Welcome to the Mile High Jazz Band Website

 

mhjbred702

Features

 

Home

 

Past Performance Schedule

 

Rehearsal Schedule

 

About the Players

 

About the Alumni Players

 

"Jazz & Beyond: Carson City
Music Festival" (2016 to 2025)

 

Audio Samples

 

The Millennium Bugs

Press Releases

 

Membership form

 

Funding Priorities

 

How to contact us

 

  MileHighJazz.com QR code

 

Mile High Jazz Band


External Links

 

Carson City Symphony

David Bugli website

Carson City Arts & Culture Coalition (FB page)

Sacramento Traditional Jazz
Society (STJS)

 

 

The Mile High Jazz Band Association formed in 2001 as a nonprofit corporation to support the MHJB and its subgroup, the Millennium Bugs (jazz combo), promote live jazz performance in northern Nevada, educate the public about jazz, and enrich the cultural life of the community. Member benefits include mailings, discounts on admissions, and invitations to special events, plus the satisfaction of helping big-band jazz to thrive!

To book the Mile High Jazz Band (big band) or Millennium Bugs (jazz combo), call 775-883-4154.


Mile High Jazz Band Association Updated Mission Statement - Adopted March 4, 2012, by the Board of Trustees:
Our mission is to enrich the cultural life of our community by promoting live jazz performance in and around Carson City; enhancing arts education in collaboration with other organizations and school programs; and supporting our resident big band, the Mile High Jazz Band, and its affiliated combos.


MHJB Assoc. Board and Officers
The MHJBA board, July 2024:

  • Trustees class of 2025: David Bugli, Rita Geil, Ted Xie
  • Trustees class of 2026: Ellie Bugli, Steve Hayes, Adam Cohen
  • Trustees class of 2027: Kelly Dodge, Alex Cassimus, Doug Conner
    (Class of 2027 elected at 6/20/2024 Annual Meeting)

Officers elected at 9/8/2024 Board Meeting:
  • President: David Bugli
  • Vice President: Kelly Dodge
  • Treasurer: Ellie Bugli
  • Secretary: Ellie Bugli

The Mile High Jazz Band Assoc. is a member of the Carson City Downtown Business Assoc.

Logo for CCDBA



Mile High Jazz Band Welcomes the New Year
with a Performance
at Gina's Good Life Music & Lounge
Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026

Logo for Gina's Good Life Music & Lounge

The Mile High Jazz Band performs at Gina's Good Life Music & Lounge in the Carson Nugget on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. The music is free, and donations are welcome.

Mile High Jazz Band performances and educational activities are supported in part by a grant from the Nevada Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts, and by memberships and donations.

For information about the band and activities, see milehighjazz.com.



Mile High Jazz Band Performs "Jazz Sampler for Sweethearts"
at Gina's Good Life Music & Lounge
Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026

Logo for Gina's Good Life Music & Lounge

The Mile High Jazz Band performs its annual "Jazz Sampler for Sweethearts" program at Gina's Good Life Music & Lounge in the Carson Nugget on Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. The music is free, and donations are welcome.

Mile High Jazz Band performances and educational activities are supported in part by a grant from the Nevada Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts, and by memberships and donations.

For information about the band and activities, see milehighjazz.com.



Big-Band Jazz Times Four!
Mile High Jazz Band presents the 2026 Jazz Extravaganza
at the Carson City Community Center
Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026

Photograph of CHS Jazz Band in 2024

It's "big-band jazz times four" when the Mile High Jazz Band and three youth jazz bands present the 22nd annual Jazz Extravaganza concert, on Tuesday, February 24, 2026, at 7:00 p.m., in the Bob Boldrick Theater at the Carson City Community Center, 851 E. William Street, Carson City. The Extravaganza is sponsored by the Mile High Jazz Band Association as a benefit for youth jazz programs.

Performing with Mile High Jazz Band this year are the Carson High School Jazz Band directed by Nick Jacques, the Carson Middle School Jazz Band directed by Stephanie Van Orman, and the Reno Youth Jazz Orchestra directed by Nichole Heglund.

Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the door. All proceeds from ticket and refreshment sales will go to the student music programs. Youth age 18 and under are admitted free. Tickets can be purchased in advance at MileHighJazz.com, or at the door.

This year, the Extravaganza will feature the four big bands and vocalist Jakki Ford. "We've enjoyed performing with youth jazz bands for the past two decades and seeing their proficiency, talent, and progress," said David Bugli, Mile High Jazz Band leader and pianist.

Mile High Jazz Band Association is funded in part by grants from the Nevada Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts and from Carson City. For more information, call Mile High Jazz Band at 775-883-4154 or see MileHighJazz.com.

Photo: Carson High Jazz Band directed by Nick Jacques (2024).



A Way To Make a Donation to Mile High Jazz Band
Posted: Tuesday, January 24, 2023
Updated: Sept. 27, 2024

QR code for making a donation to Mile High Jazz Band

We have a helpful way for people to make a donation to Mile High Jazz Band Assoc. They can scan a QR code with their smart phone, which will bring them to a webpage that will make it possible for them to donate $10, $20, or any multiple of $10 via Square. We are not charging admission for our events at Gina's, but we are encouraging people to make a donation to the band and the Association.

Tell your friends to try it out. We will have a sign with a QR code at performances.

If you like, click HERE to go directly to the Square webpage for donations.

The Mile High Jazz Band Association formed in 2001 as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation to support the MHJB and its subgroups, promote live jazz performance in northern Nevada, educate the public about jazz, and enrich the cultural life of the community. Member benefits include mailings, discounts on admissions, and invitations to special events, plus the satisfaction of helping big-band jazz to thrive!



The monthly-gig tradition which started in 2001 continues! Starting in January 2023, following the pandemic, monthly Mile High Jazz Band gigs on the second Tuesday of each month resumed. Most performances are from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m., and will be at Gina's Good Life Music & Lounge, in the Carson Nugget, at 507 N. Carson St., Carson City, NV. Check this website from time to time for details.

 


General Information

The Mile High Jazz Band, an 18-member "big band" composed of 17 instrumentalists and a vocalist, began performing in 1997. The group features music in the Count Basie-Duke Ellington-Woody Herman tradition, as well as more contemporary styles, selected from a repertoire of over 200 tunes. They play ballads, high-powered jazz tunes, and dance music arranged by Nestico, Niehaus, Taylor, and other great arrangers.

Mile High Jazz Band performs for community events, fundraisers, dances, receptions, private parties, and in concert. They have played benefits for New York Firefighters, Red Cross Disaster Relief, Carson-Tahoe Hospital Foundation, Douglas County Library Foundation, and the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life. They have been featured in concerts at the Brewery Arts Center and on the Carson City Symphony's "Holiday Treat" and "Pops Party" concerts. They play monthly at Comma Coffee and collaborate with local poets in quarterly "Jazz and Poetry" events, alternating poetry readings with related musical selections. Mile High Jazz Band has performed in Carson City, Reno, Minden, Fallon, Yerington, Stateline, Incline Village, Virginia City, and Crystal Bay.

In 2002, Mile High Jazz Band won "Best Band" award in Carson City's "Taste of Downtown." In 2003, American Composers Forum selected Mile High Jazz Band and Bella Voce women's choir for a national Continental Harmony project. In 2007, leader David Bugli received the Nevada Governor's Arts Award for Distinguished Service to the Arts, and the band played for the awards ceremony. Mile High Jazz Band plays annual benefits with the Carson High Jazz Band to help the high school band attend the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival. Also, the Mile High Jazz Band Association founded and produces or co-produces the annual, multi-day Jazz & Beyond Music Festival in Carson City each August since 2004.

The Mile High Jazz Band performs around the Carson City area. You can catch us on most second Tuesdays of each month at from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. at Gina's Good Life Music & Lounge, 507 N. Carson Street inside the Carson Nugget.

Millennium Bugs

The Millennium Bugs, a jazz combo associated with the Mile High Jazz Band, play a great variety of jazz styles. They performed for the Carson City Preservation Coalition/Historical Society, Olympic Torch Relay Ceremony in Carson City, Carson City Music Club, Westview block party, Camel Race Day in Virginia City, Carson Nugget showroom, Carson-Tahoe Hospital Foundation, Carson High Prom, BAC Beer Tasting, weddings, receptions, and parties.

 


 

Mile High Jazz Band Association board meetings are held quarterly. Call 775-883-4154 for details.

 

 

 


Last updated 12/10/2025