Tim Miller

Position
Professor
Affiliated Departments
Faculty Bio E-Mail
Telephone
617-747-8332

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Guitarist Tim Miller offers a distinctive voice to the world of jazz and rock guitar, and is widely known by guitarists for his unique 212 Intervallic Arpeggio System that has been adopted by guitarists all over the world.

Miller, an active player and clinician in the United States and Europe, is a professor of guitar at Berklee College of Music and Berklee Online. Guitar Player magazine characterized his playing as “pure melody consciousness with remarkable control, and a breathy, violiny tone.”

His most notable recordings are Trio, Trio Vol. 2 and Trio Vol. 3. Miller has performed or recorded with Dweezil Zappa, Eric Johnson, Paul Motian, Randy Brecker, and Mick Goodrick, among many others.

Miller coauthored Creative Chordal Harmony for Guitar (Berklee Press/Hal Leonard) with jazz guitar legend Mick Goodrick.

Career Highlights
  • Recordings include Trio, Trio Vol. 2, and Trio Vol. 3
  • Performances with Jerry Bergonzi, Randy Brecker, Terri Lyne Carrington, George Duke, George Garzone, and many others
  • Coauthor of Creative Chordal Harmony for Guitar: Using Generic Modality Compression
  • Author of online course Guitar Ensemble Techniques
Education
  • B.M., University of North Texas
  • M.M., New England Conservatory of Music
In Their Own Words

"The best teachers I had were open with their information; I didn't feel like they were guarding anything. I really liked that atmosphere of open dialogue, and I try to teach the same way. For me, teaching has always felt really natural and instinctive. I don't really have any set formula; I'll use a different approach depending on the student's personality and ability."

"I've learned so much playing with musicians that I admire; just having the experience of playing with them opened my eyes. I think that's an important component of a lesson, so in private lessons we often play duets together. A lot of my students come in wanting to learn contemporary improvisational styles, but I try to enable them to find their own approach instead of trying to force my approach. I want to try to expose the player's own voice if at all possible."

"The number one thing I want for my students is for them to be open-minded about style and approach: to think for themselves and not get boxed in with what they think things should be or what their peers tell them they should be. I want them to come away with technical knowledge, as well, and to feel like they're better musicians when they walk out the door on the last day."

"When I'm exploring music with students who are intense about what they're doing, I often find new things for myself. Nine times out of 10, they'll come up with something really interesting, and I'll get pretty excited about it. We'll talk about it and explore it—I want them to feel like we're in the learning process together. That's one of the things I love most about teaching, that I come away feeling like I've learned from it."

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