Nikki Melville

Education & Professional History

Victoria University (Wellington), BMus; Eastman School of Music, MMus, DMA

New Zealand pianist Nicola Melville has been described as “having an original and intelligent musical mind” (Waikato Times), “a marvelous pianist who plays with splashy color but also exquisite tone and nuance” (American Record Guide), and “the sort of advocate any composer would love” (Dominion Post). Her live performances and recordings have been broadcast on Canadian, U.S., New Zealand, South African, and Chinese radio, and she has been involved in numerous interdisciplinary projects with dancers, filmmakers, and visual artists. Nicola won both the National Concerto Competition and the Auckland Star Concerto Competition while in New Zealand, and has been a prizewinner in several competitions in the U.S., including being the winner of the SAI Concerto Competition at the Chautauqua Music Festival. Concerts include appearances in Chile, New Zealand, the UK, and around the U.S. She has collaborated with members of the Kronos, PUBLIQuartet, and JACK quartets, and with members of the Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland, Minnesota, and Saint Paul Chamber orchestras.

Nicola has degrees from the Victoria University School of Music, Wellington, and the Eastman School of Music. While at Eastman, Nicola was awarded the Lizzie T. Mason prize for Outstanding Graduate Pianist, and the prestigious Performer’s Certificate. She has won grants from such organizations as Meet the Composer, Creative New Zealand, the Argosy Fund for Contemporary Music, and the Jerome Program for the commissioning, performing, and recording of new and existing works, and has recorded for the Innova and Equilibrium labels, She is Co-Chair of the piano program at the Chautauqua Music Festival, New York, and is pianist for the Twin Cities contemporary music group, Zeitgeist, with whom she tours regularly, and performs 30-40 concerts a year.