Biography:
- Nick has worked in a variety of situations including pop and function bands, jazz ensembles, musical theatre and symphony orchestras.
- Private Percussion Instructor (September 2012 – Present) Self-Employed
- In his capacity as an instructor, Nick evaluates student’s abilities and interests and develops a curriculum to suit them. The position requires motivating students to practice and presenting criticism in an approachable way. Most importantly students should walk away with the tools to teach themselves in the future.
- University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Bands (September 2010 – May 2014) Percussion Coach. In this role Nick was responsible for the tutelage of the youth band program’s percussionists. This included one-to-one coaching, presenting master classes on a range of subjects including fundamentals, extended technique and professionalism. Many of these students have gone on the study percussion at University.
- Permanent Positions Will Pears-Cooper Trio (2017-Present); Drummer/Percussionist Big Style Brass Band (2012 – 2016); Snare Drummer/Percussionist Concord Chamber Orchestra (2013 – 2016); Principal Percussionist Sunset Playhouse (2015 – 2016) Drummer/Percussionist.
Education:
- Leeds College of Music Graduated September 28th, 2017 MMus Creative Musician Graduated with Distinction. Nick’s recitals focused around midi triggering and creative controller design to allow for freer improvisation of live electronics in performance.
- University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Graduated May 18th, 2014 BMus in Jazz Studies Awards: 2013, 2014. UWM Jazz Ensemble Scholarship Recipient Graduated with Honours (Must have a cumulative grade-point average above 3.5), Sophomore Honours Special Skills.
- Youth Education: Nick has over seven years experience teaching primary and secondary school aged students privately and through various institutions. Nick’s teaching experience ranges from jazz and pop drumset, classical section playing, contemporary percussion ensemble and marching percussion.
- DAW Proficiency: Nick is confident in Ableton, especially in live performance applications. He is also capable in Logic and Pro Tools for recording and mixing. Nick uses a wide range of soft synths, VSTs and Max devices. Nick can design custom MIDI control interfaces for TouchOSC and have a strong understanding of MIDI protocol.
- Performance Controlled Lighting: Through MIDI and DMX conversion, Nick can create lighting effects that react to live performance in ways that would otherwise need to be synchronized to a sequencer.
- Studio Engineering: While most of Nick’s experience lies in recording drums and percussion, he has a working understanding of recording desk and studio architecture.
Contact details: