“Rodney Miller, in his thirty-something years of playing fiddle for contra dances has shown a genius, not only for his mastery of the music, but for his ability to assemble a team of musicians that will enhance the sound he’s looking for.”
        Sing Out! The Folk Song Magazine

Rodney performs at festivals and dance camps nationally and internationally, at weddings, dances, private parties, museum openings, radio shows, coffee houses and all manner of concert venues.

He is available as a solo performer, part of a duo, or in his bands Airdance Trio and Airdance. He is also available for fiddle lessons.

Current musical collaborators include David Surette, Elvie Miller, Owen Morrison, Gordon Peery, Mike Ayles, Peter Siegel, August Watters.

Airdance Trio

A dynamic and exciting contradance band offering a contemporary approach to the traditional New England dance repertoire. Led by acclaimed fiddler Rodney Miller, Airdance Trio is anchored by the piano and accordion music of Elvie Miller and rounded out by musical guests including Owen Morrison and Gordon Peery.

Airdance

Since the formation of the band in 2000, Irish, Scottish, French-Canadian, Cape Breton, New England chestnuts and American old-time have found their way into the Airdance tune bag, along with contemporary compositions in the traditional styles. Currently, Rodney is joined by Elvie Miller (piano, accordion), Owen Morrison (guitar, mandolin), and Michael Ayles (flute, tenor banjo, guitar) in this band that is skillful, high spirited and fun-loving.

 

Elvie Miller: Piano / Accordion

Elvie grew up in New Hampshire surrounded by folk music and dance. With a strong background in classical piano, Elvie began playing for contra dances in her early teens, and since then has performed and taught across the country, quickly becoming a sought-after addition to any band.

She contributes driving and spunky rhythm and energy for both musicians and dancers on piano and accordion. In 2005-2006, she traced the origins of contra dance music in northern Europe as a Thomas J. Watson Fellow. In 2003 she released a duo album of dance music with fiddler Naomi Morse.

Owen Morrison: Guitar / Mandolin

Owen Morrison is a second generation contra dancer and musician. His fluid guitar playing is influenced by styles as diverse as bluegrass, jazz and flamenco but is firmly rooted in traditional dance music. Since graduating from Guilford College in 2006 with a degree in music, Owen now travels the country playing for dances, festivals and camps. In addition to playing with Airdance, Owen performs and records with numerous other groups including Night Watch, House Red and the Morrison Brothers Band

Michael Ayles: Guitar / Banjo / Flute

Originally drawn to the folk world by an interest in Irish music, Michael first came to hear Quebecois music at the sessions in Montreal where he played regularly. Since then, he has devoted himself to absorbing as much of the two different repertoires as possible, learning countless dance tunes and songs in both idioms. He has also been known to dabble with folk music from America, Brittany, Scotland, Sweden and Eastern Europe. A multi-instrumentalist, Mike is at home on the guitar, tenor banjo and wooden flute.

Gordon Peery: Piano / Guitar

Gordon has played in various configurations with Rodney since the late 1970’s, adding an energetic and eclectic backup on piano and guitar. During the late 1980’s through the mid 1990’s Gordon played with Fresh Fish, The Cheshire Cats, and many of central New England’s finest dance fiddlers. He has been on the staff at Pinewoods, Ashokan, and Augusta, and has performed nationally and abroad at festivals and dances. His piano style has been aptly described as “barrelhouse Irish.”