Steve Araujo History:
Steve was first drawn to bass guitar at around 12 years old when he heard the music of Rush, with Geddy Lee on bass, and Iron Maiden, with Steve Harris hammering down the low end. Around that time, a local garage band needed a bass player and he was asked to fill the spot. And so it began.
By the time he was 21, Steve had come to admire many different bass players, including Jaco Pastorius, Stanley Clark, Marcus Miller, Ray Brown, and Oscar Pettiford, to name a few. His hunger to develop his playing skills pushed him to pursue studying electric bass with such great players as Baba Elefante, Victor Wooten, Gary Willis, and Alfonso Johnson.
His growing appreciation for Jazz inspired him to take up the upright bass. So Steve studied double bass and jazz with John Clayton Jr. and Dr. Art Davis (bassist with John Coltrane), and classical technique with Anders Swanson and David Borkenhagen.
His new upright skills led him to the Golden West College big band where he played under the great composer Tom Kubis. That experience, of course, opened the door to playing double bass in small Jazz combos too. In his mid 20s, Steve discovered Latin music and pursued playing double bass in Latin big bands.
In addition to studying the bass, Steve wanted a deeper understanding of the musical framework, so he studied theory and arranging, at the piano, with Allen Rowe, Gerry Schroeder, and Tom Kubis.
Gigging:
Steve has over 30 years of experience as a professional bassist performing, recording and touring in pop rock, fusion, jazz, blues, and latin bands. Steve has performed at Disneyland, the Latin Grammy Awards, Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, Staples Center, Bellagio Resorts in Las Vegas, Monte Carlo Casino in Las Vegas, Saddleback Church, and for many other concert, corporate, and private events. Steve has performed with Frank Gambale, Scott Henderson, John Stowell, Jody Fisher, and Alex Skolnick, Weird Al Yankovik, Kuh Ledesma, Jane Wiedlin (Gogo’s), Corey Taylor (Slipknot), Scot Ian (Anthrax), .
Teaching:
Steve has taught bass and music theory for over 30 years and has served as a faculty member for The National Guitar Summer Workshop for nine years teaching bass, music theory, and ensemble skills in one-on-one and class settings.
Steve also has an online Bass Course.
Steve Araujo Performance Videos:
Sweet Relief Concert Footage