I performed an all-cello concert with Yo-Yo Ma, Chicago Symphony cellists John Sharp (Principal), Katinka Kleijn, Richard Hirschl, Loren Brown, as well as Jeffrey Ziegler (Kronos Quartet) and Ashley Bathgate (Bang on a Can All-Stars) in a concert featuring many of my arrangements!
Read MoreWe got a great write up about the background behind my design, and benefits of playing playing cello standing up! Click here to read full article.
Read MoreI had the honor of being the first cellist after Yo-Yo Ma to perform the Zhao Lin "Duo concerto" for Cello and Sheng (Chinese traditional wind instrument), along with fellow Silk Road Ensemble member Wu Tong, and Maestro Alistair Willis. This was my first concerto performance in many years, and I had a wonderful week in Springfield seeing all of the Abraham Lincoln historical sites! Also, to my knowledge, these were the first concerto performances by a standing cellist :) Click here to watch video.
Read MoreI was doing a bunch of recording at the end of 2015 for my new album of American folk standards, featuring musicians Darol Anger, Joe Walsh, Stash Wyslouch, Karl Doty, Balla Kouyate, Indrissa Kone, Greg Liszt, and others! I am excited and grateful that the legendary Club Passim has awarded this project an Iguana Music Fund Grant to support cost of recording at the wonderful Dimension Sound Studios in Boston.
Read MoreAs director of GMW, I am very excited to announce that Béla Fleck is our 2016 Featured Guest Artist. If you are a musician and would enjoy the opportunity to work with Béla and the rest of our amazing and diverse faculty, check out our website at www.GlobalMusicianWorkshop.com.
Read MoreMain Week is July 4-9, and the Extension for Advanced Players is July 11-15. We are also debuting the *NEW* Florida Band Incubator (F.B.I.) July 11-15 for pre-formed groups to receive artistic and professional guidance from our world class faculty. More information at www.MikeBlockStringCamp.com.
Read MoreI spent five months planning the curriculums in multiple styles (Bluegrass, Jazz, Classical), with a comprehensive Beginner Multi-Style curriculum, and a boat load of Intermediate/Advanced Technique videos. We even have a section on Rhythmic Playing, Chopping and Singing-while-Playing! I spent 9 LONG days in the studio making this extensive Library, and even got Rushad Eggleston and Jeremy Kittel to join me for a day to record performance versions of most of what I taught. If all that wasnt enough, the coolest part about ArtistWorks is that I can do 1-on-1 Video Exchanges with my students to still give personalized feedback, and form a close relationship over the long run. If you, or someone you love, is a cellist, come check it out!!
Read MoreSo I have been working on the design for 2 years, and now The Block Strap is finally available for Pre-Orders, expected to be shipped by May 1st!
Read MoreEver since I started using the strap, I randomly walk around my house while practicing and inevitably end up playing Bach Suites in the bathroom, where the acoustics are resonant. So, I decided to start doing the same thing back stage while on tour with the Silk Road Ensemble, and I brought a video camera so I can share this beautiful music with the world the way I hear it! :) Click here to visit BachInTheBathroom.com.
Read MoreYo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble were featured in three subscription concerts by the NYPhil in Lincoln Center - the NY Times review featured an incredible picture of ME standing next to Yo-Yo!!?? What the what? :) Click here to read full review.
Read MoreAt the end of a week long residency Feb 8-12 with the Peoria Symphony in Illinois, I was featured on the hour long WTVP show "SoundBites", playing music from my solo show. Not sure when it will air yet ....
Read MoreYo-Yo Ma asked me to direct a new world-music summer program on behalf of Silkroad, and we are currently accepting Applications! The dates are June 8-12, 2015, and the faculty includes Yo-Yo Ma, Sarah Jarosz (American Folk), Sandeep Das (Indian Tabla), Hadi Eldebeck (Arabic Oud), Kaoru Watanabe (Japanese Flute), Shane Shanahan (world percussion), and myself! Click here to visit GlobalMusicianWorkshop.com.
Read MoreA cover of "Rather Be" by Clean Bandit. Click here to watch video.
Read MoreOur 1st Annual Festival will feature some incredible musicians from Bluegrass, Celtic, Latin, Rock, Jazz, and World Music styles, as a day-long finale to the Mike Block String Camp.
Read MoreDuring our last class of the semester, my student ensemble made two fun videos to share: "Happy" by Pharrell Williams and "This Must be the Place" by Talking Heads.
Read MoreOur new SONY album, A Playlist without Borders, by the Silk Road Ensemble, is number ONE, and has been streamed over 250,000 times on Spotify! The album opens with a duet I recorded with tabla player Sandeep Das, and also includes a cello solo performed by Yo-Yo Ma that I MAY, or may not, have written for him while on my lunch break at Berklee .... not telling ;)
Read MoreCelebrating the 15th Anniversary of the Silk Road Ensemble, the NY Times review singled Mike out with the following review of the concert: “The breathless duet by his [Yo-Yo Ma’s] solo cellist Mike Block with the tabla player Sandeep Das … was another highlight of the evening. Half Dance, half dare, it exemplified much of the interaction between the musicians, which turns any performance into a visual spectacle.”
Read MoreFaculty and dates have been announced for this new camp I’m directing at the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music this summer - August 12-17! Check out the website for details.
Read MoreI played cello in a string octet backing up "Jenna" in the Series Finale, aired 1/31/13. Goodbye Liz Lemon!
Read MoreNow with three locations in Vero Beach, Florida - Saline, Michigan - Portland, Maine!! Visit MikeBlockStringCamp.com for more.
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