Stevens learned his trade in the pre-war British dance bands, and was employed as an orchestrator and theatre musician, while contributing original compositions to several recorded music libraries (including Francis, Day and Hunter, Josef Weinberger and KPM).
Stevens honed his skills in pre-war British dance bands, working as an orchestrator and theatre musician, while composing original music for various recorded music libraries (such as Francis, Day and Hunter, Josef Weinberger, and KPM).