About Andy Radford

Andrew Radford, Music Director of the Santa Barbara Youth Symphony since 2004, is also the Principal Bassoonist of the Santa Barbara Symphony and the California Philharmonic and is the Education Coordinator for the Ojai Music Festival. Radford was born in Berkeley, CA and moved south to attend the California Institute of the Arts. His musical education continued with performances at the Music Academy of the West, the Aspen and Spoleto Music Festivals and with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestral Training Program. Radford played for two years in Germany as the Solo Bassoonist of the Hofer Symfoniker, an orchestra in Bavaria .

As a freelance bassoonist, Radford has played with virtually every orchestra in Southern California, including the LA Chamber Orchestra, the LA Philharmonic, LA Music Center Opera, Pasadena Symphony, New West Symphony, Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra as well as the Grammy orchestra. Active in the recording studios since 1984, Radford has played in over 300 film scores. Notable among them are Forrest Gump, George of the Jungle, Back to the Future, Last of the Mohicans, Clear and Present Danger, The Negotiator, Bad Santa, The Incredibles, Mission Impossible III and August Rush.

Radford has performed with Long Beach Symphony, Pasadena Symphony, Las Angeles Chamber Orchestra, LA Music Center Opera, LA Master Chorale, Long Beach Opera, Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra, Pacific Symphony, San Francisco Opera, Las Vegas Symphony, Riverside Symphony, Santa Monica Symphony, American Ballet Theatre, Joffrey Ballet, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Ojai Music Festival, Opera Santa Barbara, California Opera Theatre, San Bernadino Symphony, Valley Symphony, Mammoth Music Festival, Redlands Symphony, Crested Butte Music Festival. Radford has soloed with orchestras in Germany and America and in 2005 performed the Mozart Bassoon Concerto with the Santa Barbara Symphony.

Other notable appearances have been at the Monterey Jazz Festival, as a winner at the Coleman Chamber Music Competition and with the Who, the Three Tenors, the Moody Blues, Josh Groban, Michael Crawford and Three Dog Night. In 2005, Radford recorded on CDs for Neil Diamond and the Dixie Chicks. Radford played in over 700 performances of the original LA production of Phantom of the Opera and has played in Broadway productions of Carousel, Miss Saigon, Beauty and the Beast and La Bohème.

Currently he is professor of Bassoon at the University of California , Santa Barbara , a post previously held at Occidental College and CSU Fullerton, Radford was active for many years in the LA Philharmonic's in-school, Woodwind program. In recent years Radford has helped design and teach the BRAVO! program for the Ojai Music Festival.

He has been a very active participant in the Santa Barbara Symphony's Education programs including the Music Van, Can You Draw Music? and several special performances with former Music Director, Gisèle Ben-Dor.

In 2001, along with his wife, Santa Barbara Symphony Violinist Amy Hagen, Radford started the Ojai Youth Symphony. This non-profit now serves Ventura County with three performing ensembles and over one hundred young musicians.