Max Allard

Max Allard brings the banjo into new heights with his solo compositions. Bla Fleck has called him a new mature and poetic voice on the 5-string banjo. His debut solo album Odes / Codes was released in 2022 and produced by Jayme Stone. The album is a culmination of Allards contemporary and pianistic approach on the banjo, inspired by musicians and composers such as Keith Jarrett, Leo Kottke, Chilly Gonzales, Maurice Ravel, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Heitor Villa-Lobos, among countless others. Like a lot of Allards banjo work, the album focuses in on the widely unknown emotional depth that the banjo is capable of producing. Max holds a BM in classical composition from Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where he studied with Jesse Jones, Stephen Hartke, and Michael Frazier. Max recorded his second solo album in April and May of 2025, and plans to release it later in 2026. The album consists of a collection of solo work that is somewhat faster and more energetic than that of his debut album. Max brings an intimate environment to his solo concerts, and aims to connect the audience with the complex journeys and emotions of his music.