Get to know Idanha
Astoria musician debuts new project
BY MALLORY GRUBEN
Though he’s played in several local live
performances with other Astoria bands and
has been a professional musician for more
than two decades, Daniel Miller has kept a
low profi le when it comes to his own music
persona, Idanha.
Miller’s latest musical “project,” Idahna,
features new songs he wrote and recorded
by himself. He released the fi rst Idanha
album in March 2020. He has been releas-
ing new singles on Spotify and other music
streaming apps every month of 2021. Miller
has his sights set on completing another full
album and touring soon.
“I’ll play out in town eventually, with my
own stuff . But sometimes it’s nice to keep it
low key where you live,” Miller said. “It’s
like a sense of normalcy.”
Miller, 40, has played professionally
since the early 2000s, often touring with
bands or playing with friends in shows in
Astoria. He joked that he fi nds it diffi cult to
turn down a request to play live.
“I don’t really say no. I end up playing
with a bunch of diff erent people doing other
things and that’s always fun,” he said.
Miller’s musical interests date back
decades. Miller fi rst started playing guitar
around age 7. Miller’s grandmother taught
him and his siblings to play piano.
Miller plays several diff erent instru-
ments, including guitar, drums and piano.
He also sings. When he records songs for
Idahna, he plays each instrument separately
and records the vocals, then combines it all
for the fi nal song.
Where to listen
Listen to Idanha and see his social media
accounts at idanha.net/
Switching between instruments is “defi -
nitely interesting” but not a challenge for
Miller, he said. He attributes some of his
musical talent to heredity.
“I’ve never had a problem picking up
instruments. I had family members that
were the same way, too,” Miller said. “My
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It’s getting warm outside! Cut
your risk of having painful
kidney stones this summer:
Daniel Miller’s songs feature country, jazz and folk music elements.
• Drink at least
2 liters of water per day
• Decrease sodium
• Eat less meat
columbiamemorial.org/urology-clinic
THURSDAY, JULY 1, 2021 // 7