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Teddy Abrams

Edward "Teddy" Paul Maxwell Abrams (born May 6, 1987) is an American conductor, pianist, clarinetist, and composer. He is currently Music Director of the Louisville Orchestra and the Britt Festival Orchestra.[1]

Teddy Abrams

Edward Paul Maxwell Abrams

(1987-05-06) May 6, 1987

Berkeley, California, United States

Conductor/Composer/Instrumentalist

1998-present

Early life and education[edit]

Abrams was born in Berkeley, California, to non-musician parents, and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. Abrams is a fourth-generation American. His ancestors immigrated to the US from Russia, Poland, and Hungary.[2] Abrams started improvising on piano at the age of three and began formal lessons at the age of five. At age of eight, Abrams began playing clarinet, in elementary school band, and he developed an interest in conducting, after seeing a San Francisco Symphony performance at age of nine. He began studying conducting and musicianship with Michael Tilson Thomas, the Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony, at the age of 12.


Abrams never attended middle or high school. Instead, he took general education courses at community colleges in the Bay Area, including Laney College and Foothill College, from age 11 to 16.[3] He then transferred to the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, graduating with a Bachelor of Music at age 18 and studying piano with Paul Hersh and clarinet with David Breeden. In 2005, Abrams entered the Curtis Institute of Music as a conducting major, studying with Otto-Werner Mueller and Ford Lallerstedt. Abrams also studied with David Zinman at the Aspen Music Festival and School. Abrams was the youngest conducting student ever accepted at both Curtis and Aspen.[4]

Unified Field (2016) for orchestra

Overture In Sonata Form (2014) for orchestra

Still Standing (2014) for voice and orchestra

Kentucky Royal Fanfare (2015) for brass ensemble

Fiddling (2015) for string orchestra

Questions (2015) for voice and orchestra

Schubertiade (2015) for violin or two violins and piano or orchestra

Rye Smooth (2015) for jazz ensemble

Actuality (2014) for piano or ensemble

Seconds (2015) for jazz ensemble

Romance (2015) for contrabass and orchestra

The Well And The Road (2014) for voice and orchestra

Rock (2012) for clarinet, bassoon, and piano

Sixth Floor (2007) for clarinet, bassoon, violin, bass, vibraphone, drumset, piano

Bassoon Sonata (2007) for bassoon and piano

(2022)

Piano Concerto

2007 Aspen Composition Contest

2016 Innovation Award[17]

Louisville Fund for the Arts

2024 Grammy for Best Classical Instrumental Solo for The American Project

The Order of Nature – ( with Teddy Abrams and the Louisville Orchestra) (2019)

Jim James

Official Website of Teddy Abrams

Website of the Louisville Orchestra

Website of the Britt Festival

Music Makes a City Now! Web Series featuring Teddy Abrams

discography at Discogs

Teddy Abrams