ABOUT Andy P. Smith
SESSION TITLE: Performance of “Trigon for Solo Drumset and Fixed Electronics” by Alexis C. Lamb
Andy P. Smith is known for the depth of his “pocket” as a performer, his uncanny versatility as a pedagogue, and his wit and creativity as a composer. His recent projects include CD recordings, Finally Here and Festive Interplay with Angel Roman and Mambo Blue, Deliberations by Erik Unsworth, Jim Shearer’s Cloud Bowling With Claude Bolling, and Latin jazz group Batuquê Trio’s Transparency as well as a sophomore recording pending release in 2024. Andy has been a repeat clinician and performer at the Jazz Education Network Convention and PASIC. Other performances include the Lotus Music Festival, Ciudad Juarez International Jazz Festival, The Armando Nuñez International Jazz Festival, and grant sponsored workshops with Bernard Woma, Ghanaian Musical Ambassador. In 2012, Andy was awarded a Tinker Foundation grant to study contemporary Brazilian samba-jazz drumming in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Andy’s compositions include Two Maracatu for Drum-set Duo, and (My Favorite Purple) Prickly Pear, premiered by the University of Texas at El Paso Percussion Ensemble at their 2023 Texas Music Educators Convention. Andy’s works are published by Row-Loff Publications, C. Alan Publications, and at andypsmith.squarespace.com. Andy teaches percussion at the University of Texas at El Paso with a philosophy emphasizing professionalism and depth of musicianship. Prior to UTEP, Andy taught at Middle Tennessee State University and the Tennessee Governor’s School for the Arts. His doctorate is from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in Bloomington, IN where he served as an Associate Instructor and Assistant Director to Michael Spiro’s Brazilian Percussion Ensemble. Contributions to PAS (The Percussive Arts Society) include numerous PASIC invited and featured performances, adjudication, past Vice President of the Tennessee Chapter, and currently serving on the University Pedagogy Committee. Andy is endorsed by Pearl/Adams, Evans Drumheads, Zildjian Cymbals, and Innovative Percussion.
