On 4 November Derek Bermel gave the European premiere of Bells of Westertoren for clarinet and piano with Gerard Bouwhuis at Splendor, Amsterdam, as part of a concert celebrating thirty years of friendship with key students and collaborators of Louis Andriessen, with whom Bermel studied in the mid-1990s. The concert also saw Bermel perform his Thracian Sketches for solo clarinet and Twin Trio (where he and Bouwhuis were joined by flautist Ned McGowan).
Bells of Westertoren was written for clarinettist Gerbrich Meijer and pianist Conor Hanick as short tribute to Andriessen. Bermel writes,
From Louis' house on the Keizersgracht, the carillon of the Westerkerk echoed, tolling the hours and occasionally spilling out sweetly clangourous renditions of Bach counterpoint. For Louis composing was a radical act, but also one grounded in tradition. In Bells of Westertoren I channelled his single-minded tenacity and grand polytonality, with a nod to his fondness for the softer side of French music—so the ghost of Olivier Messiaen (whose quartet pianist Conor Hanick and I performed several years ago) hovers ever presently nearby.
The 5-minute work was commissioned by Music Academy of the West for as part of the Music Academy of the West’s Alumni Performance Award and Mariposa Concert Series, and received its world premiere in November 2025.
Twin Trio (2005) is a 14-minute work in four movements, exploring the differences and similarities of the clarinet and flute; inspiration drawn from Bermel visiting newborn twins. The flute and clarinet, while different in sound production, are similarly bound by their common "woodwind"-ness and by their similar range. The trio movements each focus on a specific interval and its corresponding octave "twin"; major 2nd and minor 7th in the first movement, "Mirror"; perfect 4th and 5ths in the second movement, "Converse"; major 3rds and minor 6ths in the final movement, "Follow". The third movement, "Share," is a flute/clarinet duo exploring the gravitational pulls of minor and major 2nds.
Thracian Sketches (2003) is inspired by Bulgarian folk music, which Bermel spent hours transcribing on a visit to the region in 2001; material that would in turn would become the orchestral work Thracian Echoes. In this piece Bermel bends the original Bulgarian modes into a whole tone melodic context while retaining much of the original rhythms and contour. The piece begins in the lower register of the clarinet, and moves through the songs, increasing in velocity, range, and the complexity of rhythmic groupings as it progresses. Bermel sees the work as a minimalist form, dedicating it to John Adams, who had previously conducted his clarinet concerto.