Derk van der Veen was born in Dokkum, in the northernmost part of the Netherlands, on February 15, 1972
Derk van der Veen took his conservatory courses in Rotterdam and Zwolle, respectively. During his studies in Zwolle he followed a short study in Prague with Prof. Stepan Rak. After graduating in the Netherlands, he took a specialization course in Prague for which he received a scholarship in 1995.
In 1995–1996, he performed with the Swiss-Dutch theater group Theatre Espace, for which he also composed music. In 1996, he founded the Mychenka Quartet and composed his "Mychenka Suite" for the ensemble. In 2002, he collaborated with the Swiss theater group Mimescope, working alongside the University of Geneva and CERN to bring science to the general public through theatre. Additionally, Derk was active as a guitarist, accompanying flamenco dance and ballet. Derk van der Veen has worked as a guitar teacher at various institutions, including the Centrum voor de Kunsten Sneek, ICO Assen, and in Dokkum, Akkrum, Grou, Leeuwarden, and Warten. He has also been active as a concert organizer, founding and performing with the Encuentro Multitimbre Guitar Quartet, for which he composed and arranged music. He was the owner of Petrucci Music Publications and 1 Page Music and is currently focused on researching historical music theory and the works of Bach. His compositions are published by Mel Bay and Petrucci Music Publications and are performed worldwide.
Concerto Grosso (baroque orchestra)
Canzon Primo (recorder quartet)
Canzon Secundo (8 recorders & bassoon)
Partita in D (3 recorders & bassoon)
Mychenka Suite (flute, violin, guitar, accordion)
Little Mychenka Suite (chamber orchestra)
Little Mychenka Suite (violin & guitar)
Winterchill in the Hills (from the Mychenka Suite) (bayan & guitar) & (multitimbre guitar quartet)
(bayan & guitar) Score & (multitimbre guitar quartet)
Hora (from the Mychenka Suite) (guitar solo) Score (Mel Bay)
English Suite (chamber orchestra) (flute, violin, guitar, accordion)
2 English Folksongs (from the English Suite) (violin & guitar)
Narodnaja Pesnaja (flute, violin, guitar, accordion) & (violin & guitar)
4 Slavonic Dances (flute, violin, guitar, accordion)
5 Slavonic Dances (orchestra)
Slavonic Dance no. 2 & 4 (accordion & guitar)
Slavonic Dance no. 2 (violin & guitar)
2 Jiddish Melodies (multitimbre guitar quartet/orchestra)
Swing for Two (accordion/bayan & guitar)
Swing for One (guitar solo)
English Folksong (guitar solo)
Jiddish Melody (guitar solo)
Sketches at the Seashore (orchestra)
The Eagle Flies Alone (guitar solo) (multitimbre guitar quartet)
Dalton’s Creek (multitimbre guitar quartet)
Hommage a Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco (violin & guitar)
Chinese Lady in Landscape (multitimbre guitar quartet)
Estrellita (multitimbre guitar quartet)
Sunny (multitimbre guitar quartet)
Lunes Gris (multitimbre guitar quartet)
Lonely nights (multitimbre guitar quartet) 2007
Loos'n up (band) 2009
Leavin' it all behind (band) 2009
Johnny (band)
Disco fever (band)
Soultrain (band)
Willow Song (band)
"without doubt one of the best, if not the best, composition of its kind I have come across in recent years"
"A small miracle of poetry"
mail: derkvanderveen@gmail.com