A banjo innovator, Michael Nix designed the Banjar; a modern seven nylon string banjo combining elements of the five-string banjo and classical guitar; bringing the classic finger-style banjo of the late 1800's into the twenty first century.  His instrumentals, songs, and compositions draw from classic banjo and guitar, early banjo, folk, jazz and world music traditions.

 The New Classic Banjo Project was instituted by Nix to develop and record a modern classical banjo repertoire. Nix’s compositions for 7-string Banjar, the traditional nylon strung five-string classical banjo, the six-string guitar banjo and other banjo hybrids form the core of the New Classic Banjo Project.  Nix will record, publish, and perform the new repertoire in festivals, conferences, live and live-streamed concerts.

Nix participated in Seegerfest 2014, and other concerts commemorating the life of Pete Seeger.  In 2012 Nix performed American music at the Surin International Folkore Festival in Thailand with the Sorvino Dance Project.

Nix toured as a member of the Monadnock Classical Guitar Duo, and as a soloist he was on the New Hampshire Touring Program for four years from 1979-1983. Throughout the 1980’s he was a featured performer for the Connecticut Classical Guitar Society’s Andres Segovia outreach program “The Guitar About Town.  In 1988, he performed at the Bushnell Hall in Hartford CT, commemorating a 1931 Andres Segovia performance with Madam Emilita Segovia as the honored guest.  Nix was member of The Moser/Nix Duo, which formed in 1995, performing music and recording for mandolin and guitar. He founded The NixWorks Ensemble in 1999, a flexible chamber ensemble, to explore multiple creative influences and genre. Nix formed The Pioneer Consort in 2005, with violinist Chris Devine, and cellist Greg Snedeker to play World Chamber Music.  He currently performs with Chris Devine as the Devine-Nix Duo.