DISCOGRAPHY


 

intonations

Derek Bermel / JACK Quartet / Wiek Hijmans / Christopher Otto on Naxos American

Intonations for String Quartet has been nominated for a 2022 Grammy Award for Best Classical Composition. Twice GRAMMY-nominated composer and performer Derek Bermel studied with Henri Dutilleux, Dutch avant-gardist Louis Andriessen, and ragtime revivalist William Bolcom. In his music, seemingly antithetical qualities – classical and vernacular, comic and serious – merge and transform each other unpredictably, their inspiration ranging from theatre (Ritornello), to gestalt psychology (Figure and Ground), to meditations on cosmology (A Short History of the Universe). Thracian Sketches explores and reimagines Bulgarian folk music, while the Violin Etudes distill Bermel’s intellectual creativity into its purest form.

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Migrations

Derek Bermel / Juilliard Jazz Orchestra & Albany Symphony on Naxos American

Nominated for a 2020 Grammy Award for Best Classical Composition, Migrations provides a generous view of Derek Bermels superb craftsmanship and eclectic style, in which classical forms, world music, jazz, blues and American folk music create a mix that reaches directly into the body and the heart. Commisioned by Wynton Marsalis, Migration Series has its roots in African American music, its impeccable counterpoint and biting rhythms expressed through orchestration that sounds like a city coming to life. Mar de Setembro was inspired by Luciana Souzas bell-toned voice and the intense feelings of Portuguese saudade, while A Shout, A Whisper, and A Trace honors Bartoks last years in New York, referring to the Concerto for Orchestra as well as to jazz and Balkan music.

What a melting pot of musical styles! Bermel’s endless invention initially ruffles your feathers but leaves you breathless in the end. Captivating and colourful.
— BBC Music Magazine

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CANZONAS AMERICANAS

Derek Bermel / Alarm Will Sound

This superb new compilation by the New York ensemble Alarm Will Sound shows off the many sides of Bermel’s musical personality, from the quick-change artistry of the Latin-infused title work to the witty, restless modernism of “Natural Selection.”...Each of these pieces on its own is enough to thrill and enthrall a listener.
— San Francisco Chronicle

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VOICES

Derek Bermel / Boston Modern Orchestra Project

Derek Bermel's CD of orchestral works:  From the melodic roots of West Africa to the infectious grooves of Bulgarian folk music, the CD's four orchestral works meld Bermel's love for orchestral and jazz music with a myriad of unlikely global traditions and influences. 

Wonderful new music, all of it. Performances are tip-top, and the sound clear and im­mediate. One of the most refreshing discs in a while.
— Stereophile

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Soul Garden

Derek Bermel/Chamber Works on New World Records (CRI) 

‘Soul Garden’ is a superb album of consistently winning chamber works that demonstrate how a brilliant musical vagabond has made the sounds of the world his palette to create a singular artistic vision.
— Sequenza 21

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The elements

Peace by Piece

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Peace by piece

Peace by Piece

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Momentum 21

Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra

Contains Derek Bermel's Ritornello


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Bolcom - 12 New Etudes / Bermel - Turning 

Christopher Taylor, Piano

Contains Derek Bermel's Turning


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Bits & Pieces

Sean Osborn, Clarinet

Contains Derek Bermel's Theme and Absurdities


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13 Ways of Looking at the Goldberg

Lara Downes, Piano

Contains Derek Bermel's Kontraphunktus


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The WNYC Commissions Volume One

Contains Derek Bermel's Three Rivers

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The Chamber Music of Aaron Copland


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Currier: On The Edge; Chamber Music Of Sebastian Currier


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The Chamber Music of John Musto: Music from Copland House

The Sextet and Divertimento both place considerable emphasis on the clarinet, and Derek Bermel makes the many important clarinet passages sing, especially the klezmer-influenced sections.
— Sequenza 21

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