Cavatina and Cabaletta

Description

Cavatina and Cabaletta

2018
B-flat Clarinet solo, piano
Duration: 8′
Premiere–Lydia Sadoff, DET, Minneapolis, 2018.

Program note

Clarinetist Lydia Sadoff and DET, 2018

The cavatina and cabaletta format originated in the bel canto era as a showpiece for virtuosi. A short and lyrical arietta was followed by a quick section with fioratura, designed to show off the performer. I met Lydia Sadoff when she was a member of the Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphony, and her playing always impressed me with its style and fluency. I was delighted when her parents Dan Sadoff and Cynthia Gillette commissioned a clarinet solo for her senior recital at the University of Minnesota.