Andrew Dolgon is a music educator and performer who loves to share his passion for music with others. He teaches elementary band in the Pelham School District and maintains a studio of students studying tuba. In Pelham, Andrew teaches fourth and fifth grade students in Colonial, Siwanoy, Hutchinson and Prospect Hill Elementary schools. He enjoys teaching the students and is excited to share the gift of music with each student.
Andrew previously taught sixth through twelfth grade students at the Queens School of Inquiry (QSI). He taught orchestra, band, and modern band at this school providing many options for students to choose. Andrew was able to get many of the modern band supplies and instruments through the Little Kids Rock Organization. He was also able to build the instrumental program by relentlessly contacting New York City schools that would be closing the following year and using the instruments they kept in storage for his students. Almost overnight the school went from having no band instruments to over 150! These instruments were influential to shaping new curriculum and providing students with the needs required to be able to play in a concert band, orchestra and modern band. In 2019 he took the ninth grade band to NYSSMA Majors to create more interest in band. Before Andrew taught at QSI he taught music to students in Parochial schools throughout Long Island and New York City.
Image Credit: Joe Busuito
When Andrew is not teaching, he enjoys playing tuba in multiple ensembles. He currently plays with the Brooklyn Wind Symphony, Tappan Zee Bridgemen, and the Westchester Community Band. Andrew studied tuba from some notable teachers throughout his collegiate experience including Velvet Brown, Aaron Tindall, Mark Lusk, Ronald Romm, Sergio Carolino, Steven Mead, Roland Szentpali, and Roger Bobo. He has performed at multiple venues including The Krannert Center for the Performing Arts (Champaign, IL), The Brucknerhaus in Linz Austria, and David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center.
Image Credit: Bradley Leeb
In May of 2016 Andrew finished his masters degree in music performance at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. At Illinois he assisted the Marching Illini as a graduate teaching assistant and perform in multiple ensembles. These ensembles include the Wind Symphony, Tuba Euphonium Ensemble Midway Brass Quintet and the A.A. Harding Brass Quintet. Right before he attended the University of Illinois, he attended Penn State University.
Image Credit: Luke Gall
At Penn State he performed in multiple ensembles including the Symphonic Band, and the Tuba Euphonium Ensemble conducted by Velvet Brown. As an upperclassman he held many important roles within multiple music organizations. In 2012 he was elected to be the treasure of the Tuba Euphonium Ensemble. During his time as treasure and with the help of Velvet Brown, he was able to get funding for artists such as Kate Wohlman, Steven Mead and Roland Szentpali to visit Penn State to give masterclasses and recitals. He was also able to get funding for the Tuba Euphonium Ensemble to attend and perform at professional conferences. The two conferences the studio attended were The United States Army Band Tuba Euphonium Workshop held at Fort Myer, Virginia; and the North East Regional Tuba Euphonium Conference held at Ithaca College.
Community Involvement
In 2008 Andrew had the great opportunity to play with 51 other great tuba and euphonium players from the Tri-State (New York, New Jersey, Connecticut) on Good Morning America for a concert promoting Tuba Christmas in New York City and around the country. He has also attended Tuba Christmas events in New York City since 2001 when he was the youngest tuba player in the crowd! In 2011 and 2012 Andrew was given the opportunity to bring the Penn State Blue Band baritone and sousaphone section to the Tuba Christmas concert in New York City! Andrew and the Penn State Blue Band ensemble had a wonderful time joining the great tradition started by Harvey Phillips in 1974.
Image Credit: Elanor Savage
