New York, NY (PRWEB) September 25, 2013
New playful sounds, vibrant colors and whimsical characters of Mibblio are coming to life in a collaboration with New York City's afterschool arts and music program, Wingspan Arts. Mibblio, an interactive music storybook app for kids, partnered with the non-profit organization in a fun and creative effort during which the Wingspan students created their very own "mibblet" from start to finish.
The Mibblio team collaborated with Wingspan and students (Pre-K to grade 4) from four different schools, including Queens' The Academy for Excellence Through the Arts (PS 303), Brooklyn's Brooklyn School of Inquiry (PS 686) and The Academy of Talented Scholars (PS 682), and Manhattan's Robert L. Stevenson (PS 183), on their original mibblet, The Bubble Parade.
Guest illustrator Thomas Pitilli presented the children with a simple black and white image of a boy and his dog, kicking off the creative story telling sessions with students voicing imaginative ideas and infinite possibilities. Alongside Teaching Artist Brian Bonz and Wingspan Arts' Education Program Manager, Laura Lee Williams, the participating students created a story around the main character, Nicolas; his dog, Winston; and a lively, purple butterfly from a whimsical bubble world where music can be played as often as possible and at great volume. Nicolas, unable to play music in his small city apartment, eagerly follows the butterfly, joins the Bubble Town and performs music in the town's parade.
Students simultaneously created images, which were later developed by Pitilli and integrated into the Mibblio app to accompany the plot, while other students from the percussion, rock band and guitar classes composed the "Bubble Town" musical theme. The musical motif is repeated throughout the mibblet in different arrangements to mirror Nicolas' journey to the bubble world.
"It was a lot of fun for us to see the kids get so into the musical and storytelling process," stated Mibblio Creative Director, Sammy Rubin. "It's always so refreshing and uplifting to witness such uninhibited creativity. It's great to watch kids' minds in action in situations when there literally is no wrong answer."
"Our students' imaginations never cease to amaze me. In a matter of minutes, a simple story idea can take off in a direction you never expected or become so elaborate that you almost believe it really happened," remarked Education Program Manager of Wingspan Arts, Laura Lee Williams. "We feel it's so important to encourage students to continue to think creatively -- not just in the arts -- but in every aspect of their life. The best problem-solvers and critical-thinkers are the most creative, and that's something to be nurtured and celebrated."
The Mibblio app is available for free from the Apple App Store and comes with one mibblet. The Wingspan mibblet is available now for $1.99, with all proceeds supporting Wingspan Arts and its mission of providing high-quality arts education. Additional mibblets are frequently added to the Mibblio library and are available for purchase within the app for $1.99. For more information, please visit http://www.mibblio.com.
About Mibblio
Mibblio was founded in 2012 by cousins Sammy Rubin and David Leiberman. As a composer and music producer, Sammy wanted to create a new type of musical story experience for kids that combined illustrated stories with the music-making elements that he used on a daily basis. David left the world of consulting to design and teach innovative curriculum to high school students and joined Sammy on his venture to create a fun, musically enriching and educational new technology. David's background in education as well as his passion for music made for the perfect partnership, and thus, Mibblio was born. Be sure to "Like" Mibblio on Facebook and follow on Twitter for the latest updates.
About Wingspan
Wingspan Arts is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit, arts education organization, founded in 2001. Wingspan's mission is to reach out and expose diverse groups, especially young audiences to all forms of the performing, visual, media, and literary arts. It accomplishes this by engaging professional artist-educators who are inspired by the work it does and have a unique gift for sharing that inspiration with students. Wingspan provides a multi-disciplinary arts program to students in New York City and the surrounding area, including Newark and Jersey City, NJ. Programs range from in-school programming and afterschool programming to pre-professional conservatory training. Wingspan is committed to making its programs accessible to the economically and culturally diverse populations in each of the communities it serves. Its programs enable students to have a better view and understanding of a complicated, changing world that can be uniquely and vividly expressed through the arts. This is how it fulfills its mission to "connect students to the arts and the arts to life."