Nicola Melville, acclaimed pianist and Carleton College professor of music, will perform in concert on Friday, April 14 at 7 p.m. in the Carleton Concert Hall. Entitled “Homages,” her program will pay tribute to people and place with selections by renowned composers Debussy, Ravel, Harrison, Farr, Opel and Olivieri. This event is free and open to the public.
Originally from New Zealand, 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, including a performance at The Kennedy Center and Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall.
Melville attended Victoria University School of Music, Wellington, where she studied with Judith Clark, and then earned Masters and Doctoral degrees from the Eastman School of Music, where she was awarded the Lizzie T. Mason prize for Outstanding Graduate Pianist, and the prestigious Performer’s Certificate. She is also the recipient of both the National Concerto Competition and the Auckland Star Concerto Competition while in New Zealand, and was a winner of the SAI International Concerto Competition at the Chautauqua Music Festival in New York.
Melville has recorded for the Innova and Equilibrium labels, and is a founding member of the cross-cultural ensemble, Intersection. Since 2014 she has performed as the pianist for the Twin Cities-based new music group, Zeitgeist. In addition to teaching at Carleton, she is Artistic Co-Director of the esteemed Chautauqua Music Festival Piano Program in New York.
This event is sponsored by the Carleton College Department of Music. For more information, including disability accommodations, call (507) 222-4475. The Concert Hall is located on First Street between Winona and Nevada Streets in Northfield.
