User:Millerbone/Sandbox

James Thomas Miller is an American trombonist, multi instrumentalist and teacher. He is the Associate Principal Trombonist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

biography
MIller was born in Iowa and began his musical studies on trumpet and quickly learned the other brass instruments, finally settling on trombone. He attended the University of Northern Iowa to study jazz improvisation with Dr. Robert Washut and earned a Bachelor of Music Education degree in 1989. During this period he wrote compositions and arrangements for big band, small jazz groups and local Latin bands in which he also participated. He formed a long standing alternative rock band Hairy Carrie, writing all of the material and acting as lead vocalist, trombonist and performing on flute, saxophone, percussion and bass as well as self-producing two albums. He also marched in the Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps from 1984-1985 and taught in the activity in Iowa as well as ran programs in area high schools. After graduation he was employed for a two year period as a high school band director in Vinton, Iowa. He continued to work with Hairy Carrie as well as playing the bass guitar in the Blue Devils Blues Band. During this time Miller became interested in the trombone as a classical solo instrument, winning many awards including a full scholarship to the Aspen Music Festival where he was a concerto winner under the tutelage of Per Brevig. He continued his studies at The Juilliard School as a scholarship student of Dr. Brevig and Joe Alessi and received a Masters degree in 1993. He premiered a number of his chamber works in Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall including Trio for Trombone, Voice and Cello and Two Pianos & Three Trombones. Mr. Miller also served as second trombonist with the Long Island Philharmonic and performed with the New York Philharmonic as well as regional orchestras. He premiered the Jan Sandstrom "Motorbike” Concerto with the Juilliard Symphony as a concerto winner in 1992. A composition of Herculean capacity, he is one of two trombonists endeavored to perform this work.  During a burgeoning freelance career he became established as a long standing member of the Paragon Ragtime Orchestra and Ensemble ST-X (dedicated to the music of Iannis Xenakis) and now records with both.  In 1994, he won the position as the principal trombonist with the North Carolina Symphony and supplemented his post with performances of his own compositions in annual solo concerts throughout the state expanding the trombone as a multi-faceted instrument.  He won first prize at the International Woman’s Brass Conference solo competition held in St Louis in 1997.  Currently he serves on the faculty of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) He has also served posts at the North Carolina School of the Arts and Cal State Long Beach. Miller is a clinician for UMI musical instruments.

Selected recordings
He is featured on a number of recordings, including:
 * Coop! with Hairy Carrie
 * RequieM with Hairy Carrie
 * You are What you Eat with Hairy Carrie
 * Knockout Drops with Paragon Ragtime Orchestra
 * Fat Free with Regatta 69
 * Tu Y Yo with Carnvalito
 * Ensemble Music 1, 2 with ST-X Ensemble
 * Kraanerg with ST-X Ensemble
 * From Coast to Coast, solo trombone with Allison Gagnon, pianist
 * Que no pare la fiesta with Rumbankete

Compositions

 * Racket!
 * 2 Pianos and 3 Trombones
 * Trio for Cello, Voice and Trombone
 * Forward, March!
 * Acorns
 * Delays, delays