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Dean Stockdale is a highly regarded jazz pianist, arranger and composer based in the North of England. He is known for his sensitive, swinging style and regularly appears around the UK with his trio and with some of the best names in UK jazz. His biggest influences in jazz are the piano styles of Oscar Peterson, Bill Evans, Gene Harris, Mulgrew Miller and Erroll Garner. Born in Darlington, Dean started playing piano at the age of 7 and was performing in public by 16. He built up a reputation as one of the most reliable musicians on the circuit and quickly became an in demand pianist for a wide array of musicians. He enjoys the tradition of mainstream jazz with a passion for the American Songbook.  He built an extensive repertoire after spending four years performing as resident pianist of London's Savoy Hotel, meeting some some of the worlds biggest stars along the way.
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"Stockdale's playing is consistently engaging and uniformly excellent" Ian Mann

​From there he moved to Manchester where he regularly appears on the north west jazz scene. He formed a trio with Gavin and Adam Dawson and in 2017 released his first album 'Origin' to wide acclaim. The trio has performed at clubs and festivals up and down the UK including Manchester Jazz Festival and Gateshead International Jazz Festival at The Sage, with compositions played on BBC Introducing and BBC Radio 3.

"The musicianship is of the highest order" Bebop Spoken Here

Dean continues to be in demand as a performer with his trio, and as pianist for touring jazz artists, accompanist for vocalists and as a teacher and session pianist. The list of musicians Dean has performed with includes Mark Nightingale, Bruce Adams, Dave O' Higgins, Martin Shaw, Alan Barnes, Martin Speake, Amy Roberts, Dennis Rollins and Dean Masser and David Newton. Other performing work includes playing for touring theatre productions, performances with Manchester Camerata Orchestra and Manchester Concert Orchestra. Dean is also a member of the SK2 big band, playing the music of Stan Kenton. The list of venues Dean has performed at includes The Sage Gateshead, Bridgewater Hall Manchester, Birmingham Symphony Hall, Liverpool Philharmonic Hall and Ulster Hall Belfast. 2021 will see the release of his second trio album entitled 'Promise The Moon'.