Bio: James Biehn

James M. Biehn got his first taste of music when he began playing the trumpet at the age of 10. He picked up a guitar shortly after and by the age of 13 was a featured soloist in the school jazz band. He continued playing guitar at Norwalk High School where he won multiple soloist awards and helped the band win first place in the state competition two years in a row.

Continuing his musical studies at Southwestern Community College in Creston, IA, under the direction of Grammy-nominated department head Phil Mattson, James became proficient in music theory, jazz keyboard, and big band/vocal arranging.

Throughout his high school and college years, James balanced his schoolwork with the rigors of recording and performing with his first band, the McKenzies. The band released two albums, “A Collective Sigh of Relief” and “Cold in September,” which collectively sold more than 2,000 copies.

He first began teaching guitar in 1998 at Ground Zero Music in Indianola, IA. By 2001 he had officially quit his “day job” and has been teaching guitar and bass guitar full time ever since.

James has continued to play live as a solo performer as well as with bands such as the Nadas, the Jeff Banks Band, Hyde Park, and Soapbox Prophets. He is a first-call studio musician in central Iowa, and has contributed to albums by the Nadas, Bonne Finken, the Josh Davis Band as well as various commercial works. He has opened for countless national touring bands such as Buckcherry, Mike Doughty, Gov’t Mule, Big Head Todd and the Monsters, King’s X, and many more. In 2005 his band, Soapbox Prophets, released the critically acclaimed album, “Stranger than Strange.”

In 2005, James was the winner of Lazer 103.3’s “Guitar Battle,” which earned him the opportunity to play onstage with the band Tesla. For two years running he was the regional winner in Guitar Center’s King of the Blues guitar competition.

James continued to expand his teaching role in 2006 accepting an adjunct faculty position at Southwestern Community College where he continues to teach guitar today. He currently instructs a studio of about 75 students and in 2009, opened the Central Iowa Music Lab, a high-tech music instruction facility that employs current computer and Internet technology to help students learn faster and more aptly express their creativity.

Besides his dedication to the local music scene and his many students, James is a devoted husband and father of three boys.