The Andromeda Sax Quartet is a rising chamber ensemble composed of four friends, each an advocate for the often obscure world of ‘classical’ saxophone.
Formed in 2022 on Gadigal land, the members of Andromeda met as students at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, and formed a quartet to compete as finalists in the conservatorium’s Concerto Competition. Since then, they’ve enjoyed performing together not only across Australia but the world.
In 2023, Andromeda were winners of the prestigious Henderson Scholarship, enabling them to travel to the European University of Saxophone in Gap, France, where they received mentorship from some of the most renowned saxophonists in Europe.
Andromeda were featured artists in Dots+Loops 2023 PLAYBACK Festival, Brisbane, curating a set that involved several Australian premieres. They were the first ensemble to perform at the Sydney Botanic Gardens Amphitheatre, and have enjoyed numerous performances across Sydney, including at the University of Sydney, NSW Parliament and as a featured artist in the Wollemi Chamber Society’s 2024 chamber season.
July 2024 saw the quartet take to Townsville, Queensland for the annual Australian Festival of Chamber Music, where they were mentored as part of the International Masterclass program.
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Paige Gullifer, soprano saxophone graduated from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music with First Class Honours. In 2024 she will embark on a Masters in Musicology after being awarded a Global Excellence Scholarship from University College Dublin. Paige adores both chamber music and writing, and has spent her emerging career juggling these two passions. As writer, she is a pre-concert speaker for the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and writes program notes for Australia's major symphony orchestras. As a saxophonist, she has performed with the Australian Youth Orchestra and NSW Police Band, and enjoys a vibrant freelance career across Sydney.
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Ryan Piccione, alto saxophone is an honours student at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, researching the role of electronics in classical saxophone pedagogy. Heralding from Merimbula, music accessibility and education are a key part of his mission. Ryan has been awarded the Kirkpix scholarship and has been involved in the Merimbula Jazz Festival, Four Winds Youth and Easter Festivals and has also had the opportunity to play with Sydney Youth Orchestra.
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Henry Docker, tenor saxophone is a current student at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Passionate about chamber music, he joined Andromeda Sax Quartet in 2024, accompanying the ensemble to the Australian Festival of Chamber Music in Townsville. This was not Andromeda’s first voyage with Henry - in 2023, as soloist he also attended the European University of Saxophone in Gap, where he worked with esteemed saxophonists Vincent David and Claude Delangle. Henry is an advocate for contemporary music, and has worked with many emerging composers from the Sydney Conservatorium.
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Rachel Down, baritone saxophone is a musician with an eye for innovative and ambitious programming. Rachel graduated from the Sydney Conservatorium in 2023, and in 2025 will work as saxophonist as the Australian Navy Band, alongside her commitments with Andromeda. She has performed with a wide range of ensembles including the Sydney Symphony Orchestra Fellows, Woollahra Philharmonic and is a co-founder of Ensemble Mnemosyne, a multimedia project which experiments with reinventing the chamber music concert experience.