Biography

Since performing as soloist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra at age 18, cellist Nicholas Finch has established himself as an artist of great depth and diversity, performing a wide variety of repertoire both within and beyond the classical genre. Finch recently premiered three new cello concerti written for him with the NouLou Chamber Players, written by composers Lev 'Ljova' Zhurbin, Alyssa Weinberg, and Dorian Wallace.  He performed all three in one concert in April of 2019, and will record them during the 2020/2021 season for his debut recording with that ensemble. 

Finch was appointed Principal Cellist of the Louisville Orchestra during the 2013-2014 season by music director Teddy Abrams – during that same season he also appeared numerous time with the elite Boston-based chamber orchestra ‘A Far Cry’, touring to Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Illinois. He is featured on two recordings with A Far Cry – “Dreams and Prayers”, which received a Grammy nomination in 2015, and ‘The Law of Mosaics’, which was selected by New Yorker music critic Alex Ross as one of his top CD picks. He has also appeared numerous times with the Jupiter Chamber Players in New York City, performing chamber music with top artists such as Alexander Kobrin, Stefan Milenkovich, Vadim Gluzman, Milena Pajaro-van de Stadt, Tchaikovsky Competition Winner Zlatomir Fung, and numerous others.  2019-2020 performance highlights, in addition to his concerti commissioning debut CD, include repeat appearances at the Manchester and Lake George Music Festivals, appearing as soloist in Strauss's "Don Quixote" with the Louisville Orchestra, a complete cycle of the Beethoven Sonatas for Cello and Piano with pianist Andrew Staupe, and his professional debut in a new role as a conductor, in which he will appear on the podium conducting the Louisville Orchestra in March of 2020. He will also conduct a program of Brahms and Mozart with the Louisville Civic Orchestra in April of 2020.    

Finch has collaborated with some of the most prominent artists of today, including cellist Yo-Yo Ma and his Silk Road Ensemble, violinist Sarah Chang, pianist Joyce Yang, conductor Keith Lockhart, the Argento New Music Ensemble, the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble, and composers Gabriela Lena Frank, Osvaldo Golijov, Andrew Norman, Bright Sheng, and many more.  Performances have taken him to the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, Merkin Hall, Boston’s Symphony Hall, Spectrum in New York City, and Alice Tully Hall. He has made concerto appearances with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Louisville Orchestra, the NouLou Chamber Players, the Melrose Symphony Orchestra, the Louisville Civic Orchestra, the Quincy Symphony Orchestra, and the Boston Civic Orchestra.

A native of Boston, Finch began his cello studies at the age of 12. He attended Harvard University (as a physics concentrator), Juilliard, the University of Michigan, and the Mannes College of Music, studying the cello with Harvey Shapiro, David Soyer, Richard Aaron, and Marcy Rosen. He attended the Aspen Music Festival and School for Six Summers, three of which he performed as the solo cellist of the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble. Finch was previously a member of the Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra, during which time he made appearances as principal and assistant principal cello.  Finch has recently pursued studies as a conductor, studying with Markand Thakar and Kenneth Kiesler.  Finch currently splits his residence between Louisville and New York City.