Edward Partyka

Ed Partyka is an arranger, composer, conductor and educator specializing in large ensemble jazz music. Originally from Chicago, Illinois, he earned a BA degree from Northern Illinois University before moving to Germany in 1990. He completed a master's degree in jazz trombone at the Musikhochschule in Cologne, where he was also a member of the G.E.M.A. Jazz Composers Workshop under the direction of Bob Brookmeyer.

He was recipient of the 2000 “A.S.C.A.P. / I.A.J.E. Commission Honouring the Centenary of Louis Armstrong”. He was 1st prize-winner of the 1998 “NDR Musikpreis” (Hamburg), 1st prize winner of the Jazz Composers Alliance 1998 Julius Hemphill Composition Awards (Boston) and finalist in the 1996 HR Emerging Composers Competition (Frankfurt).

As a bass trombone & tuba player, Ed toured and recorded with the Bob Brookmeyer New Art Orchestra, Vienna Art Orchestra, Carla Bley, WDR Big Band, NDR Big Band, Mnozil Brass, Gansch & Roses and the Roman Schwaller Nonet. He currently leads the Ed Partyka Jazz Orchestra and was musical director of the Concert Jazz Orchestra Vienna from 1999 - 2006 and the Sunday Night Orchestra from 2000 - 2007. Mr. Partyka has appeared as a guest conductor with the Danish Radio Big Band, HR Big Band, NDR Big Band, RIAS Big Band, RTV Big Band Slovenia, UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra, Summit Jazz Orchestra, Cleveland Jazz Orchestra, Lucerne Jazz Orchestra, Generations Festival Big Band, Zürich Jazz Orchestra, Jazzgroove Mothership Orchestra, Aarhus Jazz Orchestra, Jazz Orchestra of the Concertgebouw, Concept Art Orchestra, Milan Svoboda ́s Prague Big Band, Oslo Workshop Big Band, Graz Composers Orchestra and the German National Youth Jazz Orchestra (“BuJazzO”). He was associate conductor of the Frankfurt Radio Big Band (HR Big Band) from 2011 - 2015, where he led projects in a wide variety of styles and genres. During his tenure with the HR Big Band, he arranged music for and conducted projects with jazz artists Robben Ford, Theo Bleckmann, China Moses, Fay Claassen, Efrat Alony and Joe Bowie, Fado vocalist Ana Moura, electronic jazz group NuBox, Brazilian vocalist Fabiana Cozza, rock-blues artist Chuck Leavell, the pop band Sunrise Avenue and German pop star Tim Bendzko.

Ed Partyka is currently artistic director and chief conductor of Finland’s UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra as well as Musical Director of the Zürich Jazz Orchestra. Some of the artists that he has worked with in the past several years include Melissa Aldana, Lizz Wright, Thomas Gansch, Rebekka Bakken, Ola Onabulé, Joyce Moreno, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Aili Ikonen, Karolina Strassmayer, Kalle Kalima, Yumi Ito and Joris Roelofs.

As a recording musician Ed Partyka can be heard on over 60 albums, including 14 released under his own name. Most notable of these are the recordings of his Ed Partyka Jazz Orchestra, the Vienna Art Orchestra, WDR Big Band and Bob Brookmeyer’s New Art Orchestra.

Also very active in jazz education, Ed has presented workshops and masterclasses at universities and conservatories throughout Europe and has held teaching positions at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz, Germany, the Conservatory of Music in Vienna, Austria and was “Visiting Professor of Jazz Composition” at the Academy of Music in Katowice, Poland from 2008 – 2010.

Ed Partyka is currently Professor of Jazz Theory & Composition at the University of Music and Performing Arts (KUG) in Graz, Austria, where he was also Chairman of the Jazz Department from 2007-2020. He also teaches composition at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU) in Lucerne, Switzerland.

In addition to his career in Europe, Mr. Partyka has built a strong connection to the Australian jazz scene over the last 20 years with teaching engagements at Monash University in Melbourne and the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. He was “Artist in Residence” at the West Australian Academy of the Performing Arts (WAAPA) in 2006 and appeared as a guest artist/educator with the West Australian Youth Jazz Orchestra (WAYJO) in 2005, 2012, 2015 & 2017.

Ed Partyka is Executive Director of the International Association of Schools of Jazz.