In Focus: Musician Sam Miltich Returns to Bemidji Stage After Three Years

A northern Minnesota musician is making his way back to the Bemidji stage this weekend.

Grand Rapids local Sam Miltich will transform the Chief Theater in Bemidji into a 1930s nightclub as he and his band, the Clearwater Hot Club, bring the jazz music of Paris to the northwoods.

Included in the lineup of the band is Miltich himself, his father Matthew, and Mark Kreitzer. One special guest star joining the troupe on Saturday and Sunday will be Geoffrey Taylor, a jazz violinist from Montana.

Audience members can expect to hear tunes of Hot Club, which is acoustic music played primarily on string instruments. While most of the songs will be instrumental, one will be played with vocals, a Croatian piece sung in the native language. Miltich says this is a way the band can continue his family culture and heritage.

The biggest part of being back in Bemidji is playing in front of a live crowd. Once the COVID-19 pandemic hit, music went virtual, then moved outside before finally being placed back in venues. The Clearwater Hot Club looks forward to bringing the joy of music back to Bemidji.

The band will perform at the Chief Theater on Saturday, Feb. 18 starting at 7 p.m. They will also perform at Ruttger’s Birchmont Lodge on Sunday, Feb. 19, at 10:30 a.m.