Stephen Newton was born in Sydney in 1982. He began learning the double bass in 1994 from David Potts. In 1999, he commenced studies with Maxime Bibeau and the following year enrolled at the University of New South Wales, where he was the inaugural recipient of the Sony Foundation Scholarship.
In 2004, Stephen completed his Bachelor of Music with honours and was awarded a scholarship to study at the Australian National Academy of Music in Melbourne. In 2006, he returned to Sydney to study with Alex Henery at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, where he completed a Postgraduate Diploma in music performance. In August that year, he successfully auditioned for his position with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. In 2010, he went to study in Austria with Tim Dunin at the University of Music, Graz. This trip was funded by the MSO Friends and a grant from the Ian Potter Foundation.
Stephen has performed with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, Victorian Opera, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Victoria, Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Western Australian Symphony Orchestra and Auckland Philharmonic Orchestra. He is also a founding member of the Melbourne Ensemble.
