Nicholas Zork is a New York City-based singer-songwriter, composer, music director, and collaborative artist. He also teaches songwriting at Andrews University. His songs, music practices, and educational initiatives explore how music-making can embody meaning, cultivate diverse and inclusive communities, and overcome social barriers.
As a music director, Nicholas has created collaborative concerts at Joe’s Pub at the Public Theater, Apollo Music Cafe, and Rockwood Music Hall. He co-curates, with Pauline Kim Harris, the Carnegie Hill Concerts series, a chamber music series that features artists of different genres and disciplines in shared programs, bringing people together to participate in the celebration and cultivation of New York City’s diverse community. His portfolio as music director for Church of the Advent Hope includes an annual Holiday Benefit Concert, which brings together an eclectic array of New York City artists and has raised over $300,000 for charitable partners.
Nicholas’ compositions have been performed by university and festival choirs, and his music has appeared in numerous television programs. He has collaborated with Grammy-winning R&B vocalist Grace Weber, whose recording of their song was remixed by Peter CottonTale for a compilation album benefiting The Recording Academy’s MusiCares foundation. Additionally, he has written songs with and for Lynette Williams, KJ Denhert, Akie Bermiss of Lake Street Dive, Grammy-nominated soul singer Wayna, and rising talents like Jack Fanselau, among other outstanding artists. He also wrote and arranged songs for Gil McKinney’s debut album, which premiered at #1 on the iTunes Jazz charts and #8 on the Billboard Jazz charts, and composed a song for the feature film Permission, starring Rebecca Hall, Dan Stevens, and Jason Sudeikis, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. He has created many chamber ensemble arrangements for live events, including a recent presentation featuring Catherine Brookman performing songs from her forthcoming album. And he can be heard on recordings with Jon Foreman and Sufjan Stevens. In addition to writing and recording with other artists, Nicholas also performs his own folk-oriented pop songs. His EPs, “Questions I Can’t Answer,” “All We Own,” and “Promises I Can’t Keep,” explore questions of love, loss, doubt, and hope through stories—both autobiographical and imagined.