Steve Fidyk
Drumset Department Chair
Steve Fidyk currently serves as chair of the Drumset department in University of the Arts’ School of Music.
Biography
For more than 21 years, Fidyk was the drummer and featured soloist with the Army Blues Big Band, a premier 17-piece jazz ensemble stationed in Washington, D.C. During his tenure, he performed for seven U.S. presidents; numerous dignitaries; and in 2008, traveled throughout the Middle East supporting the troops during a USO holiday tour. Fidyk currently leads a small group that features his original compositions and arrangements. He performs throughout the U.S. with small groups led by tenor saxophonist Walt Weiskopf and guitarist Jack Wilkins. He is also a member of the Jazz Orchestra of Philadelphia, a big band led by trumpeter Terell Stafford.
As an educator, Fidyk is chair of UArts’ Drumset department. He also serves as an educational consultant for Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Essentially Ellington program and is an artist-in-residence at University of Maryland and Temple University. Fidyk has authored several drum methods for Mel Bay and Alfred Publications, and contributes jazz drumming columns regularly to Modern Drummer magazine.
He attended University of North Texas and holds degrees from Wilkes University, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and University of Maryland, College Park. Fidyk was a student of Joe Morello, Robert Nowak, Kim Plainfield, Ralph Peterson, John Riley, Ed Soph and Angelo Stella.
Experience
Fidyk is a jazz drummer, a composer, an author and an educator.