Classical Music | Piano Music

Recorded on 02/16/2011, uploaded on 08/02/2011

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

1802 was a momentous year in Beethoven’s life. In April, he moved to Heiligenstadt, and, as if running from an unavoidable, approaching tragedy, in a creative burst of energy, he completed the three violin-piano Sonatas of Op 30, the second Symphony and his three piano sonatas of Op. 31 during the summer. The E–flat major Sonata is a particularly powerful contrast to the dark hues of the previous d-minor. None of the four movements is slow. The first movement is a sunrise, with a suspended greeting at the start. “Even the tonic key appears a bit reluctantly, slowly and with hesitation like an opening window that faces a sunrise over a mountainous, pristine landscape, like a budding flower touched by the morning dew.” (Szabolcsi)  The colors of the main theme are ever changing and the dance of the secondary theme shines with even brighter hues. The Scherzo is a virtuoso toccata; teasing, quirky, a playful romp. The Minuet’s lilting melody is a contrast to the angularity of the preceding Scherzo and maybe the subconscious substitute for the missing slow movement. It dances forward gently and deliberately. The tarantella (or gallop?) presto con fuoco Finale is another of Beethoven’s virtuoso, quasi perpetuum mobile closing movements.

Courtesy of International Music Foundation.