A native of Edinburg, Texas, double bassist Andres Vela is senior performance major at the University of Texas at Rio Grande valley(UTRGV), where he is a student of George Amorim.
As a solo and orchestral player, he has received many accolades. As a member of the National Youth Orchestra of the USA, he performed at Carnegie Hall and went on tour in China under Maestro Charles Dutoit in 2015. He has also participated in the Festival Institute at Round Top, Classical Music Institute (San Antonio), Aruba Symphony Festival, Suoni Dal Golfo Music Festival (Lerici,Italy), Texas Music Festival, and the Aspen Music Festival. In 2016, he received honorable mention in the American String Teachers Association Solo Competition, won the UTRGV concerto competition, and was most recently awarded first prize at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Young Artist Competition as part of the Texas Music Festival. He has performed in masterclasses for many artists including Scott Pingel, James Vandemark, Jeffrey Bradetich, and Thierry Barbe.
Andres is a product of the Edinburg CISD orchestra program where he attended Economedes High School and was a 4-year member of the legendary Texas All-State Orchestra.
