Alex Heitlinger

Office: Center for the Arts 237

Director of Jazz Studies Dr. Alex Heitlinger is a forward-thinking jazz composer and trombonist with a deep love of the jazz tradition and a passion for pushing musical boundaries. Heitlinger released his debut big band album, Slush Pump Truck Stop, in 2024 through SteepleChase Records. The album, his third as a bandleader, features a stellar ensemble including drummer John Riley, trombonist John Fedchock, pianist Carmen Staaf, guitarist Corey Christiansen, trumpeter Greg Gisbert, and saxophonist Michael Thomas. Praised by Jazz Mania Magazine’s Claudy Jalet as “eminently exciting” and “a beautiful and original discovery,” the album showcases Heitlinger’s unique approach to big band writing. While Heitlinger prefers to be acknowledged for his creative work, he is also well-known for his 2011 viral jazz montage The Lick, which has received over 4.9 million views on YouTube, becoming a widespread musical meme.

"His music showed a lot of maturity, technical proficiency, but moreover, he has a voice. That’s rare."

— Maria Schneider, Grammy-winning Jazz Composer

"...very much in the exploratory spirit of Booker Little’s amazing early 1960’s sextet... melodic and sonorous, full of appealing hooks and rich harmonies"

— Darcy James Argue, Grammy-nominated Jazz Composer

"Heitlinger’s elaborate, richly lyric tunes give each improviser plenty to chew on. Each tune contains numerous, discreet episodes and plenty of harmonic movement. But his dense arrangements, which convey a much larger sound than you’d expect from a sextet, guide the listener through each section with an abundance of sonic warmth… together they masterfully bring the leader’s tunes to life—pensive, plush and panoramic post-bop, in all their rich, harmonic glory."

— Pete Margasak, Downbeat Magazine