Steve Messick Biography

Steve Messick is a jazz and classical bassist, composer, and bandleader based in Seattle, Washington. He has performed with big bands, jazz combos, orchestras, and wind ensembles.

Steve is a 1993 graduate of the University of Washington, where he performed with the Studio Jazz Ensemble, vocal jazz ensemble, and jazz combos. During his stay at the University of Washington, Steve studied with bassist Peter Vinikow.

In 1992, Steve performed overseas for five months in Seoul, Korea with The Seattle Jazz, led by pianist Scot Ranney. The Seattle Jazz performed at J.J. Mahoney's in the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Seoul. While there, Steve made frequent appearances at Itaewon's jazz club, All That Jazz.

In 1993 and 1994 Steve was a member of University of Northern Colorado's Combo I, which co-won Down Beat magazine's "Best College Blues/Pop/Rock Instrumental Group of 1994". As a member of Combo I, Steve opened for jazz great Joe Henderson at the U.N.C. Jazz Festival.

Steve has performed in many musicals both in Eugene, Oregon and in Seattle, Washington. While in Eugene, Steve performed frequently at The Very Little Theatre and The Actor's Cabaret of Eugene in musicals including The Boyfriend, 70, Girls, 70, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Always Patsy Cline, Cabaret, and Sugar. In Seattle, Steve has performed with the Civic Light Opera in City of Angels and Once Upon a Mattress and with the Seattle Gilbert & Sullivan Society in The Mikado.

In 1999, Steve released his debut jazz CD, Transmissions From Planet Bass, which features Seattle artists Jay Thomas on trumpet, Travis Ranney on sax, John Hansen and David Franklin on piano, and Jon Wikan on drums. Transmissions From Planet Bass contains two of Steve's original compositions, Blues for Janet and I Love You Too, along with arrangements of well-known jazz standards.

Steve has been a member of Orchestra Seattle, conducted by George Shangrow, since 1999. Steve has also performed with the Northwest Mahler Festival, Lake Union Civic Orchestra, Cascade Symphony, and other Seattle-area orchestras.

From 2000 to 2005, Steve was a member of the Emerald City Jazz Orchestra, and he can be heard on their 2005 recording, Come Rain or Come Shine.

In 2002, Steve Messick and pianist David Franklin founded the New Bop Brigade, a modern jazz quintet that performs original post-bop compositions by Steve Messick and David Franklin. The music focuses on melodic horn lines over complex chord changes and is inspired by the works of Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock during the mid 1960's. The New Bop Brigade features Chris Stover on trombone, Travis Ranney on sax, David Franklin on piano, Steve Messick on bass, and Ken French on drums. In 2005, Steve Messick co-produced the New Bop Brigade's self-titled CD containing nearly 74 minutes of original music.

Discography