A Central Valley native, Max returned to the Fresno/Clovis area after earning his
BA and MM in Trumpet Performance at UCLA. Through his studies, Max's passion for music
broadened to jazz, global music traditions and performance practices, and the continued
innovations of digital music technology and audio production. While at UCLA he performed
alongside jazz giants Wycliffe Gordon, Wayne Shorter, and Herbie Hancock, with pop/rock
artists like Rilo Kiley and AJ McClean, musical theater greats Ryan Scott Oliver and
Matthew Morrison, and for composers Derrick Spiva and Eric Ewazen. He has performed
for the Monterey NextGen Festival with the UCLA Contemporary Jazz Large Ensemble under
Kenny Burrell and Charlie Harrison, and in some of Los Angeles' premiere venues as
a member of a grant-funded chamber ensemble. An award winning trumpeter, Max received
third place in the Pasadena Showcase House for the Arts Instrumental Music Competition,
and the Collaborator's Choice award, alongside two First Prize wins in the National
Trumpet Competition Ensemble Division as part of the UCLA Trumpet Ensemble.
Having worked for Apple during their peak years and product releases, then as the
instrument technician for Fresno State, Max is now a member of the initial cohort
accepted to the brand new Master's Degree in Music Production through the Berklee
College of Music. He maintains an active performance schedule as a featured soloist
with choirs and solo vocalists, an auxiliary member of the Tulare County Symphony
and Fresno Philharmonic, a first-call trumpeter with a variety of jazz/pop/rock ensembles,
and frequently engages in live-looped multi-instrumental solo performances for Art
Hop and private events. He works part-time as a piano tuner and is contracted with
Fresno Steinway Piano Gallery.
Max is a proud collaborator on Fresno State Music Professor Ben Boone's two album
project "The Poetry of Jazz" and released his own collection of solo piano music in
2019 entitled "Two Years" available on all major streaming services.
