Commended by the Vancouver Sun for his “sophisticated work of such immediate, glittery appeal” and called “a rising star in the constellation of Canadian composers” by Oregon Arts Watch, Nicholas Ryan Kelly writes lyrical, emotionally honest music for choirs and (occasionally) bands across North America.

Nick’s work has been commissioned, premiered, or recorded by many of Canada’s top choirs (including Chor Leoni, DaCapo Chamber Choir, Elektra Women’s Choir, Pro Coro Canada, Vancouver Chamber Choir, and many others). His choral scores are published with Alliance, Pavane, Cypress, and Renforth, and distributed by Hal Leonard and MusicSpoke. Since 2016, he has won over a dozen national and international awards for choral and wind band writing, including the Edwin Fissinger Choral Composition Prize and the World Projects composition prize.

Nick is excited for Spring 2022, which will see the premieres of 5 choral commissions, a wind ensemble piece at Carnegie Hall, and at least 3 other prizewinning choral and band pieces.

Nick lives a low-profile life in Penticton, BC, where he conducts amateur music groups and teaches occasional music theory lessons. He is a graduate of Ithaca College in New York (B.M.) and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver (M.Mus).