A drummer first and foremost, Ira Miller has made his mark as a composer in just recent years. An American composer and sound designer of instrumental music, his compositions range from Americana ballads to upbeat African hi-life pop to dark, melodic and percussive sound-scapes. Ira’s performances have been featured on over a dozen recordings including 8 full-length albums with previous bands. Having performed around the United States as well as abroad, he brings those experiences to his compositions with hopes to capture the essence of those locales.
Growing up in Washington, DC gave Ira the exposure to many international cultures, which piqued his curiosity to explore other countries. Upon graduating high school he spent a year of work/study in Israel and traveled around the region exploring their cultures. This exploration would lead to Ira’s love of the region’s musical richness. In the summer of 2003, he traveled to Dakar, Senegal to study with the drummers of the premiere dance company of West Africa: Le Ballet Nationale du Senegal. The fall of that year took him to southern California to continue his musical studies, where he completed his BFA degree at the California Institute of the Arts in 2007. Since then, Ira has created sound design for theater projects around California, including dance performances at College of the Canyons in Valencia and puppetry performances through the Open Spaces Theater Company. Ira’s jazz trio, Cool Beat Borscht, released their debut album of original material in the late fall of 2012, and is currently working on compositions for his second solo recording. He resides in Savannah, Georgia performing with various artists in town.
Contact Info: irdami@me.com