Music Chamber

 

The sonata in F major op.10 no.2 was written some time between 1796 and 1798, and is the second of a set of three sonatas. The work opens with a humorous and concise phrase, which is immediately contrasted with a more lyrical answer. These two brief ideas, one essentially rhythmic and the other melodic, form the bedrock of the movement. The music never seems to settle down, and several times seems to be searching for the right key. In this movement we get an idea of how Beethoven may have improvised. The second movement is much more languid – we stay in the key of F, but this time F Minor. It’s second section is in D Flat Major and sounds almost Schubertian. The good-natured finale removes any traces of pathos heard in the second movement, and brings the work to a rollicking close.

 

The sonata in C Minor op.13 is one of Beethoven’s most famous works. Written when he was 28 years old, the subtitle is not his, but was added by the publisher apparently with Beethoven’s consent. The title does in this case seem an apt one – the struggles in the opening measures give way to a stormy and exciting Allegro, which itself surges on until interrupted several times by the opening material. The haunting second movement is one of Beethoven’s more lyrical slow movements. Contrast this with the second movement of the earlier C Major sonata, where the mood was never allowed to settle. Here the mood is constant, and serves as a beautiful respite before the finale, which returns us to the heroic and defiant key of C Minor. Again there is a searching quality to this music, big leaps in the right hand and stretches in the left make the music sound troubled. At the very end the work breaks down and we hear a brief reminder of the second movement, before a scale brings the work to a defiant close, still in the minor key.

 

The sonata op.101 was written many years after the previous three we’ve heard tonight, in 1816. Gone are the strict forms and traditional devices – save for a fugue towards the end. Beethoven by now was almost completely deaf, and it is interesting to hear how often his late piano music is played at either end of the keyboard. Scholars are unsure as to whether this was because he could hear these frequencies better, but the fact is his late music has a mysterious sound-world all of its own. The style of op.101 is almost like one continuous fantasia. This is clear from the outset of this beautiful sonata – the first movement is lyrical and questioning and perhaps a little unsettled. This was Richard Wagner’s favourite piece of Beethoven, and he was inspired by the idea of ‘endless song’ – indeed, when this music begins (which it does in the key of E Major, even though we should be in A!) it sounds as if it has already begun somewhere else. The contrast with the second movement is immediate – a strident and jolting march, which at times sounds like the music of Schumann. The second section of the march is canonic and a little strange – evidence of the strict counterpoint that Beethoven introduces more and more into his later music. The third movement serves as a link to the fourth, and is wonderfully hushed and gentle. The cyclical nature of the sonata is proved by the introduction of material heard in the first movement, which leads us into the triumphant but awkward finale. You may have noted that Beethoven’s tempo markings are in German, an attempt by him make his directions as clear as possible. He did the same in the previous sonata, Op.90, but thereafter abandoned the idea and went back to Italian. However, his use of the word ‘determination’ gives a large clue as to how this music should sound. It is not easy to play, but it serves as an essential contrast to what has gone before. After a section of fugal writing the theme returns and, eventually, the music comes to a triumphant and satisfactory conclusion. As the great German pianist Edwin Fischer wrote: “This sonata demands everything: lyrical feeling, rhythm, absorption and virtuosity.” 

 

programme notes by Simon Watterton