From the Italian, "barca," or boat, a barcarole is usually in a triple meter, and imitates the boat songs of Venice. Patti Cota's BARCAROLE opens with a simple minor melody. The B section, in a major key, evokes a picture of calm, with sun glittering on gently-rippling water. The composition then returns to the A section, but this time much bigger and embellished by fuller chords and rhythmic accompaniment using strategically placed thumb damps. A subdued ending evokes waves gradually subsiding on the shoreline.