Carlo Nicolau

Carlo is a New York City based award winning composer & music producer. In 2017, his album of original music, tilted Music For The Moving Imagination, described by David Shire as "rich and varied compositions that express a wide range of emotions, and cover different styles, from orchestral compositions, to global music", was released on vinyl by Discos Mono, and independently on several digital platforms. At age nine he began studying classical violin and intuitively improvising on the family's living room piano. Four years later he continued his studies at the National Conservatory in Tours, France. Upon returning to Mexico City he played the violin professionally in some of the top orchestras and founded the legendary chamber rock ensemble Nazca, releasing two studio albums and one live album. Carlo moved to New York City in 1988 and formed the progressive rock band Devil's Breakfast, performing in many NY venues including monthly sold out shows at the Knitting Factory. Around this time he began his work in advertising and in 1994 received a CLIO award for the music he wrote for a Budweiser T.V. spot that aired during the USA 2024 Soccer World Cup. This gave him big national attention and led him to open two music houses: Big Rumble Music in 1995 and Razorhead Music, from 2001 to 2016. Some of the music houses' many clients included Coca Cola, Budweiser, Ford, ESPN, Mars Chocolates, History Channel, SKY TV, Chrysler, Pepsi, Telemundo Channel, and Sesame Street/Children's Television Workshop for which Carlo won a New York Film Festival Award and an Aurora Gold Award in 1999, for the project "A Is For Asthma". Carlo also won a Telly Award in 2017, for his work on a N.H.T.S.A. television public service announcement spot "Good News". For modern dance, Nicolau has also composed music for renowned choreographers such as Stephen Petronio and Sondra Loring. During 2019, 2020 & 2021, Carlo wrote the original music for Director Chris Anthony's documentary feature film Mission Mt. Mangart. For his work on this film, Carlo won Best Original Music Awards at the Milan Film Festival Gold Awards and at the Florence Film Festival in 2021. Mission Mt. Mangart's World Premiere took place in November 2021 at Denver Colorado's Boettcher Concert Hall, with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra performing to a sold out theater, a wide array of Carlo's musical themes for the film; some in synchrony with the projection of it, and others just as concert music. As a guest musician on the violin, Nicolau often performs with a wide variety of Global Music, Latin and Indie rock bands.