A Little Piece of Latin

This composition for wind quintet (flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, and French horn, transposed to F) focuses on 2 of the folk dances that are popular in Spain, and one in the Dominican Republic. The piece focuses on the G minor key for most of the time, and the opening of the composition with the Spanish Malaguena, which was inspired by Lara's "Malaguena", in triple meter. Later on, it segues into the paso doble, the bullfighter's march, in a martial 4/4 feel. Finally, the last segue brings us to the folk dance of the Dominican Republic, which is the Merengue. Here, there is the attempt to do the heavy syncopation and staccato beats that are common in merengue music, with only the French horn imitating the brass of a merengue band, bringing this Latin music fantasy to a close.