Reinaldo Moya Composer

20 minutes

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I. Chorinho
II. "You'll Spread Your Wings"
III. El Vals de Caraquita

IV. "A Canela y Clavo" (Passacaglia).

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Commissioned by Chiarina Chamber Players.

Premiered by Ricardo Morales, Clarinet; Domenic Salerni, Violin' Carrie Bean Stute, Cello; Efi Hackmey, Piano at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church on Capitol Hill (March, 2 2025)

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Read a Washington Post review from the world premiere here.

Program Notes

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I Will Dance, and Dance With You is written to the loving memory of my brother Manuel, who passed away in the summer of. He was a clarinetist growing up and the sound of the instrument became a part of our lives since I was a child. When I found out that I would be writing this piece, I knew that I wanted to honor his legacy through music for this lovely instrument that I will always associate with him. I did not want the work to be too elegiac and depressing, and hence why I chose to write a series of dances. The idea being that I would celebrate Manuel's life through dance and present some music that would have pleased him.

I. Chorinho
Chorinho: The opening movement is inspired by Brazilian choro music. This style is characterized by its lively rhythms and syncopation. The title chorinho literally translates to "little cry" and it inhabits the paradoxical state between dance and lament that is central to the whole work. The movement presents a jolly melody in the clarinet followed by a more lyrical section in the violin. The two styles alternate until coming to a somewhat mysterious close.

II."You'll Spread Your Wings"

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This movement is inspired by the atmosphere of Summertime by George Gershwin. In fact, the title comes from one of the lyrics in that tune. This is a intermezzo-like movement that presents a jazzy melody in the piano and passes it around the various instrument, what begins in a hazy mood becomes more charming and sunny as it continues.

III. Vals de Caraquita

Waltzes (valses) have always been an important part of V enezuelan folk music. The Cuarteto Caraquita was a well-known clarinet quartet from Venezuela who recorded a series of these beautiful waltzes from the turn of the the 20th century . This movement is my own unique version of this Venezuelan staple. The music is structured in a Minuet and T rio, with the first section presenting the waltz in a traditional way , while the trio is much more raucous and wild.

IV. “A Canela y Clavo” (Passacaglia)

 

I have been studying and learning about flamenco music for a while. After visiting Spain in early 2025, and witnessing a few live shows, I was inspired to close this piece with a flamenco-inspired movement. I chose to write my own version of a Seguiriya, which is typically a slow and solemn kind of palo. Seguiriyas often deal with tragic events, including death, and I felt that it would be appropriate to close the piece with a darker , more serious dance. The title of "A
Canela y Clavo(Passacaglia) refers to one of the stock lyrics used in seguiriyas, and it translates to cloves and cinnamon. The
movement begins with a stately, and intense seguiriya in a slower tempo. The cello intones a melody that is meant to represent
a "cantaor" or a flamenco singer . The music continues its journey and gets progressively faster , turning into something akin to a
soleá, another kind of flamenco palo. The music continues to build until we reach an ending of almost overwhelming intensity.

Altogether, I Will Dance, and Dance with You is a celebration of a life through dance, an exploration of the meeting place between
laughter and tears, and a loving tribute to one of the most important people in my life.