Local music legend Aaron Nigel Smith’s list of accomplishments is long and substantial. The father of two adult children, he has developed music education curricula for preschoolers to high schoolers; was a guest composer on PBS Kids’ Between the Lions; founded an international youth arts nonprofit; organized the Rox in Sox kids’ music festival in Portland from 2013 to 2017; and has recorded 10 Reggae albums, including with his buddy Andy Furgeson, aka Red Yarn. Now he’s bringing all those years of music-centered expertise to The Patricia Reser Center for the Arts in Beaverton as its education and community programs manager. And all the families in the metro area are benefitting.
Smith says he first heard about the job from a local music publicist who encouraged him to meet with the folks from The Reser. “Between the classes I’ve taught and the festivals I’ve produced, and the albums I’ve dropped — all the community work I’ve aimed to do over the years — this type of position is really a great application of my skills. It feels like the perfect match.”
Smith and The Reser are very intentional about providing diverse programming, which is especially key in Beaverton, which has larger populations of Latinx and Asian families than Portland proper. “We are fortunately becoming known as a welcoming and open space, for opening our doors to diverse artists around the world,” says Smith.
And Smith has a vast network of artists to draw upon. Fellow kindie musician Ashli St. Armant (aka Jazzy Ash) presented her new show about the Underground Railroad, North the Musical, at The Reser. He worked on bringing Cenicienta: A Bilingual Cinderella Story to the stage.
His first big endeavor at The Reser was Musical Playground in September 2023. The ambitious, interactive family music event included lessons from local arts organizations, karaoke, symphony storytime and a musical instrument museum. “I projected maybe 300, 350 would show up and we had probably over 700,” says Smith, adding that he will be bringing back the event this summer.
This month, don’t miss Shine the Light: A Community Celebration. The free, family-friendly event features performances, art and theater activities like wood-block printing, origami and much more.
And this fall be on the lookout for a series of world-music workshops for beginners. “I can imagine in a perfect scenario, grandparents and their grandkids, or parents and their kids taking the opportunity to learn a musical instrument together,” says Smith. Expect offerings such as Middle Eastern music, taiko drumming or Haitian drumming.
Smith’s work at The Reser does mean he’s not recording or performing as much as he used to, but he’s still got two exciting projects in the works, including a followup Smith & Yarn collaboration with Red Yarn. His other big project is drawing on his roots as a classical voice major. “I was a recipient of the Creative Heights grant from the Oregon Community Foundation and I am composing an opera,” he says.
Smith’s folk opera will celebrate the life of York the Explorer, a member of the Corps of Discovery who made significant contributions to the Lewis and Clark expedition and was William Clark’s enslaved servant. It will be presented at The Reser in the fall of 2025.
When asked what he likes best about his role at The Reser he notes the team mentality and support he feels. “I feel like I stepped into a family,” says Smith.
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