What they're saying about Brendan

"Brendan you are a great player and I know you will just get better and better. You have real passion and a great sense of time. Thanks for the great music."
Johnny Cunningham (1957-2003), Scottish fiddler extraordinaire, December, 2001

"He's the kind of musician that other musicians are in awe of... He plays the paint off the walls!"
Arthur Hinds, organizer of North Georgia Celtic Festival, July 2003

"Brendan rocks!... Here is one of the hottest fiddle players in the country, young, dynamic and energetic. He has a great sense of his style and a great stage persona... Brendan was the shining star of the show... he really went above and beyond in his performances. This boy is one fiery number, and his performances were the talk of the day! The duo held the audiences spellbound for both shows. This young man can flat out play the fiddle! He has a great sense of humor and a wonderful stage presence. Rich and Brendan have a great stage rapport, and Rich does a phenomenal job on guitar! I recommend this duo to anybody wanting to please a diverse crowd of people. He really had everybody going!... EVERYBODY loved his performance, and everyone I spoke with about him coming back raised great shouts of joy!"
Brian Sullivan of Emerald Rose, organizer of North Georgia Celtic Festival, July 2002

"I spent the day at the First Annual North Georgia Celtic Festival.... I got to hear this wonderful young man who plays the fiddle, who can beat the pants off of anyone in any of the Celtic bands we enjoy. If you hear about this young man performing, do yourself a favor and GO SEE HIM!!! Believe you me, I'm not kidding, it'll be worth your while."
Michael Liebmann, Southern Fried Filk, July 2002

"Special thanks to the phenomenal Brendan Carey Block, fiddler, and Richard Block, guitarist. You are awesome! Thank you for keeping to the old ways and allowing us a peek at how you create your work."
Robbie Grady, Goffstown New Hampshire Main Street Old Home Day, June 2002

"The Southern New Hampshire Scottish Games & Celtic Music Festival highlight: red-hot fiddler Brendan Carey Block."
Boston Globe, May 2001

"Brendan's fiddle style is beyond his years. He offers his listeners an instant feeling of familiarity with an earlier time. He has an uncanny way of sounding like an old master, but with young, nimble technique. He is a born fiddler!!"
Bonnie Rideout, three-time US National Scottish Fiddle Champion and sanctioned Scottish F.I.R.E. teacher and adjudicator, New Hampshire Highland Games judge, September 1998

"I cannot speak highly enough of this young man and his musical talents. While only fifteen years old, the maturity and advanced skill level of Brendan's fiddling is far beyond his years. Perhaps the area I have taken most delight in with Brendan has been his openmindedness to improvisation. This is an incredible experience, sharing with him the freshness and vitality of playing without the written page, and spontaneously feeling free to express personal emotions and feelings directly with the music."
Rodney Miller, National Endowment for the Arts Master Fiddler, March 2000

"A terrific part of the concert was when Brendan Carey Block, whose future should be every bit as great as John McCusker's, stepped on stage and performed with John and the Battlefield Band. Brilliant fiddling from two young geniuses."
Arthur Ketchen, publisher, Celtic Beat Magazine, Nashua, New Hampshire, November 1999

"Brendan is perhaps one of the most dedicated students of the Scottish Arts that I have had the privilege to know. Living in the New England area myself I often see Brendan attending workshops on weekends and evenings throughout the year with various Scottish and Cape Breton violinists. He is a conscientious learner and very keen at picking up the subtle nuances of Scottish fiddle. I have watched Brendan emerge from a shy young boy with determination and talent, to an outgoing and accomplished performer, not only in the New England area, but also in Cape Breton!"
Janine Randall, Director, Ceilidh Trail School of Celtic Music, March 1999

"Brendan Carey Block is the perfect example of what can happen when we expose our young people to our Scottish musical traditions. Brendan is rapidly becoming the premier New Hampshire-grown Scottish and Cape Breton fiddler of our time. I'm just happy to be around to listen and watch."
Stephen G. Brodie Avery (1938-2002), FSA (Scot), Director, New Hampshire Highland Games, Dublin, New Hampshire, January 1998

"Hailed by the traditional music community as a brilliantly-talented and passionate performer... a professionalism rare for his age, and a sincere dedication to Celtic music and dance, Brendan has, over the past three years, established himself within the traditional music scene."
Anne Deminoff, New Hampshire Federation of Musical Traditions, September 1998

"Brendan plays with a depth and passion beyond his years. His fiddling reflects both the soulfulness and joy of Cape Breton music."
Mary DesRosiers, well-known New England contradance caller, Harrisville, New Hampshire, February 1998

"This boy possesses a wonderful talent which will grab the hearts of all who hear him."
Bob McQuillen, New England's renowned contradance piano and accordion player and tune writer, Peterborough, New Hampshire, February 1998

"A young wizard of 12 who plays Cape Breton music brilliantly... He has the ability to pick up more than just the notes; he is quick to seize on the essential sound that characterizes the Cape Breton style... Where he goes ultimately with his playing? As far as he wishes; he has the attributes to do anything, the potential to be a player who makes us all stand up and listen."
Mary Lea, Brattleboro, Vermont, March 1997

"The highlight of the day for me was listening to Brendan Block, the remarkable eleven-year-old who placed first this past summer in his division at Concord and Weare and third at the Loon Mountain Highland Games. It was great fun to see him fiddling away on such popular tunes as 'Devil in the Kitchen' and the 'Cape Breton Strathspey.'"
Vesta Hornbeck, in Entertainment Times, Keene, New Hampshire, October 1996

"The young boy is well on his way to becoming a great player."
Buddy MacMaster, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, December 1996

"Brendan is awesome!"
Four on the Floor, Cape Breton stepdancers, Boston, Massachusetts, in Celtic Beat Magazine, February 1998

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