Racer Session #554 | Christian Nicoll | Sunday November 20th, 2022

Hey everyone!

We’re excited to be presenting our friend Christian Nicoll this Sunday! Christian is a recent graduate of Washington State University and a long-time friend of the Racer Sessions. Since returning to Seattle, Christian has begun working on various creative projects, including film scoring and working with his own ensembles.

Christian will be joined by Shahan Kilaghbian on keys, Anthony Channita on drums, and Ben Williams on bass. Most of the music that will be presented has been written recently and been developed with the help of everyone in the group. Keep reading for some words from Christian on the music and his hopes for the improvs - we’ll see you at Cafe Racer on Sunday at 7pm!

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“The Racer Sessions to me have and always will be a place for everyone. Regardless of who is playing there is always something that people can relate with musically and together they can make something unique while they improvise. I notice that every session leaves me with something to think about - often its musically related but not always.

I’m excited to present a set of original music with the help of some new and not so new friends and fellow musicians. This music is more or less a study/experiment for myself in song writing, trying to combine elements of music I grew up on and add my own spin on everything. In essence the goal was to try and tell my own story in the melodies and song structures I came up with but allow for the music to be shaped by the other members of the group. Most of these songs were written over the course of my time in college and looking back, many of them are reflections on growing up.

From Left to Right: Anthony, Ben, Christian, and Shahan

When we transition into the jam session after the music, I think it would be good to consider what ways we can limit ourselves during improvisation. It could be an exercise in creating a structured improvisation or simply seeing if the rule we came up with was realistic or not. I particularly like to do this because it makes me more attentive to what’s happening around me.

Can’t wait to see everyone there!”

-Christian N