Bruce Bradley
(1947-2015)
Inducted 2008
Bruce Mielke’s musical career began at the age of seven. His father traded a Shetland Pony for an accordion. It didn’t take long for young Bruce to decide the accordion was not cool, so he decided to take piano lessons. At the age of nine, he performed on KMSP-TV in St. Paul and was hooked on performing. In 1969, Bruce encountered a band from Las Vegas that was looking for a keyboardist, and he became the Music Director for this group, playing at the prestigious Caesars Palace and numerous other resort casinos throughout Nevada. After many years, he moved back to Minnesota and created a number of bands over the years and brought back polka music to The Minnesota State Fair. In 2004 Jim Strelke and Bruce formed German show band Alpensterne, who have performed for over 20 years “Music has been in my life for years. I’ve recorded with dozens of bands, driven a few million miles, and made thousands of friends,” said Bruce.
