From May 28 – 31, the New Century Chamber Orchestra presented the first West coast performances of Featured Resident Composer Derek Bermel’s recent work Murmurations, a work inspired by the migratory patterns of starlings. Rebecca Wishnia of the San Francisco Classical Voice wrote, “…Trills are an obvious compositional choice for the evocation of fluttering birds, but Bermel employs them with novelty …The individual sections’ swooping scales seamlessly fit together…Bermel’s imaginative harmonic progressions and shifting accent patterns elevate the seemingly simple finale — a perpetual motion in the minimalist style — to a level of sophistication…” Read more here.
More Murmurations reviews:
Here’s what Joshua Kosman of the San Francisco Chronicle said about Derek Bermel’s new chamber orchestra work. “Murmurations, the charming new piece he wrote on a commission from the New Century Chamber Orchestra and a consortium of other ensembles, takes its cue from the flocking behavior of 
birds, in particular starlings…The results are delightful and intriguing…On first encounter, Murmurations struck me as ingenious…the orchestra and Music Director Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg gave it a vibrant, often richly colored performance. Find out more here.
Allan Ulrich of Financial Times wrote, “…Murmurations [was] a West Coast premiere by this season’s composer in residence, Derek Bermel. In this three-movement co-commission, the flights of starli
ngs have become the inspiration for 22 minutes of virtuoso string writing. In “Gathering Near Gretna Green,” the avian whoosh is punctuated by a concertmaster solo. In “Soaring over Algiers,” an individual line yields to brilliant contrapuntal writing; and in the final “Swarming Rome,” spatial elements yield a broader sonority…Murmurations, completed this year, provides challenges for any string ensemble…the performance profoundly engaged. Read more.