366 - Brian Steever: Finding and Exploring His Unique Voice in Kansas City, Letting Sounds and Ideas Guide The Way

Brian Steever is a drummer on a mission to inject joy into every musical situation that he finds himself. One of the most in-demand drummers on the Kansas City scene, the drums have been his passion since he was born. He began his studies with Loyd Warden in Columbia Missouri and is an alumnus of UMKC where he studied with Doug Auwarter, Brandon Draper, Curtis Lundy, Michael Carvin and Bobby Watson. Brian enjoys many performance opportunities in the Kansas City area and beyond. He can be seen around town with Mike Metheny, Matt Otto, Bob Bowman, Jeff Harshbarger, and Hermon Mehari. Brian has also had opportunity to play with musicians from all over the world including Ben Allison, Javon Jackson, Deborah Brown, Bob Sheppard, Tony Tixier, Shunzo Ohno, and Sam Newsome among others.

In this episode, Brian talks about:

• Having the three strong influences of a mentor, a peer, and a community all before he left high school
• How the Kansas City jazz scene is supportive of everyone's unique voice
• His experience at University of Missouri-Kansas City
• The influence of Matt Wilson - being effortless and intentional
• Exploring sounds and ideas vs. practicing drums
• The never-ending matched vs. traditional conundrum