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Artist
Elizabeth Nicholson
5+ albums
about
Elizabeth Nicholson is a Portland, Oregon-based Celtic harp player, vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist. Known for her gutsy, dynamic approach to harp performance, she is counted among America’s foremost interpreters of traditional Irish dance music for harp -- a genre whose lightning-paced tempos and complex ornamentation more typically reserve it for melody instruments such as the fiddle or flute. Her harp studies have also included classical, Paraguayan, and medieval music, and she has stretched the traditional boundaries of the instrument into rock music and country blues. Also recognized as a vocalist who “sings beautifully...her singing is delicate and pure without being over-precious,”(David Kidman, netrhythms.uk, October 2006), Elizabeth’s possesses an elegant command of traditional song -- from the filigreed ornamentation of Irish ballads to the strident tones of Americana. A life-long musician, Elizabeth grew up in Chicago, where she studied both traditional Irish harp with Lyn Kirkwood (Iris), and pedal harp with Liz Cifani (The Chicago Lyric Opera). Moving from Chicago to Portland in 1993 to pursue a degree in comparative religion at Reed College, Elizabeth continued her musical studies with pedal harpist Jenny Lindner (The Portland Lyric Opera), Paraguayan harpist Antonio Centurion, and vocal coach Mark Bosnian. Elizabeth became an active member of Portland’s thriving traditional music community, getting her feet wet (quite literally) as a frequent stree
