Alex Coke is a Texas tenor saxophonist, flutist, and composer based in Austin, Texas and Amsterdam, Netherlands. An improvisor at heart, his multifarious projects as bandleader include: Live Action Brass Band, Leadbelly Legacy Band, New Texas Swing, a jazz adaptation of Dylan Thomas' A Child's Christmas In Wales, and the post-bop quintet, Worthy Constituents, a collaboration with longtime partner, pianist, and composer, Rich Harney.
In 2022, along with guitarist Carl Michel, Coke began writing for, performing and recording with the Alex Coke & Carl Michel Sextet, an outgrowth of a series of driveway concerts he and harpist Elaine Barber began hosting in 2020. Coke's eclectic attitude has led him to explore repertoire and sounds from Bebop to Huddie Ledbetter, Ornette Coleman and beyond, with flute studies ranging from Eric Dolphy to Indian ragas and the extended techniques researched by Robert Dick, Ann LaBerge, and Wil Offermans. His interest in arts and culture have led to many exciting collaborations with visual artists, dancers, and poets.
A native Texan, and featured soloist on numerous projects in the USA, The Netherlands, and West Africa, Coke has had the honour of working with some of the world's most creative and diverse musicians and ensembles, including Tina Marsh, The Creative Opportunity Orchestra, The Willem Breuker Kollektief, KlezEdge, Drummer's Double Bill, Gerald Wilson, Charles Tolliver, The Paradise Regained Orchestra, Trio Henk de Jonge, The John Jordan Trio, The Mysterious Quartet From Helsinki featuring Chris Duarte, Greezy Wheels, Steven Feld, The Anyaa Arts Collective, The Alejandro Escovedo Orchestra, White Denim, Reeds and Deeds, and many, many others.