Progetto Martha Argerich

italiano

Works

Ludwig van Beethoven

Sonata No. 3 in D-flat Major, Op. 12 No. 3

 

Ludwig van Beethoven’s three Sonatas for violin and piano, Op. 12, first published in Vienna in 1799, were initially greeted not at all favourably by the critics and were considered too difficult and too complex with respect to the standards of the day; this confirms the extent to which the young Beethoven’s style seemed unpleasant to the ears of many of his contemporaries. The Sonata in E-flat Major – third and last of the series – is in three movements; like the first two sonatas, it does not include a scherzo. Although the opening Allegro con spirito is in some respects still indebted to Mozart, the following Adagio con molta espressione, in C Major, is instead magnificently sculpted, entirely personal and Beethovenian in the most classic sense of the term; indeed, it may be the most inspired and wellrealised movement of the entire Op. 12. The sonata ends with a lively, concerto-like Rondo, Allegro molto, that in many ways looks backward, stylistically.

1. Allegro con spirito
2. Adagio con molt'espressione
3. Rondo. Allegro

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