Violinist Andrea Dawson joined the MTSU Music Faculty in 2007. Dawson received her Master’s in Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from the Eastman School of Music, where she was awarded the coveted Performer’s Certificate. She also received a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology, with a minor in French, and a Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance from Oberlin College. Before accepting the position at MTSU, Dawson served on the faculty of the University of Texas Pan American. At MTSU, she teaches violin and viola, string chamber music, string pedagogy, and string literature, and she conducts the Chamber Orchestra. Since 2008, she has also been a member of the faculty of the Tennessee Governor’s School for the Arts.

In addition to over 60 solo and chamber music performances at MTSU, Dawson has performed as a violinist, violist, and Baroque violinist throughout Tennessee, the United States, and internationally. As a member of the Stones River Chamber Players, she has performed at Steinway Hall, New York City, as well as numerous times on WPLN Nashville for Live in Studio C. She performed with colleagues in Hangzhou, China. She performed solo recitals in Brazil, Mexico, and Curaçao. She has recorded two pieces by MTSU faculty Paul Osterfield (Navona Records) and a set of violin and tuba duos by Jan Koetsier with MTSU tuba professor Chris Combest ("Mosaic" with Melton/Meinl-Weston).

In 2023, Dawson was appointed concertmaster of the Tennessee Philharmonic Orchestra.  Her previous orchestral positions include Valley Symphony Orchestra in South Texas (as associate concertmaster) and Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. She has performed solos with orchestras including the Valley Symphony Orchestra, the Bucknell Orchestra, and the MTSU Symphony. She has performed extensively as a Baroque violinist and violist (following historically informed performance practices) with Music City Baroque, Early Music City, and Atlanta Baroque Orchestra.

In 2021, Dawson published 24 Etudes for the Modern Violinist, Book I: Early Intermediate, as well as a version for viola (Sleepy Puppy Press). At the 2022 American Viola Society Festival and 47th International Viola Congress in Columbus, Georgia, Dawson was joined by violist Dr. Ayn Balija for a presentation on her viola etude book.