“Astounding virtuosity…I had no idea how agile a bass player could be!”
John Bridcut
Driven by his desire to push the limits of his instrument, American double bassist Levi Andreassen is a sought-after soloist and chamber musician.
Recent highlights include concerto performances with the London Mozart Players and the Young Musicians String Orchestra in Turin, Italy, and solo appearances at Wigmore Hall, Royal Albert Hall’s Elgar Room, St John’s Waterloo in a shared recital alongside pianist Melvyn Tan, and multiple appearances on BBC Radio 3’s In Tune. Across festival and concert series, Levi has performed for the Petworth Music Festival, Beaminster Music Festival, Concerts at Cratfield, Bob Boas’ series Music at Mansfield, Kirker Music Festivals at both Reid’s Hotel in Madeira and The Grand Hotel in Eastbourne, the Kensington & Chelsea Music Society at Leighton House, and the Temple Music Foundation in the Inner Parliament Chamber.
Forthcoming recital engagements include Levi’s Irish debut at Music for Galway, appearances at the Sandringham House Ballroom for the North Norfolk Music Festival, Swaledale Festival, Norwich Assembly House, Riverhouse Barn, alongside a return to Leighton House for the Kensington & Chelsea Music Society. Additional upcoming dates feature an early evening recital for the Hattori Foundation as well as the William Walton Foundation at La Mortella Gardens in Ischia, Italy.
Levi is a founding member of the Vaughan Williams Ensemble and collaborates regularly with leading ensembles across the UK and Europe. Recent highlights include extensive performances with Ensemble 360 - featuring a Schubertiade at the Castle Hotel in Taunton and performances at Gresham’s 2026 Summer Festival and St Cross, Winchester - as well as appearances at the 2026 Corbridge Chamber Music Festival alongside clarinettist Robert Plane and members of the Gould Piano Trio. Levi has also performed alongside the Fibonacci Quartet, Piatti Quartet, Sacconi Quartet, the Marryat Players, the Kleio Quartet and Jams Coleman, at series and venues such as London Chamber Music Series, Broughton Castle, and Vienna’s Stadtpalais Liechtenstein.
Forthcoming chamber collaborations feature projects with the Solem Quartet, the Leonore Trio, Lumas Winds, AERA Ensemble, and the Carducci Quartet alongside Charles Owen, as well as further appearances with Ensemble 360, the Kleio Quartet, and the Vaughan Williams Ensemble.
Outside of performance, Levi has recently taken on the role of Consultant Curator at the North Norfolk Music Festival from 2026 onwards, working closely with Co-Directors Simon Rowland-Jones and Barry Cheeseman. Furthermore, Levi took part in the opening concert of the 2026 Summer Festival with a performance at The Marble Hall at Holkham.
Levi is a passionate educator, having served on the faculty of Gresham’s Summer School and Festival, with an upcoming workshop at the University of Galway in collaboration with Music for Galway and masterclasses at other universities.
As a recording artist, Levi has been featured on Orchid Classics’ album “Around the World in 80 Minutes” in duo with bassist Nathan Perry, tracked sessions at Abbey Road Studios, and performed on RVW’s Five Mystical Songs alongside Roderick Williams, the Sacconi Quartet, and William Vann for Albion Records.
A laureate of numerous international competitions, Levi was recently awarded 1st Prize at the 2025 Haslemere International String Competition as well as 1st Prize at the 2023 International Society of Bassists Youth Solo Competition, 2023 London Classical Music Competition and the 2022 Caneres International Competition. Additionally, Levi was a winner of the Charles R. Hall Competition in 2018, where he had the opportunity to perform Bottesini’s Concerto No. 2 with the Missouri Philharmonic Orchestra, an ensemble with whom he now regularly collaborates. Levi is also the recipient of a full scholarship for the 2025 and 2026 Keshet Eilon Mastercourse held in Altea, Spain, becoming the first double bassist to attend the course.
As an orchestral musician, Levi has worked closely with conductors such as Vasily Petrenko, the late Sir Andrew Davis, Sakari Oramo, Chloe van Soeterstede, and Jac van Steen in renowned venues such as the Royal Albert Hall for the BBC Proms in 2024, Royal Festival Hall and Cadogan Hall in London. Levi will also give performances of Tchaikovsky’s ‘Swan Lake’ alongside the Royal Ballet Sinfonia and Royal Birmingham Ballet at the Birmingham Hippodrome and Sadler’s Wells in London in the coming season.
Levi is currently completing his Bachelor of Music with Caroline Emery at the Royal College of Music in London as a Neville Wathan Full Scholar supported by the Brian Carr Award, after having graduated from the Yehudi Menuhin School in 2023. Levi is generously supported by the Hattori Foundation, and plays on an 1892-1893 Carlo Loveri double bass, on a long-term loan by an anonymous supporter.
Personal Statement
“I frequently witness the surprise that people have when they first encounter the double bass as a solo instrument. The expressive capabilities and virtuosity of this instrument are often overlooked, and I would attribute this to the stereotypes that tend to be associated with the instrument, particularly from its role in orchestras. My goal is to break down some of these misconceptions and barriers in classical music, as well as to give people a chance to discover the unique qualities of this often underestimated instrument.
By exploring new repertoire as well as pre existing repertoire for other instruments, I hope to give innovative performances which showcase what the double bass is capable of. I am also passionate about both expanding and sustaining an audience for classical music. As a result, I have been active on social media, reaching millions of people and garnering a following of over fifty thousand. I believe that the internet and social media can be a massive tool to draw more eyes to classical music as a genre, as well as to the double bass specifically.”
Levi Andreassen
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