PRESS
Le Devoir
"Andrew Crust...competently championed an original program exploring the musical world of British Cinema...The conductor's command of the entire program should be emphasized, he conducted everything very well.
Vancouver Sun
"We're lucky that this exquisite rendering of a delicate, enchanting piece will be preserved for posterity. I'd go so far as to say that this would be an instant JUNO contender if the work was put on disc."
Rutland Herald
"Throughout the playing was excellent. The VSO has continued to grow in quality and stature, and Crust, now in his second season as music director, deserves plenty of credit. There was clearly a comfortable rapport between conductor and players throughout the performance."
Rutland Herald
"Crust...seems to have a real rapport with the excellent players of the VSO, and it was audible and visible. Crust achieved the [Brahms'] power and grandeur with the cohesive sound the orchestra that has been building for the past 20 years. Crust carefully engineers the structure, from delicacy to brilliance, building to the whole of the music."
Review Vancouver
"Maestro Andrew Crust's interpretation of the Capriol Suite is vigorous, yet tender..."
Classical Voice North America
"Andrew Crust...speaks fluent French and delivered his spoken introductions with a good deal of wit and flair."
Rutland Herald
"Crust and the VSO delivered all the delicacy and color and underlying passion of this gorgeous work (Boulanger D'un matin de printenps). The playing was precise throughout, but never missed the shadings of emotion. It was an excellent performance of a masterpiece.
Preceding three selections from Sergei Prokofiev’s 1935 “Romeo and Juliet” Suite No. 2, Crust delivered a short but penetrating lecture on the work that included illustrations by members of the VSO. He analyzed the three movements, explaining how Prokofiev’s music illustrated the Shakespeare tragedy. The musical detail and illustrations made Crust’s presentation compelling — and, indeed, fascinating."
BIO
American-Canadian conductor Andrew Crust has developed a versatile international career spanning orchestral, opera, ballet, film, and popular repertoire.
In his fourth season as Music Director of the Vermont Symphony Orchestra, Crust leads a wide range of performances across the state and collaborates with artists including Sir Stephen Hough, Béla Fleck, Bella Hristova, Simone Porter, Joshua Roman, Adam Tendler, Jennifer Koh, and Tracy Silverman. Special initiatives include the world premiere of Nico Muhly’s piano concerto Sounding, launching a new Pops series, revitalizing the Young People’s Concerts, and he continues to develop novel community-driven artistic collaborations each season.
In the United States, Crust has appeared as guest conductor with the San Diego, Phoenix, Arkansas, Hartford, Memphis, Rockford, Elgin, Chattanooga, Billings, Bozeman, Alexandria, and Wichita symphonies, as well as the Mostly Modern Festival and many others. In Canada he has conducted the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Calgary Philharmonic, Orchestre Métropolitain, and the Vancouver, Nova Scotia, Winnipeg, Laval, Vancouver Island, Windsor and Saskatoon symphonies. International appearances include the Orchestra Giovanile Italiana, Hamburger Symphoniker, Moravian Philharmonic, and Orquesta Sinfónica de Chile
During his six-year tenure as Music Director of the Lima Symphony Orchestra, Crust collaborated with artists including Charles Yang, Geneva Lewis, Amit Peled, Sandeep Das, Awadagin Pratt, and Laquita Mitchell. His leadership expanded the orchestra’s programming diversity, increased ticket sales, initiated new recording projects, and led to the commissioning of new works. He also created innovative community and education programs, including newly scripted full-orchestra family concerts.
Equally active in the pit, Crust has conducted ballet with Ballet BC, the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Ballet Memphis, and New Ballet Ensemble, and opera with Opera McGill, College Light Opera Company, Boulder Opera, and others. As a pops conductor he has collaborated with Rufus Wainwright, Steven Page, Tony DeSare, Michael Bolton, Dee Daniels, Cirque de la Symphonie, and the United States Jazz Ambassadors, and is also an experienced conductor of film-with-orchestra productions.
Crust is a recipient of the Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Award (2020). He was awarded the “Premio a la Proyección” at the Llíria City of Music International Conducting Competition (2021) and first prize at the Accademia Chigiana under Daniele Gatti (2017). He was also a semifinalist for the Salzburg Festival Young Conductors Award and a recipient of the Vienna Philharmonic’s Ansbacher Fellowship, including residency at the Salzburger Festspiele.
Crust served as Assistant Conductor of the National Youth Orchestra of the USA (NYO-USA) in 2017–18, assisting Michael Tilson Thomas on tour in Asia, and working with Giancarlo Guerrero and Marin Alsop at Carnegie Hall, including a side-by-side performance with the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Crust is committed to expanding the reach of orchestral music through innovative programming, community-focused collaborations, and performances in both traditional and non-traditional venues.
(Updated March 2026)
