Beethoven: Piano Sonata 1 - 3

 

Today, I am beginning my coverage of the piano sonatas from Ludwig van Beethoven, breaking each sonata down movement by movement, including key and tempo relationships, as well as general thoughts.

I normally don't listen to too many recordings of solo piano, preferring instead to explore that music directly at the keyboard. But, this set has been calling me for a while, so I thought I would give it is turn. That said, it is not a genre I am used to speaking about, so my thoughts may be muddled at first.

Stephen Kovacevich is known as rather severe in Beethoven, both in temperament, weight, and tempo. Of course, listening to only one pianist performing Beethoven, the listener just receives one viewpoint of the composer's keyboard music, so any issues I might have with Kovacevich's approach can easily be solved by listening to another, such as Perahia, Backhaus, Barenboim, or Kempff for example. Of course, Kovacevich plays on a modern concert grand piano, so those looking for period fortepianos best look elsewhere.

For those looking for my generalized thoughts, skip to the bottom. Otherwise, I will do a movement-by-movement breakdown of each sonata for those who wish to listen along. I provided a YouTube playlist at the very bottom of this blog post of Stephen Kovacevich's recorded performances in order to make it easier to follow along with my thoughts.

Piano Sonata 1, op. 2 no. 1

Movement 1
Key: F minor
Meter: Cut time
Tempo: Allegro; 𝅗𝅥 = 136

Beethoven makes it very easy on the listener to discern differences between he and Haydn or Mozart. The first is the key of F minor, a key setting very unusual for the Classical Era, although Haydn did compose one sonata in the key of A-flat Major, f minor's relative Major.

And yet, there is obvious indebtedness to the earlier masters, such as the opening Mannheim rocket melody with an embellishment on top, and the rather sparse textures, where the piano often has only one note or octaves in the right hand, while the left hand plays rapidly-moving figures. This makes the effect all the much better when Beethoven inserts chords or added notes to the music.

Otherwise, this first movement moves from F minor to the relative key of A-flat Major and back. Also, make sure to catch the minor-2nd intervals which release satisfactorily, but are a rather dissonant surprise, especially considering the open textures in this movement. As to the main theme, while it may be a small thing, notice how Beethoven doesn't merely keep the melody in the right hand, but switches it up into the left hand for the restatement. Again, a small thing, but such choices are what sets apart the best from the mediocre.

Stephen Kovacevich particularly pounds out the left hand sforzandos in the development, but not so much the same right hand articulations in the same area. I enjoy the pressed feeling of tempo he chooses, making the minor key all the more nervous sounding. Kovacevich keeps the lengths of notes rather short and the pedaling clean, a fine choice for this opening.

Movement 2
Key: F Major
Meter: 3/4
Tempo: Adagio;   = 44

The second movement is winsomely melodic, with a fair amount of ornamentation and embellishment. The music moved from F Major, the parallel key from the opening F minor, and moves briefly to an area of relative minor in D minor, preferring, though, to move back to F Major for the majority of the movement. 

Because Kovacevich choose swift tempos, such choices can often make his slow movements sound less poetic and more straightforward. I don't feel such things in this first piano sonata, with the pianist imbuing a light, delicate touch, and more than enough serenading of the listeners. He might prefer a more precocious touch in the rapid figurations, but I find such things rather charming.



Movement 3
Key: F minor & F Major (Trio)
Meter: 3/4
Tempo: Menuetto: Allegretto;  𝅗𝅥. = 66 - 72

Beethoven divides up the two keys the listener has so far heard in the sonata, setting the Minuet in a spiky F minor and the ensuing Trio in a legato F Major. The Minuet travels to A-flat Major by the end of its first section, and while moving back to the original key in the second portion, occasions upon b-flat minor for a while.

I really enjoy the flowing Trio most of all, again set in a rather simple texture from Beethoven. Notice too how the composer swaps measures of interest between the right and left hands, not merely content to simply spin lovely pastoral sounds in the right alone.

I was rather surprised at the one-to-a-bar tempo Kovacevich uses for this Minuet. In this case, I would be hard pressed to call this a Minuet anymore, for the dancer's limbs would be twisted up into a knot. That said, Beethoven did prefer Scherzos, so perhaps this very un-Allegretto tempo is not so far-fetched.



Movement 4
Key: F minor
Meter: Cut time
Tempo: Prestissimo;   = 110

Unlike Mozart or Haydn, Beethoven doesn't abandon the minor key as could often happen in the Classical Era. He firmly writes a driving f minor moving towards c minor, with a minor pull back into A-flat Major after the initial statement. He does settle into A-flat Major eventually, but instead of a development to do so, he simply composes a new contrasting section.

As I mentioned in the first movement, I really like the sparse textures here, particularly the right-hand octaves against roiling left-hand figurations. The harmonic movement has something to do with my enjoyment as well, sounding colorful and unexpected.

Kovacevich drives this last movement to the edge of his ability, a common trait from the pianist which either works really well, or shows the cracks in his skills. Here, I think it works well, where the scale work sounds of one piece rather than stilted.

This First Piano Sonata is quite something for a first effort, both from Beethoven and Kovacevich. I think the former makes a bold statement across four movements, while the latter nails the piece in his preferred playing style.

Piano Sonata 2, op. 2 no. 2

Movement 1
Key: A Major
Meter: 2/4
Tempo: Allegro vivace;   = 142

So very often, opening-movement melodies move upward in pitch. Thus it is always refreshing to hear a downward moving motive in this first movement. Truthfully, this is a more of a spirited fanfare prelude to a more legato opening motive, although both are reused frequently throughout this first movement. It is interesting in the second statement of the theme, Beethoven cuts the fanfare short to get on with his musical plan.

This buoyant A-Major key eventually finds its way to E Major by the end of the exposition, but does so in meandering ways. Beethoven slows down the inner rhythms to make a rather chromatic path towards e minor, to G Major, to B-flat Major (!), somehow eventually landing onto the appropriate key of E Major.

Interestingly, Beethoven uses e minor to transition to the development from E Major, only to begin the development proper in C Major. Beethoven really sets the listener on a harmonic carousel, especially as it doesn't take the composer long to move from C Major to A-flat Major, a chromatic-mediant relationship. But this is the development section, a chance for Beethoven to stretch his motivic and harmonic wings.

In said development, Beethoven takes on the fanfare idea first, while keeping the legato material for the second portion, set in F Major, although there is a lot of sequencing through distant keys. Compared to Piano Sonata no. 1, this is a devilishly conceived development. The recapitulation prefers some developmental quality to some degree, but mainly sticks to the original design.

Kovacevich picks a swift, springy tempo, again, almost to the edge of his ability to play clean scales. I generally like it, although he does pull back for the legato portions in contrast. However, the contrast between the more staccato fanfare and lyric second theme is beautifully delineated. Kovacevich does pedal more here than in the First Piano Sonata, not always to my satisfaction, but not overly distracting either.



Movement 2
Key: D Major
Meter: 3/4
Tempo: Largo appassionato;   = 45

Largo appassionato is quite a tempo marking, instructing a very slow tempo, but also an emotional quality as well. As a matter of fact, the entire Second Piano Concerto is generally more descriptive in its tempo markings than the first. I don't know if I truly hear the appassionato part of the directions in this movement, but that might be more on Beethoven than the pianist.

The most striking part of this movement is the sustained right hand over a 'plucked' moving bass line in the left hand, an idea he must have really liked because it comes back again and again. Only an unexpected and loud d-minor portion towards the end of the movement, one which moves briefly to B-flat Major, stands out as rather unusual, harmonically speaking.



Movement 3
Key: A Major & A minor (Trio)
Meter: 3/4
Tempo: Scherzo: Allegro;   = 168

To my ears, there is a striking similarity between the first movement fanfare idea and the Minuet melody. Certainly, there is are light-hearted A Major flutterings, ones which Kovacevich plays lightly. Also, maybe the contrasting a-minor Trio in legato style could be another parallel.

The second-half of the Minuet winds it way into G-sharp minor for a piece, the only bit of harmonic surprise, with plenty of double sharps for the pianist. Otherwise, I find this Scherzo a little less characterful than the previous Minuet in Piano Concerto no. 1.

Kovacevich plays a little haltingly in the Scherzo, something I might have expected in the Minuet earlier. He doesn't do so in the legato Trio though, preferring instead to drive it forward in contrast.



Movement 4
Key: A Major & A minor
Meter: Common time
Tempo: Rondo: Grazioso;   = 112

There is an opening arpeggiated flourish which opens this last movement. Something to watch out for is how Beethoven changes the rhythmic profile of this flourish every time it reappears, one which usually makes its way across both pianist's hands.

Beethoven did enjoy concluding Rondos, a form which utilizes contrasting musical section, some which return, as opposed to a movement based on opening motives, as in the first movement. Beethoven even goes so far as to completely change the key signature to a minor in the middle section.

How odd the composer chooses to end his sonata on such a prettified, graceful statement. The tempo is not very fiery, and the Alberti bass seems awfully gentrified from Beethoven in the opening ritornello idea. Granted the contrasting a-minor section and the many chromatic scales goes a way to make sure this isn't merely pleasant music, but a musical statement from Beethoven. Plus, when the main idea comes back, he is sure to make the music different than it appeared previously, usually through embellishments and ornamentation, as well as musical flourishes.

I don't have too much to add regarding Kovacevich's playing here. Piano Sonata no. 2 is daintier and lighter than the First Piano Concerto, and that comes through well enough.

Piano Sonata 3, op. 2 no. 3

Movement 1
Key: C Major
Meter: Common Time
Tempo: Allegro con brio;  = 156

Well golly, here we find the breadth expected of Beethoven, with the longest, most protracted movement thus far. The opening motive is a little embellished figure in C Major, one which switches over into the left hand at the restatement.

In the exposition, Beethoven makes a fine preparation for a G Major second section, however, he unexpectedly moves to g minor instead. Eventually, he does move to G Major, although I don't know if these g-minor and G Major motives are separate ideas or branches of each other.

To my ears, this music is already sounding more virtuosic than the others I have covered in this post. The cascading octaves and filigree fingerwork betwixt the motivic sections seem to flex a bit more muscle than heard previously, even if this isn't out-and-out bravura.

The development area focuses on the main idea of the exposition almost unilaterally, mixing in the semiquaver transitional material as contrast. Beethoven even gives us a false recapitulation in the key of D Major, protracting this section a little further.

Beethoven also gives the listener its first large-sized Coda, announced by the distant A-flat Major key followed by many deceptive cadences to draw out the music, and containing an unusual concertante-like cadenza, a strange feature of this first movement.

Again, Kovacevich sprints across the quicker rhythms of this movement, where some of the ornaments sound a little perfunctory with his pedaling here. Perhaps this is due to some very short note lengths the pianist seems to prefer, over their full length. I also think this might be one instance where his tempo choice may have been simply too fast.



Movement 2
Key: E Major
Meter: 2/4
Tempo: Adagio;  = 52 - 60

To go from a first movement in C Major to a second movement in E Major is a surprising chromatic-mediant relationship. Usually, a composer would choose the dominant, sub-dominant, or relative minor, but E-major is a big surprise. Of course, it takes Beethoven very little to completely change the key signature over to E minor, a less outlandish relationship to C Major, however, a diametric switch in a slow movement in E Major.

As is usually the case with Beethoven, he is not content to merely provide the listener a pretty song, but revels in musical contrasts. The E-Major portion bears a lovely melody. The e minor has some strikingly menacing bass notes, strongly brought out by Kovacevich. Yet, there are also these left-hand crossings, which provide the listener these little chromatic sigh motives, maintaining a more swooning quality.

Of course, Beethoven has an eruption of an insistent C Major in the E-Major return, where the sighing motif also comes back later on. The composer milks his fine melodic idea for all its worth, even inserting a playful little area near the end, as well as some curious syncopations.

Kovacevich's fingerwork is a little sturdier than I expected in this movement, never giving into prettification or overly finely-flossed music, although he does find some coy wit.



Movement 3
Key: C Major & A minor (Trio)
Meter: 3/4
Tempo: Scherzo: Allegro; 𝅗𝅥. = 86

Here is a little scamp of a Scherzo, which uses a half-step interval as its means of tension. The main motive is passed around the hands of the pianist contrapuntally quite adeptly, making that half-step even more effective.

The Trio is made up of rising and falling arpeggios over sustained bass notes, set in the relative minor from the Minuet. Beethoven adds a short Coda to the end of the Minuet's return, again, really laying into the half-step idea. Upon listening, this extended ending came as a real surprise to this listener.



Movement 4
Key: C Major
Meter: 6/8
Tempo: Allegro assai; . = 130

The fourth movement involves an ascending series of parallel, first-inversion chords, a genial and nearly twee sound from Beethoven. This motive comes back quite a bit, so my guess is this movement is a some kind of modified Rondo form. A substantial hymn-like section in F Major makes up most of the contrasting areas, but there really isn't much developmental motivic material either, so I will settle on some sort of Rondo form.

A Coda appears with many sustained trills, adding to the cutesy effect of the movement. Coming out of those trills however, the listener is delivered into A Major, yes chromatic mediant, then abruptly a minor, yes parallel minor or relative minor in C Major, and finally a G7 to C Major. Beethoven never makes it easy on himself to get back to the home key, but that is what makes his music so doggone entertaining.

Final Thoughts

I was actually quite pleased with the first three piano sonatas from Beethoven. Not only do they make a nice trio amongst themselves, but they create an assured beginning to the composer's career.

No they do not dwell with in the tough psychological nature of the composer yet, but nor do I think they need to. While this set was plainly dedicated to Haydn, Beethoven still goes his own way, easily showing his own musical personality. Certainly, his penchant for harmonic waywardness is already apparent.

I didn't find Stephan Kovacevich unusually heavy in this music, but is a far cry from the poring over by someone akin to Kempff. Kovacevich prefers to move forward at a swift pace fairly consistently, and that is just the approach from this pianist.

It should be noted that these early sonatas were from the tail end of Kovacevich's recorded Beethoven piano sonata cycle, one which started in the 90s. The pianist was in his early 60s as of these recordings, thus he maintains a strong technique, even if all isn't as neat and tidy as some would prefer.

I will try to keep my dry listings of key relationships to a minimum, yet very often Beethoven's interest is in unusual harmonic motion, so I feel a need to comment on it when I hear it. Such things can be tedious, so I will try to watch myself in the future.

On the other hand, my listening is off to a great start, both from a compositional point of view, as well as a performance one. I look forward to continuing.

Work Series
Vol. 1 from Beethoven Piano Sonatas on Warner

Works
Piano Sonata 1 in F minor, op. 2 no. 1 (15.00)
Piano Sonata 2 in A Major, op. 2 no. 2 (22.07)
Piano Sonata 3 in C Major, op. 2 no. 3 (23.51)

Soloist
Stephen Kovacevich, piano

Label: EMI / Warner
Year: 2002-03; 2017
Total Timing: 61.36

Find more Beethoven recordings HERE!