Nicole Mitchell (musician) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Nicole Mitchell
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| Background information | |
| Born | February 17, 1967 Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, teacher |
| Instruments | Flute |
| Associated acts | Black Earth Ensemble |
Nicole Mitchell, born in 1967, is an American jazz flutist and composer. She plays the flute and creates music. She also teaches jazz at the University of Virginia. Nicole used to lead an important group called the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM).
Contents
Early Life and Music Training
Nicole Mitchell was born in Syracuse, New York. When she was eight, her family moved to Anaheim, California. She started playing music early, learning piano and viola in fourth grade. As a teenager, she studied the flute in a classical style. She played in youth orchestras.
When she went to college, Nicole first planned to study computer science. But she took a class on improvisation (making up music on the spot). This class changed her path. She began playing jazz flute on the streets, a practice called busking. Later, she moved to Chicago in 1990. She continued her studies, earning a bachelor's degree in 1998 and a master's degree in 2000.
Nicole Mitchell's Music Career
In Chicago, Nicole played music on the streets. She also worked for a publisher of black culture. There, she met other musicians and joined the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM). This group helps musicians create and share new music.
After getting her master's degree, Nicole started teaching music. She taught at several universities around Chicago. In 1995, she began working with drummer Hamid Drake.
Forming the Black Earth Ensemble
In 1997, a saxophonist named David Boykin encouraged Nicole to start her own band. This led her to create the Black Earth Ensemble. This group became very important in her career.
In the early 2000s, Nicole also helped host jazz jam sessions in Chicago. These were places where musicians could come together and play freely.
Her first album, Vision Quest, came out in 2001. She released it with her Black Earth Ensemble. The album featured many talented musicians. Later, in 2003, Vision Quest was even turned into a theater show.
Nicole has continued to work with the Black Earth Ensemble name for many of her projects. For example, in 2022, she led Nicole Mitchell's Black Earth SWAY quartet. This group included other Chicago musicians and featured singing. She also joined the famous Art Ensemble of Chicago in 2017, touring and recording with them.
In 2022, Nicole Mitchell published her first book. It is called The Mandorla Letters: for the hopeful.
Teaching at Universities
Nicole Mitchell has also had a long career as a university professor. She joined the music department at the University of California, Irvine. She became a full professor there in 2013.
In 2019, she moved to the University of Pittsburgh. She became a special professor of jazz studies there. In 2022, she took on a new role as a professor of music at the University of Virginia.
Awards and Honors
Nicole Mitchell has received many awards for her music.
- Down Beat magazine, a famous jazz magazine, named her a "Rising Star" for flute many times. From 2010 to 2022, she won the "top flutist" award every year.
- She received the Herb Alpert Award in the Arts in 2011.
- She won the Doris Duke Award in 2012.
- She was named a United States Artist in 2020.
Discography
A discography is a list of all the albums and recordings an artist has made. Here are some of Nicole Mitchell's albums as a leader or co-leader:
- Vision Quest (2001)
- Afrika Rising (2002)
- Frequency (2006)
- Black Unstoppable (2007)
- Xenogenesis Suite (2008)
- Awakening (2011)
- Artifacts (2015)
- Mandorla Awakening II - Emerging Worlds (2016)
She has also been a guest musician on albums by other artists, including:
- Hamid Drake, Bindu (2005)
- The AACM Great Black Music Ensemble, At Umbria Jazz 2009 (2010)
- Art Ensemble of Chicago, We Are On the Edge (2019)
