Julian Raphael Nathaniel Joseph

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(born 11 May 1966) is a British

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

pianist, bandleader, composer, arranger, and broadcaster. He has worked solo, in his

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

, trio, quartet, forum project band or electric band.

Biography

Joseph was born in London and attended Allfarthing Primary School and Spencer Park Secondary School in

Wandsworth Wandsworth Town () is a district of south London, within the London Borough of Wandsworth southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Toponymy Wandsworth takes its name ...

. He graduated in composition from

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music () is a Private university, private music college in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern Music of the United ...

in 1989. Joseph works in both

contemporary Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from about 1945 to the present. In the social sciences, contemporary history is also continuous with, and related t ...

and

traditional A tradition is a system of beliefs or behaviors (folk custom) passed down within a group of people or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examp ...

situations with his music. He is also active in jazz education helping to form the jazz syllabus for the

Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music The ABRSM (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music) is an examination board and registered charity based in the United Kingdom. ABRSM is one of five examination boards accredited by Ofqual to award graded exams and diploma qualification ...

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

. Starting with his first album ''The Language of Truth'' in 1991, Joseph has six albums, one single, and one

soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...

to his credit, and has focused on live performance, composing, broadcasting and teaching. He performed at the 2003

London Jazz Festival The London Jazz Festival is a music festival held every November. It takes place in London venues such as the Barbican and the Royal Festival Hall and in smaller jazz clubs, such as Ronnie Scott's and the Vortex Jazz Club. It is produced by Se ...

and also hosts several radio shows on

BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...

, including ''Jazz Line-up'' and ''Jazz Legends''. He has also made two jazz television series for

Meridian Meridian or a meridian line (from Latin ''meridies'' via Old French ''meridiane'', meaning “midday”) may refer to Science * Meridian (astronomy), imaginary circle in a plane perpendicular to the planes of the celestial equator and horizon * ...

, a jazz series for Sky TV's Artsworld Channel and the documentary ''A Festival of Jazz Piano'' (2006) for

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1 January 1927. It p ...

in Wales directed by Celia Lowenstein. In September 2010, Joseph was interviewed by Bruce Lindsay, a jazz critic from

All About Jazz ''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...

, who wrote: "Julian Joseph is something of a jazz master of all trades." October that year, Joseph was presented with a

BASCA The Ivors Academy (formerly known as British Academy of Songwriters Composers and Authors – BASCA) is one of the largest professional associations for music writers in Europe. The academy works to protect and support and also campaigns the int ...

Gold Badge Award in merit for his unique contribution to music. Joseph founded th
Julian Joseph Jazz Academy
in January 2013 in London. The Academy encourages young musicians in the development of jazz technique and understanding. Tutors include

Tony Kofi Tony Kofi (born 10 July 1966) is a British jazz saxophonist and flautist. He leads a trio and quartet and is co-founder of the Monk Liberation Band. His trio includes drummer Winston Clifford and Hammond B3 organist Anders Olinder. Kofi is sign ...

and

Byron Wallen Byron Wallen (born July 1969) is a British jazz trumpeter, composer and educator. He was described by ''Jazzwise'' as "one of the most innovative, exciting and original trumpet players alive". As characterised by ''All About Jazz'', "He does not ...

. Joseph is also a trustee and vice-president of the National Youth Jazz Collective. In the 2018 Queen's Birthday Honours list, he was appointed an

for services to music."Jazz musicians recognised in Queen’s Birthday Honours"
Jazz FM, 10 June 2018.

Discography

As leader/co-leader

Notable albums as sideman

References

External links