Annie Stevens

Virginia Tech

Annie Stevens, an active soloist and chamber musician throughout the U.S. and internationally, is the Associate Professor of Percussion at Virginia Tech, member of the Escape Ten Duo, and Principal Timpanist of the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra. Annie has performed and lectured at over 40 universities, numerous international conferences, and was featured on NPR’s “Performance Today.” As an educator, Annie’s students have won several awards and competitions, including acceptance into Carnegie Hall’s prestigious NYO2 and NYO touring orchestras, winning first place at the Percussive Arts Society Chamber Music Competition at PASIC, and being awarded full scholarships for graduate study after completing their degrees at Virginia Tech. In 2023, she was awarded the Alumni Enterprise Award from the Music Academy of the West.

As a member of the percussion duo Escape Ten, Annie maintains an active performance calendar around the United States and abroad, having recently given  performances in 2024 in Montreal, Texas, Delaware and Indiana, as well as giving the U.S. premiere of John Psathas’ double concerto, The All-Seeing Sky, in 2023 with the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra. Escape Ten has released several video recordings, publishes new works under the Escape X Series through Keyboard Percussion Publications, and their Escape Ten Signature Mallets are available through Malletech. The duo has also performed a keyboard showcase concert at the 2016 PASIC, the Leigh Howard Stevens Summer Marimba Festival, Atlanta’s prestigious Spivey Hall, Orlando’s Steinmetz Hall, the Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia, Jacksonville’s Cummer Museum, and numerous universities in the U.S. and abroad. They have released two albums, Colours of a Groove and Our Favorite Things.

As the principal timpanist for the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra, she was recognized as “impeccably responsive” by the Roanoke Times. She has also performed with the festival orchestras of the Music Academy of the West, the National Orchestral Institute, the Aspen Music Festival, Ensemble Evolution with the International Contemporary Ensemble, the Metropolis Ensemble, and the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra (Florida).

As an advocate for new percussion solos and chamber music, Annie has been a part of commissioning over 45 new works for percussion. She has been featured in performances at the International Computer Music Conference, the Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the U.S., and the New Interfaces for Musical Expression conference. She performs in a faculty quartet, October Sky, whose mission is to actively commission, record, and perform works for tenor, violin, cello, and percussion. Their debut album, October Skies, was released on the MSR Label in 2023.

Annie’s primary teachers include Michael Burritt, Alan Abel, Chip Ross, Bill Cahn, She-e Wu, and Tom McGowan, and she holds degrees from Northwestern University (B.M.), Rutgers University (M.M.) and The Eastman School of Music (D.M.A). Annie endorses Malletech, Remo, Black Swamp Percussion, and Dream Cymbals and Gongs, and she is the Chapter President for the Percussive Arts Society, Virginia/D.C. Region. She lives in Blacksburg, VA with her husband and violinist, John Irrera, and their two daughters.