Nichada Jirawattanaphan is a percussionist from Bangkok, Thailand. Specializing in timpani performance and a dedicated student of the major symphonic repertoire, she has given concerts and performed with orchestras across Asia, Europe, and the United States. She is a co-founder of Issara, holds a regular returning position on our Roster, and is one of the Artistic Directors in charge of programming repertoire.

As a professional orchestra player, Nichada held positions as Principal Timpanist with the Terra Haute Symphony Orchestra, as Assistant Timpanist of the Siam Philharmonic Orchestra, and as a Section Percussion player in the Richmond Symphony Orchestra. She also has joined the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic, Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra, Penang Philharmonic Orchestra, and Thailand Philharmonic Orchestra for numerous concerts.

Outside of an orchestral setting, Nichada has performance experience across a wide range of genres in the percussion ensemble repertoire including Afro-Cuban music, Brazilian music, and steel pan ensemble. She was awarded first prize at the Yahama Thailand Marimba Competition.

Nichada received her bachelor’s degree from Chulalongkorn University as a student of Sujaree Prapinwong, Paopun Amnatham, Athasit Watanawongsarat, and Tanasit Siripanichwattana. She then decided to further her musical education abroad in the United States of America. She earned a master’s degree and Performer Diploma at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, studying with professors John Tafoya, Kevin Bobo, Michael Spiro, Steve Houghton. Throughout her additional time as a student in the Duquesne University Artist Diploma program in Pittsburgh, she has had the fortune of studying with such renowned artists as Edward Stephan of the San Francisco Symphony, and John Soroka and Chris Allen of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.