William “Blake†Branch was born September 9th, 1981 in Dothan, AL. He eventually gained an interest in music and began studying saxophone at age 11. After seeing an electric bassist take a solo on TV, Blake realized the bass was the instrument for him. After receiving a Fender P-Bass from his parents, Blake started to play in school jazz bands, theatre bands, church bands and rock bands. Inspired by bass virtuosos/composers Marcus Miller and Jaco Pastorius, he also started to compose his own music and study music theory.
Blake started to lead his own jazz groups, performing his original tunes and standards at various venues and events in the Dothan area. In 2004 Blake released his self-produced debut album “Look Both Directionsâ€, featuring bass heavy original compositions. Shortly after the release of his album, Blake attended Victor Wooten’s Bass and Nature Camp where he studied and jammed with bassists Wooten, Steve Bailey, Anthony Wellington, Gerald Veasley, Chuck Rainey, Adam Nitti and others. Blake has also studied with Nitti privately. Shortly afterward Blake became the bassist with Christian rock band, Balance, opening for acts such as The Afters, Big Daddy Weave and Todd Agnew. He also went on to perform with American Idol winner Ruben Studdard and recorded and performed with AMC/Paradyne recording artist Brandon Kelley.
In 2006 Blake was awarded the Berklee Entering Student Scholarship and began his studies at the Berklee College of Music in the fall of 2007 with the ambition to polish his skills both as a bassist and a composer. Since then, Blake has studied with some of the best teachers at Berklee, including Matthew Garrison, Anthony Vitti, Tiger Okoshi, Joe Lovano, Scott Free, Wayne Naus, Greg Hopkins and others. For two years in a row Blake has represented the Berklee Bass Department in their annual student concert, performing original compositions with a top notch student band. He also recently has been awarded the 2009 Zildjian Max Roach Scholarship. Outside of school, Blake frequently performs around Boston in a variety of venues.