Jeff Huston has a very special moment for a special reason

People play a variety of instruments for different reasons.

Recently, Jeff Huston, an accomplished trumpeter, played for two reasons, the first being for the enjoyment of the public during the Holmes County bicentennial celebration performance from American Musical Productions, a professional band that recreated the music of Willie Green Band, one of Holmes County’s bands from more than a century ago.

The second was for a more personal reason.

While the bicentennial celebration took place at Millersburg Elementary on June 8, Huston’s mother Sharon passed away May 28, so it was a bittersweet moment for Huston to not only play with such a talented ensemble that travels nationwide, but also to perform a solo on the cornet — an instrument much like a trumpet — during the song “Let Me Call You Sweetheart.”

The West Holmes graduate said it was an emotional moment, but he definitely wanted to perform.

“It was a lot of fun, but it was also a little sad because my mom was really looking forward to coming to this event,” Huston said.

Huston, who now lives in Canton, formerly lived and grew up in Millersburg and fondly recalled his youthful days attending school in this very school building, when he would walk home for lunch and spend his days on the playground with friends.

Huston said he got his introduction into the joy of playing with the band during his fifth grade year and has never stopped playing.

The music bug was so fierce within him that he eventually became a band instructor, spending 30 years at Strasburg High School and Sandy Valley High School before adding five more years at Malone University Music Department teaching music.

He also has been a member of the Tuscarawas Philharmonic since 1984, has played in a concert band in Tuscarawas County for many years and now plays in the Canton Concert Band, where he has participated for more than a decade.

“I find things to keep me going and stay involved in music,” Huston said, “maybe sometimes too much. But this is just a part of me, and if I don’t play, it feels like part of me is missing.”

Huston had the honor of playing at his mother’s funeral, playing her favorite hymn “In the Garden.”

“Even though we didn’t sing the words, I tried to communicate the song,” Huston said. “That’s always been a part of the fabric of my music experience. I get great joy in doing that. I enjoy sharing it, and it’s not about me; it’s about communicating a feeling.”

Huston graduated from West Holmes High School in 1979 and went on to major in music and graduated from Bowling Green State University in 1984. He received his master’s degree from Akron University in 1990.

Huston said he has been playing for American Musical Productions and band director Joseph Rubin for quite a few years, performing in many different styles of music including jazz, concert band, and recreations like the Willie Green Band and more.

He said recreating these types of historical arrangements right down to the finest details is always exciting.

But on this day, during this performance, it was more than simply an enjoyable day of performing for an appreciative crowd. This one was for his mother, who was surely hearing the gifted notes and melodic tunes wafting high into the air during a special performance.