Described by Paris Move as possessing a “profound jazz heritage” and a technical foundation based on “the counterpoint traditions of J.S. Bach and Ron Carter,” Alex McLaughlin has been ranked as “one of the finest composers and arrangers of our time” (Thierry De Clemensat, Paris Move, 11/21/2024). His 2025 debut release, A Brand New State, featured eight original compositions and has received international attention. Composed of a series of musical vignettes that serve as a meditation on internal and external change, the record reflects McLaughlin’s relationships to loss, hope and perpetual evolution.

Born in Erie, Pennsylvania, McLaughlin now resides in the mountain town of Idyllwild, near the Los Angeles metro, where he serves as both the Jazz Program Director of Idyllwild Arts Academy and the Assistant Director of the Jazz in the Pines Student Clinic. His studies in music include Masters Degrees from both Cincinnati Conservatory and The Pennsylvania State University, in addition to private study with James Vandemark at The Eastman School. Summer studies include The Chautauqua Institute Music School Festival Orchestra and Brevard Music Center, where McLaughlin was teaching assistant to bassist Rodney Whitaker. In the coming year, McLaughlin will be releasing a record of jazz standards, each composed by one of his favorite bassists, paying homage to the rich tradition of performance and composition double bassists have held in jazz music.

McLaughlin’s jazz studies students have furthered their jazz education at institutions such as The New School, the Berklee College of Music, the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. McLaughlin’s classical bass students have placed as semifinalists in the International Society of Bassists solo competition in the youth solo division. 

Recent performances and studio appearances have placed McLaughlin working alongside musicians such as John Daversa, Ulysses Owens Jr., Laurence Hobgood, Christian Sands, and Jeremy Pelt. Previous festival appearances have included the 39th International Jazz Plaza Festival in Santiago de Cuba, the Columbus Jazz Festival, the Penn State Summer Festival of the Arts, the Boalsburg People’s Choice Festival, the Erie Jazz Walk, and the Erie Art Museum Blues & Jazz Festival.