The Blues are what I’ve turned to, what has given me inspiration and relief in all the trials of my life.

– ERIC CLAPTON

No matter the age or musical preference of student, studying blues music is always a sure-fire win. Students at AJ’s Music Factory had a blast listening to the blues, playing standard blues progressions and blues scales, and learning the history of blues music during their lab time.

From Bessie Smith and Blind Lemon Jefferson to Muddy Waters and BB King on over to Keb Mo and our own mid-western favorite Jonny Lang, students got a full dosage of blues musicians.

Knowing that blues month would be culminating with Minneapolis’s own piano/singer/songwriter blues extraordinaire Scottie Miller being our guest artist, we studied the lineage of blues piano players through the years.

Following the route of The Great Migration, we started by traveling up from the Mississippi Delta to New Orleans where Professor Longhair brought us his rumba/mambo/calypso flair.

In St. Louis the legendary Roosevelt “The Honeydripper” Sykes contributed to piano boogies, barrelhouse blues with his modern lyrics.

Finally we headed up north to Chicago where Otis Spann brought us into the north for some Chicago blues.

Then came along Scottie Miller bringing his own Minneapolis groove to the mix. Scottie was so gracious to share his time and talents with our students in a two day blues workshop.

Older students were fortunate to learn from the best and receive a personalized and educational concert from Scottie. Younger students created original compositions with Scottie based on their artwork, and let me tell you…they had an absolute blast!

We’re always trying to inspire kids to love music lessons and learn about all genres of music. From playing and singing the blues to the Beatles, Beethoven to Beyonce we nurture our students to have a well-rounded base of musical knowledge.

For more information on Scottie Miller’s music, check out his website: www.scottiemiller.com.