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Allison Miller’s Boom Tic Boom at Cornish College with Myra Melford, piano, Jenny Scheinman, violin and Todd Sickafoose, bass

A wonderful surprise at the fantastic, energetic drummer Allison Miller and her group  Boom Tic Boom which Earshot Jazz Festival 2011 presented at Cornish last Thurday. Right after the first piece, she introduced Bill Frisell, who came out and performed with the group.  What an unexpected treat. Allison Miller is a stellar jazz drummer. Allison Miller’s Boom Tic Boom performances, said the LA Times, are “as unpredictable as they are approachable. When not with mainstream artists Natalie Merchant, Ani DiFranco, and most recently, singer Brandi Carlile, fresh and energetic NYC-based drummer Allison Miller sits among a coterie of artists excelling in the NYC downtown and beyond – Steven Bernstein, Ben Allison, Kenny Barron, Erik Friedlander, Mark Helias, Ellery Eskelin, Peter Bernstein, Sheila Jordan, George Garzone, Mike Stern, Rachel Z, Kevin Mahogany, Bruce Barth, Mark Soskin and Harvie S.

Check out the Earshot Jazz Festival Schedule to see what’s next in the last week of the 2011 Festival lineup.

A co-leader in several bands, including Honey Ear Trio (Steampunk Serenade, Foxhaven Records, 2011) and Eskelin/Deutsch/Miller, featuring Ellery Eskelin on tenor and Erik Deutsch on organ, Miller is fierce at the helm of her own quartet, Boom Tic Boom. The quartet features pianist Myra Melford, violinist Jenny Scheinman and bassist Todd Sickafoose on compositions primarily by Miller and Melford.

Miller’s second album released as a leader, BOOM TIC BOOM (Foxhaven Records, 2010) was named one of the Top 10 Jazz Albums of 2010 by the Los Angeles Times. It pays homage to and is inspired by all of the important women in Miller’s life. “Some of my closest friends are extremely smart and powerful women,” Miller says. “I can’t stress enough the importance of this community. There’ve been several women who’ve really helped me out in my career. I hope that I do the same for other women in the musical community.”

Raised in the Washington DC area, Miller began playing the drums at the age of ten, studying with Walter Salb, and was soon featured in DownBeat magazine’s “Up and Coming” section in 1991. Five years later, she moved to New York City to study with Michael Carvin and Lenny White and to pursue a career as a freelance drummer, composer, producer and teacher. Miller seeks to pass on the tradition of jazz drumming, even with branches into the realms of pop. In 2008, she founded the Walter Salb Memorial Musical Scholarship Foundation in honor of her late teacher and mentor. The foundation awards a promising young musician funds directed toward furthering music studies. Miller is currently on Modern Drummer’s 2011 Pro-panel and holds an adjunct teaching position at Kutztown University. She gives lessons and master classes throughout the United States………Continue reading in the Earshot Jazz Festival Schedule

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