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Biography:
Acclaimed cellist and gambist Caroline Nicolas maintains an active career spanning repertoire from the Middle Ages to the twenty-first century. Praised for her “eloquent artistry and rich, vibrant sound” (Gainesville Times) and hailed as “one of the finest gambists working today” (Gotham Early Music Scene), she performs regularly as a soloist, chamber musician, and music director, combining emotionally compelling interpretations with a historically informed spirit.
Caroline has collaborated with ensembles including The English Concert, Trinity Baroque Orchestra, Mercury Chamber Orchestra, Ars Lyrica Houston, Juilliard Baroque, Harmonia Stellarum, Philharmonia Baroque, Pacific MusicWorks, Kammerorchester Basel, the New World Symphony, and the Sinfonieorchester Liechtenstein. She recently concluded her tenure as music director of New Baroque Orchestra. She has appeared at the Boston Early Music Festival, Indianapolis Early Music Festival, Connecticut Early Music Festival, Bach Festival Leipzig, and Styriarte Festival in Austria. She has performed in major venues such as KKL Luzern, Berliner Philharmonie, Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall, and Benaroya Hall. Her broadcasts include KING FM, KUHF, WDIY, and CCTV.
Notable collaborators include Andrea Marcon, Amandine Beyer, Kristian Bezuidenhout, Jordi Savall, William Christie, Rachel Podger, Harry Bicket, and Stephen Stubbs. A former fellow of The English Concert in America and winner of The Juilliard School’s Historical Performance Concerto Competition, she made her solo debut at Alice Tully Hall.
A native of Winnipeg, Canada, Caroline began studying cello at an early age. Drawn to early music, she pursued advanced studies with Phoebe Carrai at The Juilliard School and with Christophe Coin and Paolo Pandolfo at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Basel. She now resides in New York City, where she serves as Artistic Director of Ars Poetica. When not performing, she enjoys reading, writing, solving crosswords, or watching Star Trek with her husband, lutenist Kevin Payne.
