Gallo Pinto (score & parts) - DR CHOIR & STG5

Gallo Pinto
for double reed choir (oboe, two English horns, three bassoons), and string quintet: two violins, viola, cello, and double bass
by Francisco J. Castillo - Costa Rican composer, oboist, and conductor

Gallo Pinto is a traditional dish of Costa Rica. It is a combination of rice and beans with a very special Costa Rican sauce. It can be cooked with white or brown rice and kidney or black beans. Gallo Pinto was written for oboists Christoph Hartmann and Manuel Rojas, bassoonists Carolyn Beck and Will Dietz, and Ruben Oscher. The Serenate contains several influences from Latin American rhythms. It is written in one movement, but with three different demarcated sections. The first section is a free-spirited introduction that is followed by a playful fast section. The second part is a slow cantabile with a sweet and haunting melody on the oboe and rich, warm, sustained strings. The third section is a recapitulation of previous elements presented earlier in the piece, but with a twist; a variation on a theme that departs to a folk-like melody with a Latin dance feeling. It is playful, cheerful, and vibrant.