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(MP3, 773 KB, 1:40)
Lura Johnson, Piano

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Instrumentation: Piano

Total Timing: 20 Min.

Rumba in Fives Timing: 1:45

As with Lemon Merengue Lullaby, my Rumba in Fives makes use of a basic African rhythm, while sounding entirely unlike its progenitor, in this case the Cuban rumba. I've varied the clave rhythm of five beats within a pulse of eight (two 4/4 measures with beats on 1, 2b, and 4 in measure one and beats on 2 and 3 in measure two) by creating five rhythmic-melodic units of eighth notes that repeat every two measures (on beats 1, 2b, and 3b, and 2 and 3). Five of these units occur within each section, and there are five sections, for a total of fifty measures. The right-hand melody is varied and developed over the five sections, making Rumba in Fives essentially a passacaglia.