Born in Melbourne in 1968, Andrew Batterham showed early interest in music and studied the piano, trumpet and organ before pursuing composition studies at Melbourne University with Peter Tahourdin, Brenton Broadstock and Barry Connyngham. He attended several music camps as an instrumentalist and composer in two states, including two National Music Camps in 1987 and 1988 in Sydney with Graham Hair, as part of the inaugural composer intake. He then continued his studies at the Victorian College of the Arts with Mark Pollard, before gaining valuable experience in the corporate industry through hands-on experience with the likes of Michael Easton.
After this he was awarded the inaugural Queensland Philharmonic Corbould Composition Prize for Thugine Legend, the Qantas Youth Award (part of the Paul Lowin Prize) for Triptych, a high commendation in the Albert Maggs Award and several commendations in the National Songwriting Contest. Various commissioning bodies include Symphony Australia, Musica Viva and many private organisations.
Since the late 1990’s he has become increasingly involved in music for the screen and corporate music in general, composing soundtracks for short films and TV commercials. Corporate clients include P&O Liners, Ego Pharmaceuticals, Applied Kinetics Metal and various in-house video soundtracks. He has written for jazz legend James Morrison, the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, countless schools and many live jazz, rock and Latin bands.
As a performer Andrew has appeared with a multitude of professional ensembles and is a keen participant in the live music industry. He is represented by the Australian Music Centre and is a member of APRA, MAGA, the Fellowship of Australian Composers and the Melbourne Composers’ League.