Concert Pianist & Folk-Rock Leader
John is a native of the Pacific Northwest, and has resided in Oregon since his youth. Nilsen began studying piano from his mother at age six and taught himself to play guitar at age twelve. He attended Southern Oregon University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in English. John was honored with the Most Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1995 for his outstanding contributions in the field of the performing arts, selected as a Yamaha Piano Artist in 2022 and inducted into the Oregon Music Hall of Fame in 2024. He loves to get out on the rivers, into the forests and onto the mountains of the region. The people, landscapes, weather, and tenor of life in the Pacific Northwest are strong influences in Nilsen’s musical themes.
From his home in Oregon, he composes and records music to perform in concerts around the world. “Magic Wing”, Nilsen's label, has a catalog of twenty albums, distributed internationally.
Beyond creating, recording, and distributing his music, John has performed countless times in every U.S. State, as well as logging numerous tours in Europe, Asia and Australia. Over the years, he has appeared with such luminaries as Jose Feliciano, Jesse Colin Young, David Foster, Marc Cohn, Kenny G, Alex De Grassi, Montreaux, and the Smothers Brothers.
