"...you can do it all, man. If you looked up jazz drummer in the encyclopedia, there would be a picture of you. Wherever I hear you, you sound fantastic. It's like you can do anything...and you look great playing too."
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-John Gilbreath, Director, Earshot Jazz
Max Holmberg is a Seattle based drummer, bandleader and educator. He first started getting to know the drum set at his grandpa's house at age two. Born into a family of actors and musicians, it's no surprise that the first music he remembers listening to is Count Basie. Max got his fist real taste of jazz playing in the jazz programs at Eckstein Middle School and Roosevelt High School in Seattle. Max then moved to Boston for four years where he completed his B.M. at Berklee College of Music. Upon completion, he returned to Seattle where he currently resides and can be found performing in person and on the radio with many diverse projects and bands including the Alex Dugdale Band, Danny Quintero Band, Jacqueline Tabor Jazz Band, 200 Trio, The Arsonists, the Eric Patterson Band, The Pacific Northwest Ballet School, and the Kareem Kandi Band, as well as teaching out of his studio and at the Seattle Drum School. Max hosts the Sunday night jam session at the Angry Beaver in Greenwood, co-runs the (currently retired) podcast Jazztalk Seattle, and runs the Secret Jazz Club on Airbnb (on hiatus since covid). He can also be found occasionally performing with Broadway shows including the Grammy and Tony-winning Hadestown (North American Tour).
Throughout Max's musical journey, he has had the opportunity to perform in 7 different countries and gain personal experience and knowledge from many notable musicians. Some highlights include performances in India with Danae Greenfield and the 200 Trio, touring with Hadestown, touring internationally with the Arsonists featuring Patrick Bartley, Jr, the Jens Lindemann Big Band/Seattle Chamber Music Society Festival, performing at Berklee College of Music with NEA Jazz Master Joanne Brackeen, Eddie Gomez, and Wayne Krantz, a performance at Lincoln Center with the Roosevelt High School Jazz Band and Wynton Marsalis, workshops with Gerald Clayton, Joe Lovano, the late Rashied Ali, and the late James Moody. In addition to these artists, a special thanks goes out to Benny Green, Neal Smith, Katia Roberts, Ernesto Diaz, Tyler Richart, Joanne Brackeen, Stuart MacDonald, Moc Escobedo, Lisa Holmberg, Ed Mays and Scott Brown for going above and beyond in helping mentor Max as a musician, drummer and human spirit.
Max has since been a featured guest artist at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville(UVM), Gonzaga University, Eastern Washington University, and Whitman College.
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