Biography
Praised by The New York Times for having "traversed the palette of emotions" with "gorgeous tone and an edge of-seat intensity" and described by Diario de Menorca as an "ideal performer" that offers "elegance, displayed virtuosity, and great expressive power," Spanish 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, Andrea has appeared at Carnegie Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Lincoln Center, the Piatigorsky International Cello Festival, Ravinia, Schleswig- Holstein, and the Verbier Festivals.
Andrea’s album, Caminante, presents some of her own original music. Released on Odradek Records, it was chosen as one of the “Best 2019 Classical Music Albums” by Australia’s ABC Classic. As a guest soloist at Auditorio Nacional in Madrid, Andrea performed her own Concerto for Cello and Orchestra, MIRAGE (2019), among other works. The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and cellist Thomas Mesa recently performed the U.S. premiere of this concerto. SEVEN (2020) for solo cello, "a searching, intense, and elegiac tribute to the essential workers during the pandemic" (The New York Times) was commissioned by Mr. Mesa, and presented at Carnegie’s Stern Auditorium in 2021 among other venues. One of her latest works, Amid a Place of Stone (2020) for solo violin, commissioned by Emily Daggett Smith and funded by the Andy Warhol Foundation, is being featured at the Albany Arts Museum's Fall 2021 Exhibit. A composer in residence at the Crescent City Chamber Music Festival, Andrea's compositions have been heard in 78 countries, and presented by organizations such as the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra, Carnegie Hall, Boccherini Music Festival, World Heritage Festival, Sphinx Organization, Washington Performing Arts, University of South Carolina, Eastman School of Music, Decoda, Ensemble Connect, Manhattan Chamber Players, Chicago’s WFMT, Canada's CKIA, and the Spanish National Radio (RNE).
Solo appearances as a cellist include performances of F. Schubert's Arpeggione Sonata in A minor arranged for cello and orchestra, recital tours of a wide range of repertoire, and performances in Spain of several works for cello and orchestra including Joseph Haydn's Cello Concerto in C major. Andrea has been sponsored by the Wingate Foundation in the U.K., the Spanish Cello Forum, as well as Juventudes Musicales of Madrid. She is a founding member of Trio Appassionata, along with violinist Lydia Chernicoff and pianist Ronaldo Rolim, touring the U.S., Spain, the U.K., Italy, Brazil, and China. Andrea is also a member of the Brandenburg String Trio based in Berlin, and the Manhattan Chamber Players in New York. Her teachers have included Maria de Macedo, Lluis Claret, Amit Peled, Marcy Rosen, and Ralph Kirshbaum. As part of her doctorate degree, she also studied composition with John Corigliano.
A dedicated mentor, Andrea has taught at The Juilliard School, University of Southern California, Eastman School of Music, Skidmore College, Queens College, University of Kansas, as well as at numerous festivals and masterclasses on tour. Her latest engagements include commissions and concerts in Canada, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, Germany, and the U.S.A.