Medium
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Two
Pianos
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In the Montuno and Fugue,
I take my lead
from the baroque tradition of pairing an improvisatory piece (prelude,
fantasia, or toccata, for example) with a piece in strict imitative
counterpoint (fugue). Here, the improvisatory section is based on
the montuno section of a
Cuban son, a genre of popular
song originating in the 1920s or thereabouts. Traditionally, in
the montuno section of a
Cuban son, a chorus sings a
refrain in alternation with a solo singer, who improvises lyrics
between the refrains. Here I try to approximate this practice by
writing out "improvised" passages that alternate with presentations of
the coro melody. The ensuing fugue has a subject derived from the
montuno's main theme.
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