Staff Sergeant Abbey Young joined the West Point Band in 2023. A native of central Pennsylvania, she earned a Bachelor of Music from Indiana University, where she studied with Howard Klug. She later earned a Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Texas at Austin, where she served as a teaching assistant to Jonathan Gunn and an assistant instructor of clarinet. Staff Sgt. Young has performed with the Paragon Ragtime Orchestra, Greater Newburgh Symphony Orchestra, Texas Festival Orchestra, and the contemporary chamber orchestra Density 512. During her five years in Austin, she led the Pure Goodness Music Collective, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing empowering musical opportunities to musicians who have experienced long-term homelessness in Austin. As the recipient of the Rainwater Innovation Grant for American Music and the Presser Graduate Music Award, Staff Sgt. Young used grant funds to support the collective’s mission. Her work included organizing live music festivals, open mic events, and recording a studio album featuring musicians from the Pure Goodness Music Collective.
