Born: 1979 Primary Instrument: Piano
Bryan Nichols is a Minneapolis-based pianist and composer, working primarily in jazz and instrumental music. He returned to the Twin Cities in 2005 after four busy years in Chicago where he played with jazz heavyweights like Corey Wilkes, Nicole Mitchell, Ernest Dawkins, Von Freeman and Hamid Drake. Since returning to Minneapolis, he leads and composes for his own trio, his quartet/quintet and his large group, We Are Many. An in-demand freelancer, he also plays regularly with Gang Font, Kelly Rossum Quartet, James Buckley Trio, Zacc Harris Quartet and Lambeau Magic. He teaches jazz piano at MacPhail Center for Music and University of Wisconsin �” Eau Claire. Bryan was recently award a 2010 McKnight Fellowship for Performing Musicians, a prestigious and competitive award for Minnesota musicians. He was also awarded a 2004 residency by Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead program, at the Kennedy Center, given to outstanding, emerging jazz performer/composers. His work as a composer also earned him a subito grant from the American Composers Forum. He has performed at most music venues in the Twin Cities and Chicago, in addition to international festivals including Sons d’Hiver (Paris, France) and Kerava Jazz Festival (Kerava, Finland) as well as local and regional festivals including the Chicago Jazz Festival and the Minnesota Sur Seine Festival. Bryan appears on recent recordings by James Buckley, Gang Font, Chris Morrissey, Gordon Johnson, Kelly Rossum, Todd Clouser, Gayngs, Minor Kingdom and many more. Bryan released his debut recording as a leader, Bright Places, on May 24, 2011.
