Andrew Larsen-Saxophone, Flute and Clarinet

A multi-instrumentalist, soloist, studio musician, performer and educator, Utah-based saxophonist Andrew Larsen is well-known as a performer and recording artist throughout the Utah Valley. A native of Portland, Oregon, Andrew grew up without any plans of becoming a musician. It wasn’t until he decided to play the saxophone at age 12 that he discovered his passion for music. While in Portland, he studied with renowned musicians such as John Savage, Greg McKelvey, Melissa Robinson, Vladimir Kramarchuk, Kim Reece, Thara Memry, Derek Simms, and John Gross.

Andrew studied at Brigham Young University under Ray Smith, where he earned a BM in Saxophone Performance in 2018. While there, he performed as a member of the BYU Synthesis Big Band as a featured soloist, sharing the stage with the likes of Gladys Knight, Peter Hollens, Konrad Herwig, Ed Calle, Corey Christianson, and others. In 2016 he went with Synthesis on a tour of Eastern Europe, where he and the band performed at the Salkrastu Jazz Festival. He can be heard as a featured soloist on the tracks “Laura” and “Downtime” from the  BYU Synthesis Album Downtime (2018). On the classical side, he was selected as a finalist three years in a row for the BYU Concerto Competition, played tenor saxophone from 2015 to 2017 in the BYU Wind Symphony, and played principal clarinet in the BYU Symphony orchestra in 2018. Among other exploits, he collaborated with Utah-based vocalist Emily Merrell in her group’s 2018 performance at the Jazz Education Network Conference in Dallas, Texas, and was selected as a member of the Salt Lake City-based Halliday-Christiansen Project later that year.

Andrew went on to study at the University of North Texas from 2020 to 2022, earning a master’s degree in jazz studies in May of his final year. There he played tenor saxophone in the seven-time Grammy-nominated One O’Clock Lab Band under the direction of Alan Baylock. He is a featured soloist on two albums with the One O’Clock, Lab 2021 and Lab 2022. While on the Dallas-Fort Worth music scene, he performed with a wide array of musicians, including Quincy Davis, Brad Leali, and Dave Meder. In addition to performing, Andrew was a Graduate Teaching Fellow of Jazz Saxophone, a position which gave him the opportunity to instruct undergraduate students in jazz studies as well as classical DMA candidates. He was also inducted into the Alpha Alpha chapter of the Society of Pi Kappa Lambda in April 2021.

Upon graduating from UNT, Andrew returned to the Utah Valley. He continues to perform, compose and educate with many of the prominent artists on the scene. He lives in Spanish Fork with his wife and daughter.