News : Mr. Miller returns to area; will perform with Kirkwood/CR Jazz Bands

Former VS Band Director James Miller returns to E Iowa for a jazz concert Saturday.

Kirkwood Community College will present The Fall Instrumental Jazz Concert featuring Trombonist James Miller with the Kirkwood Jazz Ensemble and CR Jazz Big Band Saturday, November 15, at 7:30 p.m. in Ballantyne Auditorium. Miller will also host a master class at 12:30 p.m. the day of the concert in the band room at 375 Cedar Hall at Kirkwood. Tickets for the concert will be available at the door.

Miller is a former Vinton-Shellsburg band director. One of the current jazz band performers is VS graduate Aaron Pingenot, who was in middle school during Mr. Miller's tenure at Washington High School.

Aaron Pingenot has been playing baritone sax with the CR Jazz & Big Band for 10 years. Currently those bands are under the direction of Al Naylor.

Aaron's older brother Mark was a member of the Jazz Band under Mr. Miller's direction. Mark recalls the era when Mr. Miller was juggling his high school duties with visiting his friends who had a very prominent TV gig.

"Yep, this is the same Mr. Miller who would skip school on the occasional Friday and we'd see him that next Saturday night on TV playing with the Saturday Night Live Band," recalls Mark. "Mr. Miller was one of the band directors when I was a freshman in High School here with Mr. Matt Daugherty. He may have been there a year or two before we got to high school, also. I distinctly remember a couple of occasions when the principal at the time, Dr. Terry Christiansen, would come into the band room on Friday morning looking for Mr. Miller. When asked, Mr. Daugherty, likely knowing full well where he was, would say something to the effect of “haven’t seen him yet today,” or “I thought I saw him bringing the marimbas in from the football field.”

Mr. Miller was not a regular on SNL, but appeared a few times and had musician friends who were involved in the TV show, Mark recalls.

See Miller's web site and hear some solos HERE.