“Nico Muhly is a musical omnivore with an incredible knowledge of so many genres and styles of music from across the centuries. His compositions are a breathtaking, kaleidoscopic journey through these influences and are bursting with energy and life. Over the past fifteen summers at Tanglewood, I have had the opportunity to connect with Nico — attending concerts, discussing orchestral performances and sharing a glass of wine. I have always been in awe of his quick wit, brilliance and vision. I’ve frequently been surprised that Nico, with all of his great percussion writing (and friendship with many percussionists), has not yet composed a proper concerto for solo percussion and orchestra. I’m thrilled to announce that we are officially embarking on a mission to rectify this matter.”
— George Nickson
Biography
George Nickson, percussionist and conductor, holds the Margie and William H. Seay Chair as Principal Percussionist of The Dallas Symphony Orchestra, serves as Chair of the Percussion Department and Professor of Practice at Southern Methodist University, is Co-Founder and Co-Artistic Director of ensemblenewSRQ and teaches contemporary chamber music studies at SMU, including the musical collective SYZYGY. George received the Master of Music degree from The Juilliard School where he studied with Daniel Druckman and completed his undergraduate studies at the New England Conservatory with Will Hudgins. In addition to his position with the DSO, George has performed with many of North America’s orchestras. Recent highlights include concerto performances at Tanglewood, solo performances at The Spoleto Festival, and solo recording projects for NAXOS, Bridge, and Albany Records. George has appeared as conductor in many notable performances of ensemblenewSRQ, with Sarasota Orchestra, musicians of the Dallas Symphony and Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. These performances have featured numerous world premieres, U.S. Premieres and Florida Premieres, including Sebastian Currier’s WAVES, Wuorinen’s New York Notes, Boulez’ Sur incises, Le Marteau sans maître, and Sofia Gubaidulina’s Lyre of Orpheus.
Nico Muhly is an American composer who writes orchestral music, works for the stage, choral, chamber, and sacred music. He’s received commissions from The Metropolitan Opera, Carnegie Hall, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the New York Philharmonic, and Wigmore Hall; his choral music, both sacred and secular, has been performed by The Tal- lis Scholars and choirs across the United Kingdom. He has been featured at the Barbican, King’s Place and the Philharmonie de Paris as composer, conductor, pianist, and curator. An avid collaborator, he has worked with choreographers Benjamin Millepied, Justin Peck, Kyle Abraham, and Mark Morris; vocal collaborators include Iestyn Davies, Renée Fleming, and Nicholas Phan; artists Sufjan Stevens, The National, Teitur, Anohni, James Blake and Paul Simon. His work for screen includes scores for The Reader and Kill Your Darlings, the BBC’s adaptation of Howards End and Pachinko for Apple TV+. He has worked with visual artists Maira Kalman, Yu Hong, and Oliver Beer, and has created site-reactive works for the National Gallery, London, the Guggenheim Museum’s Asian Art Initiative at the Venice Biennale, and written articles for the Guardian, the New York Times, and the London Review of Books. Recordings of his works have been released by Decca and Nonesuch, and he is part of the artist-run record label Bedroom Community, which released his first two albums, Speaks Volumes (2006) and Mothertongue (2008).
Contact
- Katie McGuinness
- Wildenthal Families Chief Artistic Officer
- Dallas Symphony Orchestra
- k.mcguinness@dalsym.com
- Zoë Knight
- Executive Director
- St. Rose Management
- zoe@strosemanagement.com