Biography

Seattle-based tubist Andy Abel enjoys an active performance and teaching career spanning the West Coast. He serves as Principal Tubist with the Hawai’i Symphony Orchestra (Honolulu, HI), Spokane Symphony (Spokane, WA), and Oregon Ballet Theatre (Portland, OR), and is on the faculty at Pacific Lutheran University (Tacoma, WA).

In 2014, Andy became the youngest-ever tuba fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center (Lenox, MA), where he studied and performed with members of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. From 2019 to 2023, he was a fellow with the New World Symphony (Miami Beach, FL). Founded by maestro Michael Tilson Thomas, New World is America’s orchestral academy—an innovative institution shaping the future of classical music with alumni performing and teaching in over 30 countries across the globe.

He is a frequent guest with his hometown Seattle Symphony and Seattle Opera. He has also shared the stage with leading American orchestras including the Cincinnati, St. Louis, and Baltimore Symphony Orchestras. A seasoned studio musician, his diverse recording credits include the Emmy-winning television series Community and DOTA 2, a video game with a daily player base of over 800,000. He can also be heard on two Seattle Symphony recordings: The Unchanging Sea (2018) and The Flying Lotus (2017). His summer festival appearances include the Britt Festival, Spoleto Festival USA, Music Academy of the West, and the Pierre Monteux School and Music Festival.

In addition to his role at Pacific Lutheran, Andy maintains a private teaching studio for middle and high school students across the Puget Sound region. He has been a guest lecturer at numerous institutions, leading masterclasses at Oberlin College, the University of Oregon, the University of Washington, and others. He also serves on the faculty of the annual Midsummer Music Retreat (Walla Walla, WA), where adult musicians of all skill levels come together in a non-competitive setting to learn, perform, and have fun.

Beyond his performance and teaching work, Andy has built a parallel career in professional fundraising. He has served on development teams for major symphony orchestras, specializing in connecting with prospective donors and creating meaningful opportunities to deepen philanthropic engagement in support of classical music.

Andy holds a Bachelor of Music from the University of Washington, where he studied with Christopher Olka (Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra), and a Master of Music from the Colburn School, where he studied with Norman Pearson (retired, Los Angeles Philharmonic).

He lives in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood with his wife and two cats, Merry and Pippin. Outside of music, Andy enjoys skiing, watching baseball, and collecting vinyl records.

Andy plays an Eastman EBC836, Miraphone 1281 “Petrushka”, and a Dillon Music F cimbasso.