'Austin City Limits' at SXSW: Celebrating 50 years, 'ACL' educates in the classroom

Quality music education is “righteous,” Austin musician Jackie Venson said during a SXSW EDU panel this week.

Organizers with “Austin City Limits” and a local teacher spoke on the Tuesday panel about how the iconic Austin performance show has helped educate both community members and students in the classroom about musical diversity and techniques.

The PBS show is celebrating its 50^th season this year with celebrations and special shows.

More:'ACL' taped first pilot with Willie Nelson in 1974 and is still riding high 50 years later

During its 50-year run, “Austin City Limits” has been a source of inspiration and learning for young musicians, said Terry Lickona, the show’s executive producer. The show has featured legendary artists like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Ruthie Foster, Ray Charles and, of course, Willie Nelson.

Gary Clark Jr., a Grammy award-winning blues artist from Austin, is an example, Lickona siad.

“He literally wore out his parents VHS tape learning what Stevie Ray played note for note,” Lickona said. “I hear the story so many times of artists who either learned from somebody they saw on 'Austin City Limits' or just were inspired.”

When “ACL” launched in 1974, PBS already carried many educational shows, he said.

“We thought maybe there’s a way to educate and entertain in a different way,” Lickona said. “The idea sprang forth to capture the sound of Austin.”

During the pandemic, PBS also launched a series of educational videos and lesson plans based on “ACL” performances for music educators to use in their classroom.

PBS already carried similar lessons based on other programs, CEO Ben Kramer said during Tuesday’s panel.

Manor music teacher Elizabeth Hulse had been using the lessons to teach her elementary school students.

Hulse, a 16-year music educator teaches at Pioneer Crossing Elementary in Manor, had already been using music clips from public media like NPR’s “Tiny Desk Concert,” a minimalist music series by the public radio entity.

“The challenge of that is there’s no lesson plans, so I’m coming up with them on my own,” Hulse said.

The “ACL” lessons fit into Texas’ state music education standards and focus on different musical concepts, like rhythm or timbre – the perceived sound quality of a musical note, she said.

The students love watching the performances, she said.

Watching artists’ live performances triggers comprehensive and critical questions from the students, Hulse said.

The class talks about the unique instruments the musicians use or why an artist plays with a certain guitar versus the guitars of different styles.

For example, in episodes using performances of bluegrass artist Billy Strings, the class discussed why the musician had rugs placed on the stage, Hulse said.

“They’re so inquisitive,” Hulse said. “They want to know why did this happen and why is this going on? That helps tremendously with their learning.”

The fact these music lessons are available for students is “righteous,” said Venson, a blues artist who performed on "ACL" in 2020.

The high-quality aspect of the recordings is valuable, as well, she said.

“That, in itself, is a lesson to people who want to produce shows,” Venson said.

“Austin City Limits,” by sitting at a cross section of inspiration and education, introduces viewers to new forms of music, Lickona said.

“There’s a lot about Austin City Limits and the music we have that is pure entertainment but it’s so much more than that,” Lickona said.

Most adults tend to listen to the same music they listened to in high school or college because they don’t have time or desire to go find new genres or styles, he said.

“They keep tuning into to hopefully discover something new, something they hadn’t seen or heard before musically. How can it not expand your own musical horizons and educate you about a form of music?”