Christopher Nicholas
Oakland
Christopher Nicholas has taught privately in the Bay Area since 2010, focusing on grounding young singers in practical techniques for careers in diverse genres of music. With a dual BM from Berklee College of Music in Vocal Performance and Songwriting and an MM in Jazz Studies for voice from the University of North Texas, his biggest joy as a voice teacher has been researching and implementing methods on restructuring the voice when there are clear vocal deficiencies. He has investigated the techniques of the late Cornelius Reid, has studied under Dr. Stephen Austin, and under Kathryn Wright. Outside of his classical training, he has studied with R&B singer Marlon Saunders, a background singer for notable pop giants such as Sting and the late Michael Jackson, as well as acclaimed Jazz educator Paris Rutherford. He is confident he can offer vocal students more than just technical study but also illuminate paths in navigating their careers in the music business.
Upon completion of his MM in 2010, Christopher moved to the Bay Area and co-founded a non-profit performing arts organization, Ensemble Mik Nawooj (EMN) where he currently serves as the executive director. A diverse Hip-Hop orchestra comprised of flute, clarinet, violin, cello, bass, piano, drums, 2 MCs and a lyric soprano, EMN samples Western European classical music and Hip-Hop aesthetics to create something completely new. As the executive director of the ensemble for the past eight years, he has worked with classical musicians of the highest caliber nationally, have organized and oversaw successful PR campaigns with Wall Street Journal, NBC, ABC, NPR, SF Chronicle, SF Weekly, East Bay Express, SF Examiner, and more. He has co-produced all of EMN’s music as well as sang most of the background vocals. EMN has been featured on Pitchfork Media, ESPN, and most recently, produced a theme song for the Global People’s Summit in partnership with the United Nations Office of Partnership.
He is looking to nurture students as competent vocalists and as artists who are proficient in the practices of music business.
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