About | Music

Alto saxophonist Andrew Shapiro has made a sizeable impression in the jazz scene around Lincoln Center and New York as a whole. Hailing from a small town just forty-five minutes north of Boston Massachusetts, Andrew had to forge his own musical path with the little opportunities he was given. At age 14, he began lessons with long-time family friend Janusz Kowalski and began his studies of alto legends such as Charlie Parker, Cannonball Adderly, Jackie McLean, Sonny Stitt, Dick Oatts, Johnny Hodges, etc. Due to the fact that he was one of the only saxophonists in his home town, he quickly developed a reupation from playing the local bars and restaurants.

In 2021, he moved to New York City and attended Fordham College at Lincoln Center, eventually finding his way collaborating with Matt Buttermann. Since arriving in New York, Andrew’s musical scope expanded dramatically as he began working with some of the top working jazz artists in New York such as Gary Smulyan, Walter Blanding, Melissa Aldana, Ingrid Jensen, Allison Miller, Sean Jones, Ron Carter, and many more. Taking advantage of studying in such an important location for the arts, Andrew began studying at the Juilliard School’s evening division under the tutilage of Dr. Evan Fein. In 2024, he started studying with Markus Howell, a former member of the Count Basie Orchestra and currently a member of Michael Buble’s orchestra. Since plugging into New York’s vibrant culture, he started playing around the city at many notable venues including Carnegie Hall, Nublu, 54 Below, The Greenroom 42, Pier 60, and others.

In addition to his performance career in jazz, Andrew is a passionate music director, educator, and composer. Andrew has music directed theatrical works such as The House of Bernarda Alba, Ordinary Days, Threepenny Opera, Antigone and other developing projects from rising artists including works from the Columbia University graduate school of theatre. As an educator, Andrew conducts workshops and clinics to high school students around the tri-state area, focused on providing an in depth and personalized journey of improvisation and self-expression for his students. He also is a primary teaching assistant for “Jazz Arts Collective”, a summer jazz workshop hosted at Lincoln Center.

Andrew’s pursuit of effective collaboration and possibility makes him stand out as an artist. His focus on uplifting the voices of his peers and fellow musicians faciliates the music he makes to shine as a collective voice instead of an individual type of playing, as he values reactive playing that connects the unique voices of the players in the band and the audience.