"Do you know about the blues?" trumpeter Riley Mulherkar asked hundreds of children during a Kidz Bop jazz concert at the Etherredge Center on Thursday.
That got the kids really excited. "Oh yeah," a lot of them yelled out. The blues is best known for its call-and-response style.
"It's a spirit, a style of music ... a color," Mulherkar said. "Are you wearing blue today?"
He and four other jazz musicians connected with The Juilliard School did a formal community program for the annual Juilliard in Aiken series of musical performances Thursday. They also performed for the elementary-age children on Wednesday and again on Thursday.
"We're so excited to be here and talk about music," Mulherkar said. "It's an American art form, our own music, and it's fun to play and listen to."
Improv is another jazz form, especially "if you want to be hip or a cool cat," he said with a smile. "It's all about making it up on the spot."
He was joined for the performance by percussionist Sam Miller, trombonist Andy Clausen, pianist Mathis Picard and bassist Clovis Nicolas.
Before Thursday's performance, Lee Cavanaugh and Pat Kirk served as ushers for the event.
"It was tremendous yesterday," Cavanaugh said, referring to Wednesday's performance. "The kids clapped and were really riveted. They could not believe it's Juilliard. They were so engaged."
Music is good for the soul, Kirk said, and she's grateful for The Juilliard School's generosity with its offerings - especially for the musicians' enthusiasm in introducing their work to the children.
"No other town this size has this kind of opportunity," Kirk said.
Kiley Mixon and Miyah Davis, Jefferson Elementary School third-graders, were thrilled with the Juilliard jazz group's performance. Miyah would like to learn jazz someday - especially on the piano and the drums.
Mulherkar also talked with the children about one of his own heroes - the hugely popular jazz trumpeter who fully came to fame in the 1940s.
"The children really enjoyed the music, as they don't get much experience with jazz," said Jefferson teacher Tiffany Coleman. "We'll certainly talk about Dizzy."
Senior writer Rob Novit is the Aiken Standard's education reporter and has been with the newspaper since September 2001. He is a native of Walterboro and majored in journalism at the University of Georgia.
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