Carla Stokes is a professional saxophonist, DJ, session musician, producer, and live music provider from Cape Town, South Africa. From the age of eight, she dedicated herself to the study of music, beginning with classical and jazz training on clarinet, piano, and saxophone at school. Pursuing this passion academically, she earned a Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Performance from the University of Cape Town’s South African College of Music in 2018, majoring in saxophone. In 2019, she completed a Postgraduate Certificate in Education in Music from UCT.

Carla has been a gigging musician since the age of fifteen, gaining over a decade of experience within the South African music scene. She has performed in various bands in and around Cape Town, including The UCT Big Band, The UCT Alumni Big Band, The Mike Campbell Big Band, Los Tacos, Crimson House, Melorie Jane Quintet, Dandy and the Kicks, and Red Cello’s CODA Africa. These performances have included traditional big bands, combo jazz bands, pop bands, solo saxophone, as well as DJ-ing and playing saxophone simultaneously. Her career spans a wide array of genres and roles, including as an independent artist, producer, and live music provider. In 2019, she performed at The Cape Town International Jazz Festival as first tenor saxophone in the Lady Day Big Band, and in 2017 and 2018, she performed at the Standard Bank National Jazz Festival in the UCT Big Band.

Throughout her university studies, Carla taught music part-time at various junior and high schools in Cape Town, while simultaneously managing her own gigs and events as a musician. Today, she actively performs at many corporate functions, weddings, and other events as a solo saxophonist, DJ and bandleader. Carla has performed at many corporate events, most notably for Porsche Club South Africa, DRA Global for the Mining Indaba, Savanna Cider ‘Neat’ launch in Cape Town, L’Oreal Paris at Hazendal Wine estate, and Skin Ceuticals events on The Mirage Yacht. She has also performed at a number of private and public events at some of Cape Town’s most iconic venues, such as The Twelve Apostles Hotel and Spa, The Zeitz Mocaa Museum, The V&A Waterfront Amphitheatre, Harrington’s Cocktail Lounge, Hotel Sky, The Grand Beach Cafe, Groot Constantia, Constantia Glen Wine Estate, CTICC, Media 24, among countless other prestigious locations in Cape Town and the surrounding winelands.

Carla has released three original singles. Her self-produced original music is available on all streaming platforms and has influences of jazz saxophone fused with electronic styles of music. She hopes to give you a little sonic escape from the pressures of daily life, if only for a couple of minutes and hopes you'll leave feeling uplifted. Whether through her live performances as a saxophonist or her original music, Carla continues to immerse herself in diverse styles of music, bringing her vibrant artistry to audiences across Cape Town and beyond.

Carla also worked part-time at Quiet Life Co for two years (alongside her gigging career), a Cape Town based music agency and record label. This position has allowed her to develop skills in label and artist management, music publishing, distribution through platforms like Platoon, DMG, and Distrokid, as well as product management, metadata optimization, and pitching to digital streaming platforms such as Apple Music, Spotify, and Amazon etc. She has expanded her skills in A&R, discovering and listening to emerging artists, as well as designing creative social media strategies for artists.

Carla manages her own career as a musician and her agency, called “Stokes Music”. She offers a diverse range of live musical acts for private events, managing both herself and other musicians across various genres. Over the past decade, she has built an extensive network of artists, producers, sound engineers, photographers, videographers, and industry professionals. Today, Carla wears many hats in her career. She brings passion and a wealth of experience as a versatile musician working in numerous avenues of the music industry.