James Stephenson was born in South Yorkshire, and read music as a Sir Thomas Beecham scholar at the University of York. After receiving his MA in Composition in 2003, he went on to be awarded a PhD from the University of Manchester, studying with Philip Grange and John Casken.

Performances of James compositions have been given by groups such as Psappha,Gemini, Savadi and Black Hair, at UK venues in London, Manchester, Sheffield, York and Cambridge. Recent concerts include Remembrance Songs, performed for the second time by Alison Wells and Ian Mitchell at the University of Surrey in Guildford, the premiere of The North Road by Psappha at the St Magnus Festival in Orkney, and the second performance of Per Noctes Quaesivi, given by Ensemble Savadi in Nuremberg. Future events include the second performance of Oracle NightSequenza 21, the Manhattan New Music Project and American Contemporary Music Ensemble

As a conductor and oboist, James has performed across the UK, as well as in Germany, Holland, Italy, Japan and Switzerland. Recently, he has worked extensively directing the Vaganza ensemble, including performances of Berio's Laborinthus 2, Birtwistle's Silbury Air and Stockhausen's Kreuzspiel, as well as the world premiere of Paul Archbold’s Melting Moments and the first commercial recording of Richard Whalley's Intoxicating Orchids.

James is also the director of the Chiasmus ensemble and co-director of Departure Lounge Experimental Arts. Outside of music, he has a keen interest in education, currently working as a course designer for global distance-learning provider NCC Education, and is also an active landscape photographer and occasional writer.