"... Massively talented Michael Berk, with a percussive, driving set of tunes played with his quite unique combination of flat-picking and fingerstyle - a wonderfully irreverant, thrashy version of Amazing Grace, his own extraordinary nervous tension and some cheesy stuff by request." Nigel Walsh, The Times "His background is in heavy metal and flamenco, his current sound blending Celtic sounds and modern acoustic techniques with helpings of bottleneck and flawless fingerpicking" Guitarist Magazine "The lone man and his music could fill a stadium with sound. Acknowledging this, he is one of a VERY small elite. The spectrum of sounds that radiate from his instrument are so full and vibrant that much like a fine claret, there is simply no need to complicate. Most excitingly of all, he, like claret, will only improve with age." Blah Blah Magazine (March 2005) Born on 23 March 1981, Michael began playing at the age of 6 using his mother's old guitar and a Beatles songbook. By the time he was 11, he was playing professionally with bands. Since then, Michael has performed in 5 countries, has privately taught over 80 students and is a regular session guitarist for several well known London-based producers. Yet it has only been over the past 2 years that he has received recognition for his own music, leading one leading promotion company to refer to him as "the greatest exponent of acoustic guitar on the live scene… not for the faint of heart!" (taken from Up All Night magazine last year). London's former Human Soundwave Club says, "Michael stuns with his intricate compositions". A recent review from Guitar 9 Records (internet magazine) said: "London fingerstyle guitarist Michael Berk has already been compared to the likes of Michael Hedges, Adrian Legg and Preston Reed, and the intricate compositions on his debut CD certainly invite comparisons with these masters. Advancing a percussive style on a steel-strung acoustic, album cuts such as 'All Enquiries' and the title track leap from the speakers, displaying technical mastery, a robust, commanding acoustic guitar tone and a passion for the sensitive side of guitar playing. The unpredictability of his compositions is also a strength - the music keeps your attention and offers a sense of fullness of expression." Michael has recently returned from the United States having performed in New Orleans, Memphis, Nashville, New York and competed in the prestigious "National Fingerstyle Guitarist of the Year Competition" held in Winfield, Ks. Music from Michael's debut album "Organized Chaos", recently appeared on the documentary "Cancer Cures" that aired on the 3rd Feb 2004 on ITV. From January to June in 2006 Michael performed onstage at The National Theatre, on London's South Bank, in a play called "Burn".