Biography
Nicole Brubaker Brady is a “captivating” musician who enjoys presenting traditional and contemporary repertoire to audiences around the world. She holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from The Juilliard School and currently serves as director of the harp program at Brigham Young University.
A versatile performer, Nicole has appeared as a guest artist in embassies, consulates, and for government events in places such as Russia, France, the United States, and the United Nations. Additional solo appearances have included the Suzuki Association of the Americas National Conference, the Moscow International Harp Festival, the Yale Center for British Art Concert Series, the Temple Square Concert Series, and distinctive performances in Israel, Switzerland, and New York City.
Nicole has received many awards for her playing. She is a laureate of several national and international competitions, including the American Harp Society National Competition where she was a prizewinner multiple times. She was a recipient of both the Fulbright Scholarship and the C.V. Starr Fellowships and was a full fellow at the Aspen Music Festival, serving as principal harpist for the Aspen Chamber Orchestra.
A dedicated pedagogue, Nicole is a Master Teacher for the Harp Column Academy, where her lessons on technique and repertoire have reached a worldwide audience and have been hailed as “some of the best technical training available today.” Nicole is also trained in Suzuki Method pedagogy and has been on faculty for the Intermountain Suzuki Harp Institute for many years. Her extensive research into the prominent schools of harp technique has yielded unique perspectives that influence her pedagogical output. Her students are prizewinners in numerous national and international competitions and have gone on to win principal positions in major orchestras and head noteworthy harp programs across the United States.
Nicole holds a bachelor’s degree with honors from the University of Arizona and a master’s degree from the University of Michigan. Before commencing doctoral studies in New York City, Nicole spent three years studying internationally, first in Russia and then France. She remains the only American harpist to have been invited to study at the Russian Academy of Music in Moscow, where she received an artist diploma. Nicole’s primary teachers included ShruDeLi Ownbey, Carrol McLaughlin, Lynne Aspnes, Milda Agazarian, Isabelle Perrin, and Nancy Allen.
Education:
- DMA, Harp Performance, The Julliard School, 2009
- AD, Harp Performance, Russian Academy of Music, 2001
- MM, Harp Performance, University of Michigan, 1999
- BM, Harp Performance, University of Arizona, 1998