Biography

Nicholas Alexander Drake

A native of Louisville, KY, Nicholas Drake began his musical studies on the piano before switching his emphasis to composition as an undergraduate. He earned a B.A. in philosophy from Centre College in 2001 where he studied composition with Laurence Bitensky. Drake earned the Master of Music degree in composition from the University of Louisville in 2007 where he studied with Marc Satterwhite and Paul Brink and electronic music with John Gibson. During his graduate studies, Drake was a recipient of the Warren Babb Scholarship, a Graduate Dean’s Citation and the Alice Eaves Barns Award.

Drake composes and arranges music for chamber ensembles, orchestra, and electronic media. Recently, his music has been performed at the University of Louisville’s annual New Music Festival, earsight, Electronic Music Midwest, and the 2009 SCI National Conference. In 2002, his Movement for String Quartet (2000) was among the winners of the first annual Orpheus Alliance Composition Competition sponsored by the Associated Colleges of the South. His orchestra work Gambado Fanfare (2006) was described by music critic Andrew Adler of the Louisville Courier Journal as " . . . a terse, hurtling bit of fun . . . " Gambado Fanfare was featured on the opening night gala of the Owensboro Symphony Orchestra’s 2009-2010 concert season. Drake’s Lobo for solo piano is featured on the recently released Weep No More CD by pianist Denine LeBlanc.