Photo by Titilayo Ayangade

Biography

Praised by The New York Times for having "traversed the palette of emotions" with "gorgeous tone and an edge-of-seat intensity," GRAMMY® nominated Spanish-born cellist and composer Andrea Casarrubios has played as a soloist and chamber musician throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas. First Prize winner of numerous international competitions and awards, Casarrubios has appeared at Carnegie Hall, Beijing National Center for the Performing Arts, Madrid National Auditorium, and the Ravinia and Verbier Festivals. Her latest engagements include commissions and concerts in Mexico, Spain, Romania, Belgium, Germany, Canada, and the United States.

Casarrubios' compositions have been programmed by organizations such as the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra, Carnegie Hall, Sphinx Organization, NPR, and the Argentinian, Brazilian, Australian, and Spanish National Radios. Her acclaimed piece SEVEN "an intense and elegiac tribute to the essential workers during the pandemic" (The New York Times) was commissioned by Thomas Mesa, receiving its Carnegie Hall premiere in 2021. SEVEN has been performed around the world since, and it is featured in Casarrubios' latest album SEVEN Works by Andrea Casarrubios, nominated for the 2025 GRAMMY® Awards. Other recent compositions include the orchestra version of Afilador (2022-23) commissioned by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and Herencia for String Orchestra (2023), a "stirring creation" (The Strad) and “a bond of humanity through music” (The Boston Musical Intelligencer) commissioned for Sphinx Virtuosi's 2023-24 tour and premiered at Carnegie Hall's Stern Auditorium in 2023.

As a guest soloist, Casarrubios expanded her own MIRAGE Concerto for Cello and Orchestra, a large-scale work that she will premiere with the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra in 2025. Other recent appearances as a cellist include performances of Franz Schubert's Arpeggione Sonata arranged for cello and orchestra by Casarrubios herself, as well as recital programs featuring her own music alongside works by Luiggi Boccherini, Nadia Boulanger, Manuel de Falla and Xavier Foley. Her 2024 album SEVEN works by Andrea Casarrubios includes seven recent pieces featuring stunning collaborations with Manhattan Chamber Players and artists from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

A dedicated mentor, Casarrubios has taught masterclasses in Mexico, Brazil, South Africa, Spain, China, as well as at numerous festivals and institutions in the United States, including The Juilliard School, University of Southern California, University of North Carolina, Missouri State University and City University of New York. Her cello teachers have included Maria de Macedo, Lluis Claret, Amit Peled, Marcy Rosen, and Ralph Kirshbaum. She is an alumna of Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble Connect, and as part of her Doctoral degree in New York, Casarrubios also studied composition with John Corigliano.