Camille Verhaak

Camille is a classically trained clarinet player who decided to study the classical clarinet after discovering the free improvisation scene in Amsterdam. In June 2015 she finished her classical studies at the Koninklijk Conservatorium Den Haag with Pierre Woudenberg, who was also the clarinet teacher of her main inspirator David Kweksilber. There she worked closely with composition students and followed masterclasses with distinctive improvisers such as Butch Morris, Agustí Fernandez, Guus Janssen, Han Bennink, Wilbert de Joode, David Kweksilber and many more.

Camille has premièred works by Krists Auznieks, Tijmen van Tol , Yael Levy, Georgi Sztojanov and Thierry Tidrow  (Dutch National Opera Academy), Maya Felixbrodt, Sascha Thiele, Brechtje van Dijk, Uldis Vitols, Corné Roos, and others. Now she regularly performs improvised music with musicians from jazz- as well as classical backgrounds, dancers and storytellers, choosing her ensembles carefully; she teaches music to children and adults; performs classical and improvised music for toddlers; and whistles on her bike.

Apart from her own Wurlitzer b-flat- and a-clarinets, Camille also has the honour of playing on the Noblet e-flat clarinet of the late Jazz legend Willem Breuker. 
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