Judi was brought up in the North East of Scotland, and started learning fiddle at the age of 9. Although classically trained, her passion was the Scottish traditional style of fiddle playing. As well as winning several major fiddle competitions throughout Scotland. In 1982, at aged 15, she became the youngest competitor to win the Open Scottish Champion Golden fiddle Awards.

Judi recorded her first album ‘Going Places’ the following year, and as well as being a solo fiddler, she has performed and recorded with several popular Scottish Country Dance bands through the years including Bill Black, Graeme Mitchell, Graham Geddes, and Colin Dewar.

Judi moved to the Shetland Isles in 1989 where she met and played with many musicians including Aly Bain, and the late Willie Hunter. She married Shetland accordionist Ian Nicolson in 1990 and they, along with two renowned Shetland musicians Violet Tulloch on piano, and Andrew Tulloch on guitar formed a group called Thulbion. They performed throughout Shetland, and recorded a CD, ‘Twilight Bound’. Judi taught traditional fiddle music in Shetland Schools and in 2002 published a book of her own compositions ‘The Waves of Sound’.

Judi, Ian and their two children moved the North East of Scotland in 2004, and after furthering her teaching career through the London College of Music, she was employed by Aberdeenshire Council to teach Violin/Fiddle in Schools in the NE of Scotland.

In Summer 2008 the family relocated to Katy, Texas where Judi has continued teaching, and playing for Scottish Country dancers in America, Canada, and Scotland. She played for the dancers at TAC summer school in Canada in 2010, 2012 and 2013.