Composer Nicholas Edwards thrives on collaboration and the intersection of art and science. Guided by a deep affinity for the natural world, his creative process often begins not at a desk, but on a trail or mountaintop, sketching musical ideas in the very wilderness that inspires them.

Recent highlights include his participation in Salastina’s Sounds Promising program under the mentorship of Derrick Skye, resulting in Obligate Cycles, a quartet for flute and strings inspired by Joshua Tree National Park; the Akropolis Chamber Music Institute, where The Painted Desert was premiered; and the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival’s Composing in the Wilderness program, in which Nicholas completed K’esugi Ridge after a week of backcountry hiking in Denali National Park. The piece was premiered on Alaska public radio and was later performed at Denali’s visitor center. Other representative works include Pinnacles, a string trio named after the eponymous National Park in California, and Seven Birds of Aotearoa, a solo cello piece inspired by endangered/extinct New Zealand bird species.

In Fall 2025, Nicholas began a Master’s degree in Composition at the Peabody Conservatory, studying with Kevin Puts. He currently holds an undergraduate degree in Composition and Biology from Vanderbilt University, where he studied composition with Michael A. Rose, Michael Slayton, Molly Herron, and Stan Link, and performed research on the chemosensory regulation of behavior in eusocial ants in the Zwiebel Lab. Publications can be found in the scientific journals BMC Biology and Insects.

In addition to composing, Nicholas conducts, having founded a chamber orchestra during his studies which premiered over an hour of his new orchestral works across multiple semesters. He has since continued studies in the New York Session Symphony’s Emerging Conductors Workshop, Ball State Bands Conducting Workshop, and the Saratoga Orchestra’s Pacific Northwest Conducting Institute.

Beyond music, Nicholas loves hiking, dachshunds, reading, and travel. He is grateful to his musical collaborators who continually inspire him through their artistry and friendship.