Testimonials

"John Blake is a warm effervescent performer who seems destined to be a force in jazz for many years to come...he is the best new jazz violinist of the decade."

—Russell Shaw, Billboard

"Mr. Blake rides those vamps like a master. He also knows how to pace a solo so that it builds to crest after crest, with an oratorical sense of timing."

—Jon Pareles, The New York Times

"...surely the most important new violinist to reach the jazz forefront during the past several years."

—Leonard Feather, Los Angeles Times

"As a composer and arranger, he has a strong personal vision.... Blake is an unabashed melodist, although certainly not a sentimental one."

—Jim Roberts, Downbeat

"John Blake takes advantage of his leadership debut by offering a varied and intelligently conceived collection of music...."

—Will Smith, Omaha World Herald

"One of the most captivating extra-musical aspects of Blake's performance was the utter lack of pretension or contrived inaccessibility; virtuoso that he is, he came off as a musician who cared about communication."

—Edgar Koshatka, Philadelphia Inquirer

"Blake is not just another violinist...he's one of the best young jazz soloists to emerge in the 1980's."

—George Kanzler, The Sunday Star-Ledger

"Blake's violin repeatedly soars like someone going up and down steps...without faltering...at supersonic speeds."

—Bondo Wyszoplski, The Argonaut

"In Blake's nimble hands the violin seems made for jazz/R&B. His smooth, free-wheeling playing is in sharp contrast to the choppy, frantic styles of other jazz violinists."

—Dennis Hunt, Santa Monica Times

"...a state-of-art display of the current level of jazz violin."

—David Hollenberg, The Evening Bulletin