The Birdland Big Band,  Storybook: The Music of Mark Miller Review

Mark Miller’s Storybook: Modern Big Band Writing with Color, Momentum, and Heart

by Ferell Aubre

Storybook: The Music of Mark Miller plays with a sense of place and purpose. The Birdland Big Band, an ensemble deeply tied to New York’s most storied jazz room, has long functioned as a repertory powerhouse and living workshop for contemporary big band writing. With trombonist, composer, and arranger Mark Miller at the creative center, this album presents more than a collection of charts; it offers a unified narrative shaped by long-standing musical relationships, collective communication, and a shared understanding of how modern big band music can have a present-tense voice.

From its opening moments, Storybook: The Music of Mark Miller hits with momentum and warmth. The title track, “Storybook,” unfolds like a curtain rising on a living narrative, where color, motion, and personality are introduced in quick succession. Playful horn figures, shifting textures, and rhythmic turns create a sense of forward motion that feels both welcoming and alive. This is big band music that moves with confidence and an animation with a modern jazz sense of pacing and surprise.

What becomes immediately clear across the album’s eleven selections is that the true narrator is the compositional and arranging voice itself. Rather than any single section dominating the storytelling, Miller’s writing guides the ensemble through distinct emotional arcs through his compositions and arrangements. The selections are excellent in balancing full-band statements with small-group intimacy and featured soloist moments. The Birdland Big Band responds as a unified organism, with sections articulating together and transitions unfolding organically. Swing, Latin feel, gospel inflection, and orchestral color are stylistic narrative tools used in the service of flow and character. The result is a wonderfully engaging set of big band music.

That cohesion allows the ensemble’s strength to shine from every angle. The saxes articulate with clarity and conversational ease, the brass delivers power without heaviness, and the rhythm section provides defining propulsion and sensitivity. Solos emerge naturally from the fabric of the writing, extending the story rather than interrupting it. This is big band writing that respects the lineage while speaking fluently in a contemporary jazz vernacular that is elegant, expressive, and confident in its voice.

Nicole Zuraitis’s vocal appearances offer moments of emotional punctuation and parallel storytelling. On “Tenderly,” her voice is engaging and sensual, carrying a full, classic jazz sound that recalls old-Hollywood glamour while remaining grounded in the present. The arrangement moves gracefully between eras: woodwinds evoke cinematic warmth, the shout chorus brings modern energy, and the rhythm section swings with joy. Sam Dillon’s tenor saxophone solo unfolds with lyricism, while Raul Agraz delivers the trumpet melody with vintage charm, all framed by an arrangement that feels alive.

One of the album’s compositional highlights arrives with “WTF,” where Miller’s command of the big band palette is fully on display. The piece evolves through contrasting sections of swing, giving way to Latin feels while maintaining a strong narrative throughline. David DeJesus brings fire on alto sax, Sam Dillon sustains the momentum with inventive lines supported by dynamic background figures, and a rhythmic interlude opens space for Chris Smith’s energetic drum solo. The trading between trombonists James Burton III and Sara Jacovino adds a playful, interactive spark before the music drives toward a climactic cadence. Every transition feels natural, every color intentional, underscoring Miller’s deep understanding of how to make a large ensemble have surprise and move with energy.

By the time the album reaches its final track, “Nonsense,” the feeling is one of fulfillment rather than finality. The Birdland Big Band delivers everything one hopes for in a modern big band album, stirring solos, intricate ensemble passages and counterpoint, powerful shout choruses, and tastefully integrated vocals. The aftertaste is rich and satisfying, a reflection of an ensemble at a high level, guided by writing that values story, feel, and collective expression.

Storybook: The Music of Mark Miller stands as a compelling big band album that swings, surprises, and expresses with warmth. This allows the listener to hear the story from start to finish.