Aaron Miller at the age of 12 quickly fell in love with the vibrant world of jazz. He currently works as the Director of Jazz Studies at BYU-Idaho and still performs for live audiences with his jazz ensemble The Kindness.
“I grew up in a family that was very musical … I was just really drawn to the music, especially the cultural aspects of it and how it represents many cultures that don’t have a voice,” he said.
Miller believes that jazz music is all about collaboration and is a language of connection and expression. When a musician is improvising their music, they can feel the song and know where to take it next, although that is a bit difficult to teach young students. But Miller explained that he helps his students learn to improvise by giving them certain scale ranges to stay within.
“It is a lot more like if a painter gave you four colors and said, ‘Okay, create something with this.’ That’s a lot easier than having 200 colors to choose from and feeling overwhelmed. So, giving limitations are actually (helpful for) us to be creative,” Miller said.
Miller’s favorite moments with his students are when they are able to take a risk with their music, when they stop playing what they think he wants to hear and are just moved by their song.
“It’s not an art form where we’re looking for correctness, but we’re looking for individuality. And so, if we can find a way to express ourselves that is unique to us, then I feel like there’s success,” he said.
Miller said it is almost impossible for him to choose a favorite jazz musician or style. He compared it to the impossible task of a parent choosing a favorite child and is adamant that they are all incredibly important to what makes jazz music great. He recommends piano jazz, which is a little less popular to listen to but claims that the music is absolutely stunning.
Miller will perform tonight with his trio, The Kindness, featuring vocalist Sam Tru. There will be performances by the Chamber Orchestra as well as other ensembles. You can watch the performance at 7:30 p.m. at the Snow Ensemble Hall, in room 181.