Calm, unassuming, and extremely humble - Andy’s demeanor belies his globally recognized musical accomplishments with the steelpan instrument.
Global - Quiet but passionate, unassuming but already musically an aficionado, Andy Akiho’s journey with the steelpan instrument began seventeen years ago at the University of South Carolina – and there’s just so much more to come. It is evident that not only his audiences but also the music world globally has sat up and taken note of this young man on his extraordinary evolutionary path. His most recent award (as at the time of this interview) is the Luciano Berio Rome Prize from The American Academy in Rome as one of the thirty-odd winners of the 118th annual Rome Prize Competition – in Akiho’s case, with a focus on Musical Composition - New Works for Orchestra, and interrelated with his work as a Ph.D. Candidate in Music Composition at Princeton.
A graduate of the University of South Carolina (BM, performance), the Manhattan School of Music (MM, contemporary performance), and the Yale School of Music (MM, composition), Akiho is currently a Ph.D. candidate at Princeton University.
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