Leonie Cohen

Leonie Cohen is one of Australia’s finest composers and jazz pianists with a 20+ year career across jazz, classical and contemporary music as well as cabaret, theatre and film.

Cohen has been commissioned to compose, record and perform by some of Australia’s leading cultural institutions including the Sydney Opera House, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and Sydney’s new cutting-edge arts venue Phoenix.   

Cohen has received multiple ABC commissions over several years for a range of jazz, classical and contemporary music releases, including Jerusalem – a celebrated tribute to Jewish music and culture – and the acclaimed Women of Note series celebrating the significant contributions female composers bring to the classical landscape. In addition, her various Sydney Opera House commissions included the development of the Sydney Opera House alt-cabaret show hit  Club Swizzle.

As a performer, Cohen has toured internationally for club, theatre and festival appearances in New York, Canada, Japan, Singapore, Indonesia and Hong Kong. She frequently performs at Australian jazz venues and festivals including the Sydney Opera House, Sydney Festival, Melbourne Women’s International Jazz Festival, Adelaide Cabaret Festival, Sydney Women’s International Jazz Festival and The Famous Spiegel tent. Cohen has collaborated and performed extensively with infamous cabaret diva Christa Hughes and has toured Australia with David Campbell, one of Australia’s most popular jazz vocalists.

Cohen is often booked for private performances by cultural, corporate and hospitality clients, she regularly consults on a range of arts and cultural projects funded by the NSW Government and City of Sydney, and is committed to developing the next generation of jazz pianists and composers through a dedicated teaching program.