Scott Steen
Scott Steen is an internationally respected trumpeter. Scott was a long time member of Royal Crown Revue, known from the film The Mask, and the band credited for reviving the swing music movement in the United States. He is known for his ability to make the horn speak with great emotion and soul. Cirque du Soleil called upon him to bring these talents to the stage. Scott is currently touring with the cast of West Side Story as lead trumpeter. Steen is labeled as “a chameleon” by All About Jazz because of his ability to play many styles convincingly. He is as comfortable in the genres of bop and avant- garde as he is with blues and boogaloo. He has performed from Los Angeles to Moscow, London to Tokyo.
Scott has recorded dozens of albums with many groups and has two solo CD’s “Makin’ Time” and, most recently, “Playing Favorites”.
He was the featured soloist with Bette Midler during the hugely successful Kiss my Brass tour 2003-2005. He has also performed with many other artists including Brian Setzer, Mark Whitfield, Sherman Ferguson, Phil Upchurch, and Stewart Copeland.
With his solo project “Remembering Miles“, Steen pays tribute to Miles Davis with his muted weaving, patient melodic development, and fiery aggression. Steen proves himself a skillful interpreter of the various stages of Davis’ career. Backing Steen is one of the top rhythm sections in Italy including Matteo Alfosnso on piano, Simone Serafini on bass, and Tommaso Cappellato at the drums, these strong and skillful players interpret and invoke the past yet bring a modern and fresh vigor to Davis’ classic repertoire. The Quartet carries the audience through the period of the 1950s up until the 1970s, reminding listeners of the various stages of Miles’ career and the impact his music has had upon the world, tying thematic elements of songs which were recorded at different periods, yet somehow seem to fit together like a well told story.
Scott lectures to students of many levels on the importance of finding one’s own “voice” in the instrument and how to express emotion in a performance.
Festival appearances
Playboy, Hollywood Bowl ;Newport Jazz ; JVC, NY; JVC, Saratoga ;Mt. Hood, OR ;Berks, PA ;Boston, MA ;Reading, England; Gaildorf, Germany ;Viel Jazz, Switzerland ;Roskilde, Denmark ;Tantsy, Moscow; Playboy, Pasadena ;Newport Beach,CA ;Postojna Jazz, Slovenia; Lake Como, Italy; Parco Delta, Italy; Bologna, Jazz nella Piazza, Italy; Sibenik, Croatia; Gyor Blues, Hungary; Varazdin, Croatia
Media appearances
The Mask, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Jay Leno, Conan O’Brien. Ellen DeGeneres, Good Morning America, CNN, CBS World News, Good News Australia. Comedy Central, BBC3, All Things Considered (recorded a version of the show’s theme), PBS