Biography
Andrew Haile Austin’s music combines his love for such disparate musical genres as classical, music theatre, EDM, and folk rock. Comprised of lyricism, motor rhythms, and mosaic-like structures, Andrew’s music invites the listener into its world through its exciting pace and melodicism. From his time as a conductor and director in theatre, Andrew brings a narrative, whether subtle or overt, to all of his work. Storytelling and drama are as important to his pieces as the sonority and formal structures of the music itself. Coming from the background of a singer, many of Andrew’s works involve text and the voice, but his instrumental music contains an equal amount of narrative underpinning.As a composer, Andrew is most interested in communicating with an audience, in leading the listener through the music with clear ideas and points of connection that the audience can grasp as they take the journey.
Andrew began composing at age 10 in order to enter a composition contest (Reflections) at his elementary school (he won - oh, and was the only entrant!). During his high school years, he continued to compose, in larger genres such as oratorio and musicals, as well as single songs and piano works. Some of his compositions were written for class assignments, some given to friends as gifts. Andrew attended James Madison University to study with John Hilliard and graduated with a Bachelor of Music degree in composition.
After college, Andrew moved to New York City and began pursuing his life as a musician. In NYC, he worked at several arts schools while free-lancing as a conductor of musicals for various theatres and universities. As of now, he has music directed almost 100 productions across the country. Also, while in NYC, Andrew participated three times in the Golden Fleece Opera’s Square One Series and had his musical “Paper Dolls” presented in readings at two theaters.
In 2009, in order to focus on his composition, Andrew made the decision to return to school. He reunited with JMU, studying with John Hilliard and Jason Haney and graduated in 2011 with a Master’s degree in Music Composition. In May of 2016, Andrew received his doctorate in music composition (DMA) from the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD where he studied with composer Kevin Puts. Andrew’s music focuses on clarity of ideas, playing with melody and tonality to form a cohesiveness between his love of early to mid-20th Century music (Bartok, Britten, Ravel, Poulenc), musical theatre (Sondheim, Weill, Bernstein, Guettel) and popular folk artists of today (Ani Difranco, Patty Larkin). In 2015, he was named composer-in-residence for the Tidewater Opera Initiative (TOI) in Norfolk, VA. His opera, The Snow Maiden of Appalachia was presented by TOI in January of 2016. Recently, he attended Source Song Festival in Minneapolis (2022) and Connecticut Summerfest (2023). Andrew currently resides in Brooklyn, NY.
Andrew began composing at age 10 in order to enter a composition contest (Reflections) at his elementary school (he won - oh, and was the only entrant!). During his high school years, he continued to compose, in larger genres such as oratorio and musicals, as well as single songs and piano works. Some of his compositions were written for class assignments, some given to friends as gifts. Andrew attended James Madison University to study with John Hilliard and graduated with a Bachelor of Music degree in composition.
After college, Andrew moved to New York City and began pursuing his life as a musician. In NYC, he worked at several arts schools while free-lancing as a conductor of musicals for various theatres and universities. As of now, he has music directed almost 100 productions across the country. Also, while in NYC, Andrew participated three times in the Golden Fleece Opera’s Square One Series and had his musical “Paper Dolls” presented in readings at two theaters.
In 2009, in order to focus on his composition, Andrew made the decision to return to school. He reunited with JMU, studying with John Hilliard and Jason Haney and graduated in 2011 with a Master’s degree in Music Composition. In May of 2016, Andrew received his doctorate in music composition (DMA) from the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD where he studied with composer Kevin Puts. Andrew’s music focuses on clarity of ideas, playing with melody and tonality to form a cohesiveness between his love of early to mid-20th Century music (Bartok, Britten, Ravel, Poulenc), musical theatre (Sondheim, Weill, Bernstein, Guettel) and popular folk artists of today (Ani Difranco, Patty Larkin). In 2015, he was named composer-in-residence for the Tidewater Opera Initiative (TOI) in Norfolk, VA. His opera, The Snow Maiden of Appalachia was presented by TOI in January of 2016. Recently, he attended Source Song Festival in Minneapolis (2022) and Connecticut Summerfest (2023). Andrew currently resides in Brooklyn, NY.
