Carole Nelson CV
Carole Nelson is a London-born composer, performer, songwriter, arranger, producer and teacher currently living in Co Carlow. An accomplished jazz pianist, saxophonist, lyricist and arranger, she has composed and performed extensively and in a wide variety of artistic fields. Her work draws on all sources and aspects of music; jazz, free improvisation, world music, contemporary pop and dance, classical and traditional Irish music. She currently performs with contemporary jazz trio, the Carole Nelson Trio and with Jazz, Art/Pop group Zrazy. She teaches and mentors in saxophone, jazz piano and voice.
Awards and Grants
2020 Awarded First Music Contact Recording Grant for a new Carole Nelson Trio album.
2020 Arboreal by the Carole Nelson Trio was Best Album in UK’s All About Jazz Magazine
2019 Carlow Arts Grant towards the recording of Arboreal by the Carole Nelson Trio
2019 Irish Arts Council Bursary Award for composition
2018 Nominated Hot Press Best Album for Zrazy's The Art of Happy Accidents
2017 Received Carlow Arts Grant toward recording of One Day in Winter by Carole Nelson Trio
2005 Winner of ‘Best Album’ with Zrazy’s Dream On album in USA OutMusic Awards
2003 Finalist in USA International Songwriting Competition for Zrazy's Private Wars
2002 Received an Arts Council Award for contemporary composition for Dream On
2001. Winner of USA Billboard International Songwriters Competition for Private Wars
1998 Received a USA GLAMA award for ‘Best Jazz’ with Private Wars
1998 Irish Arts Council Award toward the recording of Private Wars
1996 Irish Arts Council Interdisciplinary Award to develop an opera Gilgamesh in collaboration with writer Melissa Murray.
1994 Irish Gold Disc No1 hit for pop song Ooh Ah Paul McGrath
1992 Hot Press/Smithwicks Critics Award for ‘Best New Band’ with Zrazy
Composition
2020 Composed From Stillness into Life, commissioned for Music Network's Butterfly Sessions
2020 Composed and recorded CD Arboreal by the Carole Nelson Trio
2017 Composed and recorded CD One Day in Winter by the Carole Nelson Trio
2018 Commissioned to compose for Munich's Rainbow Choir – A Parting Word
1992 to 2014 Lyrics , composition, performance, arrangement and production for 5 CDs with Zrazy
2000 – 2018 Composed and arranged SATB choral pieces for Dublin’s LGBTQ choir Gloria
2000: An opera Gilgamesh, commissioned by Opera Cornwall Co.
Recordings
2020 Arboreal by the Carole Nelson Trio. Released February 2020
2017 One Day in Winter by the Carole Nelson Trio with Cormac O'Brien and Dominic Mullan
2015 The Art of Happy Accidents by Zrazy with vocalist Maria Walsh
2004: Dream On by Zrazy with Phil Ware, Kevin Brady, Maria Walsh and Geraint Roberts
2002: Glor na Siog by Dublin-based choir Gloria, featuring three choral arrangements.
1998: Private Wars by Zrazy with Maria Walsh, Miles Drennan, Geraint Roberts and Andy Bold
1995: Permanent Happiness by Zrazy
1993: Give It All Up by Zrazy
1984: Don’t You Know You’re Part of The Show by the Moonlighters, with UK jazz singer Jan Ponsford.
Performance.
Carole has performed in Europe and N. America with Zrazy, including the National Concert Hall, Cork Jazz Festival, Old Town School of Music, Chicago, National Women’s Music Festival, USA, Wir Es Er Gefallt Festivals (International female composers and performers) in Berlin, Vienna, Zurich and many more.
Carole Nelson Trio Feb 2018 Tour of One Day in Winter in arts centres around Ireland.
Carole Nelson Trio Dec 2018 Irish Stories by the Fire winter tour
Theatre and Film
Composed music for:
1987 Ophelia by Melissa Murray, Dublin Theatre Festival
1987 A Woman Alone by Dario Fo, Dublin Theatre Festival
1993 The Trojan Women by Euripides/Brendan Kennelly at the Peacock Theatre, Dublin.
1997. Ladies and Gentlemen by Emma Donaghue, Project Theatre Dublin. Also MD.
The Happy Gordons, an award-winning documentary by Paula Crickard.
Splitting, a documentary for Channel 4 by Paula Crickard
Walk with Me by Northern Visions, Belfast.
Music by Zrazy has featured in programmes on RTE, Channel 4, ARTE (France) NBC (USA)
Teaching
1986 to 1994. Saxophone teacher at Newpark Music Centre, Dublin
1997. Founding Musical Director of Dublin-based choir Gloria.
2004 to date. Private teaching/mentoring saxophone, jazz piano and voice.
Education
1974 Piano up to ARCM Performers Diploma
1977 Cambridge MA in Political Science
2003: Trained with Frankie Armstrong as a practitioner of Natural Voice. Has also worked with Meredith Monk and Kevin Crawford in voice and creativity workshops.
To date: Self-education in jazz piano and saxophone, Finale scoring, Cubase recording,
Other Interests
Zen meditation, growing food, ecology, tai chi, social justice movements, LGBTQ community.
Awards and Grants
2020 Awarded First Music Contact Recording Grant for a new Carole Nelson Trio album.
2020 Arboreal by the Carole Nelson Trio was Best Album in UK’s All About Jazz Magazine
2019 Carlow Arts Grant towards the recording of Arboreal by the Carole Nelson Trio
2019 Irish Arts Council Bursary Award for composition
2018 Nominated Hot Press Best Album for Zrazy's The Art of Happy Accidents
2017 Received Carlow Arts Grant toward recording of One Day in Winter by Carole Nelson Trio
2005 Winner of ‘Best Album’ with Zrazy’s Dream On album in USA OutMusic Awards
2003 Finalist in USA International Songwriting Competition for Zrazy's Private Wars
2002 Received an Arts Council Award for contemporary composition for Dream On
2001. Winner of USA Billboard International Songwriters Competition for Private Wars
1998 Received a USA GLAMA award for ‘Best Jazz’ with Private Wars
1998 Irish Arts Council Award toward the recording of Private Wars
1996 Irish Arts Council Interdisciplinary Award to develop an opera Gilgamesh in collaboration with writer Melissa Murray.
1994 Irish Gold Disc No1 hit for pop song Ooh Ah Paul McGrath
1992 Hot Press/Smithwicks Critics Award for ‘Best New Band’ with Zrazy
Composition
2020 Composed From Stillness into Life, commissioned for Music Network's Butterfly Sessions
2020 Composed and recorded CD Arboreal by the Carole Nelson Trio
2017 Composed and recorded CD One Day in Winter by the Carole Nelson Trio
2018 Commissioned to compose for Munich's Rainbow Choir – A Parting Word
1992 to 2014 Lyrics , composition, performance, arrangement and production for 5 CDs with Zrazy
2000 – 2018 Composed and arranged SATB choral pieces for Dublin’s LGBTQ choir Gloria
2000: An opera Gilgamesh, commissioned by Opera Cornwall Co.
Recordings
2020 Arboreal by the Carole Nelson Trio. Released February 2020
2017 One Day in Winter by the Carole Nelson Trio with Cormac O'Brien and Dominic Mullan
2015 The Art of Happy Accidents by Zrazy with vocalist Maria Walsh
2004: Dream On by Zrazy with Phil Ware, Kevin Brady, Maria Walsh and Geraint Roberts
2002: Glor na Siog by Dublin-based choir Gloria, featuring three choral arrangements.
1998: Private Wars by Zrazy with Maria Walsh, Miles Drennan, Geraint Roberts and Andy Bold
1995: Permanent Happiness by Zrazy
1993: Give It All Up by Zrazy
1984: Don’t You Know You’re Part of The Show by the Moonlighters, with UK jazz singer Jan Ponsford.
Performance.
Carole has performed in Europe and N. America with Zrazy, including the National Concert Hall, Cork Jazz Festival, Old Town School of Music, Chicago, National Women’s Music Festival, USA, Wir Es Er Gefallt Festivals (International female composers and performers) in Berlin, Vienna, Zurich and many more.
Carole Nelson Trio Feb 2018 Tour of One Day in Winter in arts centres around Ireland.
Carole Nelson Trio Dec 2018 Irish Stories by the Fire winter tour
Theatre and Film
Composed music for:
1987 Ophelia by Melissa Murray, Dublin Theatre Festival
1987 A Woman Alone by Dario Fo, Dublin Theatre Festival
1993 The Trojan Women by Euripides/Brendan Kennelly at the Peacock Theatre, Dublin.
1997. Ladies and Gentlemen by Emma Donaghue, Project Theatre Dublin. Also MD.
The Happy Gordons, an award-winning documentary by Paula Crickard.
Splitting, a documentary for Channel 4 by Paula Crickard
Walk with Me by Northern Visions, Belfast.
Music by Zrazy has featured in programmes on RTE, Channel 4, ARTE (France) NBC (USA)
Teaching
1986 to 1994. Saxophone teacher at Newpark Music Centre, Dublin
1997. Founding Musical Director of Dublin-based choir Gloria.
2004 to date. Private teaching/mentoring saxophone, jazz piano and voice.
Education
1974 Piano up to ARCM Performers Diploma
1977 Cambridge MA in Political Science
2003: Trained with Frankie Armstrong as a practitioner of Natural Voice. Has also worked with Meredith Monk and Kevin Crawford in voice and creativity workshops.
To date: Self-education in jazz piano and saxophone, Finale scoring, Cubase recording,
Other Interests
Zen meditation, growing food, ecology, tai chi, social justice movements, LGBTQ community.
