Born and raised in Portsmouth, Andrew McBirnie graduated with a first class degree in music from the University of Bristol, where he studied composition with Adrian Beaumont, and completed an MMus and PhD in composition at the University of London, studying at the Royal Academy of Music with Justin Connolly. He taught in Berwick-upon-Tweed and Reading, becoming Director of Music at The Oratory School.

From 2002-2008 he was Chief Examiner in Music for London College of Music Examinations (LCME), also teaching on the BMus Performance/Composition course at the University of West London. Following a brief period in the USA, during which time he taught at Oklahoma City University, Andrew became the first Director of Examinations at the Royal Academy of Dance, overseeing the RAD's examining business from strategic, operational, financial, and regulatory standpoints. During this time he was also a Trustee for the Council for Dance, Drama and Musical Theatre (CDMT) and became a leading advocate for the graded exams sector. In 2020 he moved to RSL Awards as Chief Examiner, subsequently Head of Standards and Awarding and Head of Operations. In April 2025 he returned to LCME as Chief Examiner in Music.

A former composer finalist in the BBC Young Musician of the Year, Andrew studied at Tanglewood with Henri Dutilleux, and at Dartington with Peter Sculthorpe. His music has been performed throughout the UK and internationally by a wide range of orchestras, ensembles and soloists, broadcast on Radio 3, and commercially recorded by Onyx Brass and the Avenue A Ensemble.

He is a church organist and has also been the conductor of a community concert band. He lives in South Oxfordshire with his wife and his whippet.