generations. Sharing the story of Acoustic Rooster and his love of jazz will be a melodic, upbeat experience that demonstrates how music education and Black history connect to larger lessons of resiliency and problem-solving for young audiences.”