SHORT BIOGRAPHY

Originally from County Durham, Paul Edis is a London-based composer, performer, educator and promoter. He studied Composition at the London College of Music and the University of York, completing a PhD in 2012. He has released numerous original albums, toured the UK, Europe and US, including performances at Dizzy’s Jazz Club New York, SF Jazz, Jazhus Montmarte, and the Royal Albert Hall. He has lectured and led workshops for numerous institutions, including the National Youth Jazz Collective and National Youth Jazz Orchestra. He was Course Leader for the BMus Jazz degree at Sage Gateshead where he was also the Artistic Director of the Regional Youth Jazz Orchestra Jambone for over 12 years.

‘A major voice in British Jazz…Edis is an incredibly fertile composer and improviser’ - Jazz Journal

‘A pianist who has compositional flair’ - Jazzwise 

‘One of the leading lights of contemporary jazz’ - London Jazz News

LONG BIOGRAPHY

Originally from County Durham, Paul Edis studied Composition at the London College of Music and the University of York, completing a PhD in 2012. Beginning his career in the North East, he established his first trio and sextet, recording several albums under his own name. He worked extensively in Jazz Education and Community music, and he programmed 4 concert series and a Jazz festival.

Paul moved to London in March 2020 after over 15 years based in the North East of England just as the Covid pandemic ushered in the first nationwide lockdown. He began a regular series of Friday lunchtime live streams from his flat, taking opportunity of the unexpected hiatus to compose new music, including establishing a song-writing partnership with vocalist Jo Harrop.

Edis signed to Lateralize Records in 2021 and released a critically acclaimed album entitled 'The Still Point of the Turning World'. He recorded the album 'When Winter Turns To Spring' alongside vocalist Jo Harrop which won Best Album in the APJAG Parliamentary Jazz Awards 2023. In 2024 he released a new album alongside saxophonist and long-time collaborator Vasilis Xenopoulos called ‘Feels Like Home’ on the Ubuntu Label. He released ‘Portrait In Evans’ is in collaboration with US vocalist Noa Levy in April 2026 on Dot Time Records, touring the project in the UK and Europe.

From July 2024 to July 2026, Paul wrote a new composition every week, notated them by hand, recorded them and posted them to his Instagram page amassing over 20 thousand new followers in the process. He continues to work in Jazz Education, in particular with the National Youth Jazz Collective. His original music has been published by Trinity College Exams, and he regularly receives commissions for new music and arrangements.

He has performed alongside leading soloists, including Jon Faddis, Alan Barnes, Bruce Adams, Nigel Price, Jim Mullen, Julian Siegel, Tony Kofi, Gareth Lockrane, Alex Garnett, Karen Sharp, Freddie Gavita, Steve Waterman, Iain Ballamy and Mark Nightingale.