BIOGRAPHY
Nicholas Reeves (b. 1981) composes music that defies genre and conventions. His groundbreaking work, Betty’s Notebook (2019), became “the first piece of classical music… sold on the blockchain (BBC Music Magazine).” This “one-of-a-kind sound installation (All Things Considered, NPR)” “has shattered the barrier between classical music tradition and emerging technologies (CultureMap Dallas)” and will have its commercial album release in 2024 by the Verdigris Ensemble.
Nicholas creates variegated soundscapes with unconventional media while leaving space for collaboration. After the premiere at the PassagesVII festival in Belgium, Melodía (2020) was reimagined by the Goeyvaerts String Trio and producer/composer Mighty33 as a reconstructed AI artifact (MelodAI, 2022). In a similar vein, Nicholas joined forces with Gospel composer Isaac Cates for the Kansas City premiere of The Canon for Racial Reconciliation (2023): a poetic reflection on race relations combining the traditions of Eastern Orthodoxy and the Black Church.
Reeves heads the music division of The KLAUS Project (2022 to present): an online music platform allowing customized audio tracks, intellectual property ownership, and revenue sharing on the Ethereum blockchain. He is the co-founder of the Arvo Pärt Project, a “series of concerts devoted to the composer and panel discussions on the Eastern Orthodox spiritual traditions that feed [Pärt’s] music (NY Times).” The Project has lectured or been a part of panel discussions at the George Washington University, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Westminster Choir College, and the New York Live Arts Festival. Milestone events in the life of the project included sold-out concerts at the Kennedy Center, The Phillips Collection, Carnegie Hall, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Temple of Dendur (Wall Street Journal).
Nicholas holds degrees in composition from Westminster Choir College and Manhattan School of Music. He received a doctorate (DMA) in classical composition as a student of Richard Danielpour (2011). As a professor, he has lectured and instructed at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary as well as Rider University and is currently on faculty at Adelphi University.