The Early Years (1990s – 2005)
Craig is a musician, (piano, vocals, guitar) and producing artist residing in Juneau, Alaska. Craig began playing piano at age seven and studied with Sue Kazama throughout middle/high school. Craig participated in the JDHS Jazz band and was selected for the “All Alaska Jazz Band” directed by Bill Wastrous in 2004-2005. The Jazz band is part of the Sitka Jazz Festival. He briefly studied music in Fairbanks (University of Alaska Fairbanks), diving headfirst into the history of music, which was a 400 level class he got into on accident. Craig took the easy way out and got a business degree with a concentration in finance.
The College Years and Return to Juneau (2011 – 2017)
During that time he started a band with the incomparable Annie B, Eli Barry-Garland, and Meghan Packee entitled “Annie Where The Sun Don’t Shine.” They played a variety of venues including the UAF Pub and The Marlin focusing on many of Annie Bartholomew’s original works and blues hit from past and present. After returning to Juneau Craig co-founded and named “The Flustered Cluckers” a bluesy rock cover band who made appearances at Brewfest, The JACC, McGivney’s, The Rendezvous, The Rockwell, and The Juneau Maritime Festival. Original Band Members were Sophie Lager, Alexei Painter, Craig Millard and Yoshi Tanha. Additional Band members included Darren Jaeckel and Luke Weld. During this time Craig began building a solo act including originals and covers with appearances at McGivney’s.
Australian Hiatus, Repatriation with a Pandemic, and Return to Juneau round #2 (2017 – Present)
Craig took an extended break from music while he lived and worked abroad in Australia from 2017 to 2020. Following the Pandemic Craig founded The Royal Wedding Band with Taylor Dallas Vidic, Tim Powers, David Elrod, and Sam Roberts. The Royal Wedding Band hosted the opening of the Crystal Saloon and would perform many shows featuring hits from “the 20s to the 20s”. The Royal Wedding Band would play at venues across Alaska, including, very occasionally, weddings. Additional members included Rob Cohen, Luke Weld, Chazz Gist, and Ceanne. Craig has also performed in multiple Alaska Folk Festivals and mud rooms.
Bands
- Zero Hour Jazz Band (Highschool) (2004-2005) [Jazz Piano]
- Annie Where The Sun Don’t Shine (2011-2012) [Piano]
- The Flustered Cluckers (2014-2017) [Piano]
- The Royal Wedding Band (2021-2022) [Piano]
- Solo Artist / Singer Songwriter (2016 – Present) [Piano & Vocals]
Formal Instruction
- Group Piano Lessons During Elementary School (1994)
- Private Piano Lessons from Sue Kazama, Classical Focus (1995-2005)
- Jazz Band (Piano) w/ Ken Guiher, Blues and Jazz Focus (2004-2005)
- Private Piano Lessons from Rob Cohen, Jazz, Blues and Pop Focus (2016)
- Private Piano and Voice Lessons from Megan Felts @ North Star Music Academy (2023 – Present)
Related Instruction
- University Chorus, History of Music (University of Alaska Fairbanks [2007])
- Digital Animation and Motion Graphics (School of Visual Arts [2021 – 2022])
Production Skills
Craig is a software developer by trade which allows unique opportunities for combining visual art and music. He is primarily focused on integrating music / video experiences with burgeoning hobby in experimenting with MIDI controlled integrated environments. One of Craig’s recent efforts involved creating a background video for a talent portion in the Miss Gay America national pageant.
- Tools
- Adobe Suite, Premiere and After Effects Focus
- Ableton 12 (10+ years experience with Ableton, primary DAW mixing / mastering)
- UAD plugins with apollo twin and Ableton Integration
- Audacity (15+ years)
- OBS
- Musescore
- LightKey