About Andrew Major
Bio
Andrew Major is a versatile conductor, singer, and pianist committed to crafting narrative concert experiences that draw on an inclusive body of historic and contemporary choral music to that explore the complexities of 21st century life. Hailing from Bozeman, Montana, Andrew has a proven track record of culturally relevant programming, dynamic collaborations, and community building as the artistic director and conductor of Roots in the Sky, an amateur-turned-professional chamber choir that he founded while an undergraduate at Montana State University. Most recently, Roots in the Sky presented Scott Ordway’s The End of Rain, a multimedia work for soloists, choir, strings, and percussion that considers the way that climate change and wildfires are affecting our relationship to the landscapes we call home.
Andrew holds graduate degrees in choral conducting from the Bienen School of Music (DMA and MM) at Northwestern University, where he studied with GRAMMY Award-winning conductor Donald Nally. During his doctoral residency, Andrew was the assistant conductor of the school’s premier choral ensemble, the Bienen Contemporary/Early Vocal Ensemble (BCE), and in the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic served as chorus master for Northwestern Opera Theatre’s pioneering, virtual production of Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo. At this time, Andrew also served as the assistant conductor of the Apollo Chorus of Chicago during their 150th anniversary season, helping to prepare performances of historic and modern symphonic works including Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s St. John Passion, and Stacy Garrop’s Terra Nostra. Additionally, Andrew assisted in preparing members of the Apollo Chorus for performances of Mozart’s La clemenza di Tito and Don Giovanni with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the 2022 Ravinia Festival.
An active ensemble singer, Andrew‘s recent engagements include performances with Music of the Baroque, the Grant Park Symphony Chorus, Chicago Opera Theater, Stare at the Sun, and with the GRAMMY Award-winning chamber choir The Crossing. In his 2024-25 season, Andrew is especially looking forward to his Carnegie Hall debut with The Crossing, as well as Roots in the Sky’s presentation of Messiah with Baroque Music Montana, the region’s first historically informed performances of Handel’s enduring masterwork.