About Me

My name is Andy Bart. I grew up in Astoria, New York and attended the Bronx High School of Science, the University of Pennsylvania and Columbia Law School. Thereafter, I had a 46 year career as a trial lawyer primarily at Pryor Cashman (1983-2006) and Jenner and Block (2006- 2024) specializing in copyright and music industry litigation.

In high school I was a driven student who took the fledgling debate team to the National Finals in the team’s second year of existence. In my limited free time, I was a typical late 60s rock and roll kid- barely old enough to see most of the great bands of the time in places like the Fillmore East and Shaefer Music Festival. I started writing poetry in the summer of 1970 and it has remained a cathartic release for me to this day.

When I got to Penn, I threw myself into the college radio station, WXPN, where I was Program Director of the AM station and a disc jockey on the FM station doing 3-4 shows a week including overnight shows where I taught myself rudimentary jazz on the fly. Jazz became an increasing focus as rock evolved into disco and after starting my legal career in 1978, I began frequenting the jazz clubs of NYC and fell in love with the vibe and the music.

During my years at Pryor Cashman, I represented and became friends with significant players in the jazz world, including Joe Fields of Muse Records and Michael Cuscuna- one of the most significant jazz producers of the last half century. Joe gave me the opportunity to write liner notes for the label and to produce the commercial release of four CDs containing live performances of Woody Shaw at the Keystone Korner in San Francisco.

At the time I was winding down my legal career, I got the opportunity, through the well-respected DJ and jazz critic, Rob Hoff, to host his show on WQLN for a week. I did a 4 part documentary on the jazz club scene in NYC in the 80s and 90s which rekindled my desire to host my own show. Shortly thereafter, Brent Banulis, the Program Director of WETF asked me if I was interested in doing a weekly show on that station. While building a home studio and learning to use the technology took time, Expansions slowly took shape so that now, after a year and a half of weekly shows, it has its own personality. Getting the opportunity to curate and comment on the music I love is a great gift.

I began a daily meditation practice in 2017 that profoundly changed my perspective on the world. I did a five day silent retreat in 2019. Shortly thereafter, Covid shut the world down. Spending that time with my two sons at my home on the NY side of the Berkshires slowed the engine that had driven my life and showed the possibilities of a post-retirement world. Retiring at the end of 2024 was a profound shift in perspective and priorities. My world now focuses on experience instead of achievement which allows me to better appreciate the profound gift of life