Nick is a notable educator, scholar, and researcher specializing in both jazz guitar and the Swing Era. He has both written and lectured on a variety of jazz-related topics throughout the world. And while his expertise lies in American jazz from the 1920s through the 1960s, he has explored a variety of tangents stemming from and connecting with his primary focus.

Among his many highlights is a featured lecture at the 2023 Duke Ellington International Meeting in Paris, France at the Médiathèque Musicale de Paris. He has also participated in workshops, panel discussions, and lectures on swing era style jazz and swing dancing in Germany, the Netherlands, and of course his native United States.

In 2021, Nick participated in a 38 part online series examining the music of Benny Goodman and his Orchestra 1934-1936 from the perspective of the rhythm section alongside drummer Hal Smith and moderated by Julliard’s Loren Schoenberg, senior scholar of the National Jazz Museum in Harlem. That series may be seen/heard in its entirety here.

Nick has contributed research work to a variety of archival record releases including those on Ace, Fresh Sound, and Mosaic. With James Harrod, he co-produced The Unknown Arv Garrison: Wizard of the Six String Classic and Rare Recordings 1945-1948 in 2021 on Fresh Sound Records and Nick contributed a lengthy essay, currently the definitive story of Garrison’s brief career. His 2019 essay on guitarist Oscar Moore was included in Resonance Records’ Hittin' The Ramp: The Early Years (1936-1943), a box set dedicated to the early recordings of the great Nat “King” Cole, which was nominated for a Grammy in 2020.

Currently, Nick continues to lecture online at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Swing U. He also leads workshops both privately and through the Jazzschool. As a guest lecturer, he has spoken at Healdsburg Jazz and the College of San Mateo.

Email Nick direct with all enquiries.