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, 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.