Born from his uncommon versatility as an award winning composer and performer (guitar/voice), Keller's music explores the myriad of possibilities in the coexistence, inter-mingling and hybridity between contemporary concert music, jazz and rock. Keller has received commissions from John Zorn (Tzadik). Loadband, SACRA/PROFANA, the Empyrean Ensemble (UC Davis) Fondation Royaumont RedFishBlueFish NOISE, Colin McAllister (guitar), JitaZax,
City Water, Cantoria (Truman University), Cappella Gloriana, the Athens Master Chorale, Mark Menzies (violin) and Morris Palter (percussion). His music has been performed in the Americas, Europe, Australia, China, and at notable festivals such as the Oregon Fringe Festival (Ashland, OR), Visions of the Wild (Vallejo, CA), the World Saxophone Congress, June in Buffalo, SoundOn (La Jolla, CA), and the Festival of New American Music (CSUS).
In addition to being a composer, Keller is an accomplished guitarist. He has won and placed in numerous state, regional and national competitions and performed in notable master classes, such as those with Christopher Parkening. With his own ensemble, he has performed at festivals, including the Festival of New American Music (2013, '12, '07), In The Flow (2006, '08, '11), and the 2007 SPRING festival of New Music at the University of California, San Diego.
Of late Keller has been making regular use of his vocal talents. While completing his Ph.D. in Music Composition at UCSD, Keller studied voice with Carol Plantamura. While in San Diego, he was a member of Cappella Gloriana, with which he performed in Europe, and for which Keller composed extensively. Keller was a member of Resurrexit and the Tenor Choral Scholar at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral (Sacramento, CA). Some of Keller's recent performances include singing his own arrangements of Monteverdi for countertenor, soprano, and guitar; and Schubert, Dowland, and Gesualdo for guitar and voice with the McAllister Keller Duo; selections from Four Andalusian Love Songs for countertenor and piano by Kurt Erickson; and selections from Récitations by George Aperghis.
Keller holds a Ph.D. in Music Composition from the UCSD, where he had the privilege to study composition with Roger Reynolds, Anthony Davis, Chaya Czernowin, and Rand Steiger; and live music processing and computer-interactive technologies with Miller Puckett. At UGA, he studied composition with Lewis Nielson, Leonard "Chic" Ball, and William Davis; as well as guitar with John Sutherland.
Keller is an Assistant Professor of Music at Southern Oregon University at SOU. There he directs the Music Industry & Production (MIP) program, and produces the music of MUSIX, the 'house band' of MIP, which specializes in composing, performing, and producing music in styles of the popular sphere.
Keller’s music and performances are available on the Tzadik and Centaur labels. His ideas can be considered in print in Arcana X, edited by John Zorn (Hips Road), and Dies Irae, Dies Illa: Music in the Apocalyptic Mode Edited by Lorenzo DiTommaso and Colin McAllister (Brill, forthcoming).