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| Biography of Stewart Burr |
"A Frenetic Drummer" (Atlantic City Press) Having played for over 20 years, it is safe to say that Stewart is at home behind the drums. A Bay Area native, Stewart started playing the local club scene in his teens. Thereafter he studied percussion at Cal. St. Northridge under the direction of Prof. Joel Leach and studio ace Steve Houghton . Stewart then transferred to Sonoma St. Univ. and focused on a degree in Jazz Studies. While at Sonoma St. Stewart recieved numerous awards, including three Evertt B. Person perfomance scholarships (1994, 1995 & 1996) and an Outstanding Musicianship award at the 1996 Berkeley Collegiate Jazz Festival. In addition to studying Jazz, Stewart continued to work in the San Francisco music scene playing a variety of styles including pop, blues, rock, funk, R&B, soul, Latin, big band, country and jazz. His big break came when he got the gig with legendary jazz pianist Bob Lucas. Bob mentored Stewart in the fundamentals of cooking in a jazz combo setting, as well as giving him the opportunity to play with world class jazz musicians. Soon after earning his degree in Jazz Studies, Stewart landed the gig with blues harmonica virtuoso Red Archibald and the Internationals. Playing 300 dates a year, touring internationally, and recording Red's third CD gave Stewart invaluable experience. In 1999 Stewart moved to New York City where after a year of club and session work, he auditioned and got the gig with the legendary Chubby Checker. Touring all over the USA, the band played all of Chubby's long-standing hits for enthusiastic fans. In Fall 2001 Stewart relocated back to the Bay Area and has been freelancing doing club and session work. Besides being an accomplished and sought after drummer, Stewart is also a drum instructor with 7 years of teaching experience in the Bay Area. After many years of studying, performing, and on the job experience, Stewart is comfortable playing all styles-live or in the studio. Stewart also sings backup vocals, bringing an extra voice to a band's musical package. |