Carl Derfler (b. 1950)

Carl Derfler, an "Americanadian," enjoys the best of the U.S. and Canada, having established professional ties with musical communities in both countries.

Mr. Derfler was born in Colorado in 1950, and was educated in Washington State. After graduating from Washington State University in Music Education in 1973, he went to Berlin, Germany, for further studies in composition. Upon returning, he taught music in the public schools in Kennewick, WA for a year. The lure of more foreign study took him to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada in 1975, where he received a Master’s Degree in music composition from the University of Alberta. In 1978, Mr. Derfler was invited to attend the first composers’ workshop at the Banff School of Fine Arts in Banff, Alberta.

The musical setting of Edmonton offered opportunities for participation in musical groups as well as performances of original music. Mr. Derfler's 1st symphony was premiered by the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra in 1985, while other works saw performances by local woodwind quintets, quartets, choir and pianists. His works have been performed in Canada, the U.S. and Italy and on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). As an active musician, Mr. Derfler played clarinet in the Edmonton Wind Sinfonia and the Cosmopolitan Music Society, and sang tenor in the “Richard Eaton Singers."