Andrew Butt Trio +

Andrew Butt has been a significant figure in the Australian music scene for over 30 years, earning multiple Queensland Music Awards and receiving prestigious honours including a Churchill Fellowship and an Australian Government Excellence Award for Music Education. He has performed as a soloist with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra and is a regular presence on national and international stages, appearing at major festivals and venues such as the Wangaratta Festival of Jazz, Le Baiser Salé and Sunset–Sunside (Paris), iF Jazz Café (Budapest), U Malého Glena (Prague), Tanks Arts Centre (Cairns), and the Paris Cat Jazz Club (Melbourne).

Andrew has led the Andrew Butt Trio+ for more than a decade, collaborating closely with his longstanding ensemble of outstanding Australian musicians: pianist Kellee Green, guitarist Toby Wren, drummer Aaron Jansz, and bassist Nick Quigley. His work as a composer has been widely performed by his own groups and by ensembles such as the Enthusiastic Musicians Orchestra (EMO), a Brisbane-based collective dedicated to new Australian jazz. In 2014, he was commissioned by Jazz Queensland, with support from the Queensland Government, to create a new work premiered at the Brisbane International Jazz Festival, returning the following year as a featured artist alongside international vocalist Wilma Reading.

He has toured extensively across Australia, the USA, and Europe, and has collaborated with leading jazz figures including James Morrison, Emma Pask, Tom Burlinson, Dan Barnett, Rhonda Burchmore, and David Campbell. His classical work includes performances with ensembles such as Musica Antiqua Collegii Sinphonia, and he has appeared with internationally recognised artists such as John Riley (Vanguard Orchestra, NYC) and award-winning vocalist Kristin Berardi.

As an educator, Andrew has made a profound and lasting impact. In 2011, he received a Special Commendation at the ASME National Conference from the Hon. Peter Garrett AM for his contributions through the Australian Government’s Quality Teacher Program. His former students now perform and compose across the world with major organisations including the Berliner Philharmoniker, Opéra National de Paris, the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, as well as contemporary ensembles such as Trichotomy and Ball Park Music.

Andrew holds degrees in both Education and Music, including a Master’s in Performance and Research from the Queensland Conservatorium – Griffith University, and a PhD in Music Performance from the University of Queensland. He has studied with esteemed saxophonists including Tony Hobbs, George Garzone, Chris Cheek, Bill McHenry, and Branford Marsalis. His international work as a performer, educator, and ensemble director spans Indonesia, Fiji, New Zealand, China, Europe, and North America.

Having led music departments in Brisbane for over three decades—including tenures at Marist College Ashgrove and Villanova College, Coorparoo—Andrew now works in a job-share teaching role while continuing his broader artistic and educational activities. He is currently an Honorary Lecturer at The University of Queensland and a member of the Artistic Team for the Brisbane International Jazz Festival, contributing to programming and creative direction. He also performs with The Francis Wolves, a dynamic Brisbane-based instrumental funk ensemble.