Piano Sonata No. 12 (Beethoven)
Encyclopedia
Ludwig van Beethoven
composed his Piano Sonata No. 12 in A-flat major, Op. 26 in 1800–1801, around the same time as he completed his First Symphony
. He dedicated the sonata
to Prince Karl von Lichnowsky
, who had been his patron since 1792.
Consisting of four movements
, the sonata takes around 20 minutes to perform.
The structure of the sonata is unconventional in that the piece opens with a relatively slow movement in the format of theme and variations
. In contrast, the remaining movements of the sonata proceed according to classical principles in fast-slow-fast
alternation. The third movement of this sonata incorporates a funeral march
, clearly anticipating the watershed of the Eroica Symphony
that Beethoven wrote the following year. This is the only movement from his sonatas that Beethoven arranged for orchestra, and was played during Beethoven's own funeral march in 1827.
This sonata is also unusual in that none of its four movements is in sonata-allegro form.
In most of Beethoven's four-movement sonatas, the third movement is in 3/4 and in ternary form
, while the second movement is slow and in a different key from the other movements. In this sonata, the second and third movements have switched roles, where the second movement is the ternary scherzo and trio, while the third movement is the slow movement in the tonic minor.
The main theme of Schubert
's Impromptu in A-flat major, Op. 142 No. 2 is strikingly similar to the theme in the first movement of Beethoven's sonata. The four-bar phrases that open these pieces are almost identical in most musical aspects: key, harmony, voicing, register, and basic as well as harmonic rhythm. Another less immediate connection exists with the main theme, also in A-flat major, of the Adagio movement in Schubert's piano sonata in C minor, D. 958
. Indeed, Schubert may have borrowed these themes from Beethoven, as he often did in his compositions.
This sonata was greatly admired by Chopin
, who repeated its basic sequence of scherzo, funeral march with trio, and animated, resolving finale, in his own Piano Sonata in B-flat minor. His first movement, however, is also animated and in sonata form, unlike Beethoven's Andante con variazioni.
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
composed his Piano Sonata No. 12 in A-flat major, Op. 26 in 1800–1801, around the same time as he completed his First Symphony
Symphony No. 1 (Beethoven)
Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21, was dedicated to Baron Gottfried van Swieten, an early patron of the composer. The piece was published in 1801 by Hoffmeister & Kühnel of Leipzig...
. He dedicated the sonata
Piano sonata
A piano sonata is a sonata written for a solo piano. Piano sonatas are usually written in three or four movements, although some piano sonatas have been written with a single movement , two movements , five or even more movements...
to Prince Karl von Lichnowsky
Karl Alois Johann-Nepomuk Vinzenz, Fürst Lichnowsky
HSH Karl Alois, Prince Lichnowsky , was second Prince Lichnowsky and a Chamberlain at the Imperial Austrian court...
, who had been his patron since 1792.
Consisting of four movements
Movement (music)
A movement is a self-contained part of a musical composition or musical form. While individual or selected movements from a composition are sometimes performed separately, a performance of the complete work requires all the movements to be performed in succession...
, the sonata takes around 20 minutes to perform.
- Andante con variazioni 3/8
- Scherzo, allegro molto 3/4 A-flat major, D-flat major, A-flat major
- Maestoso andante, marcia funebreFuneral marchA funeral march is a march, usually in a minor key, in a slow "simple duple" metre, imitating the solemn pace of a funeral procession. Some such marches are often considered appropriate for use during funerals and other sombre occasions, the most well-known being that of Chopin...
sulla morte d'un eroe 4/4 A-flat minor, A-flat major - Allegro, Rondo form 2/4 A-flat major
The structure of the sonata is unconventional in that the piece opens with a relatively slow movement in the format of theme and variations
Variation (music)
In music, variation is a formal technique where material is repeated in an altered form. The changes may involve harmony, melody, counterpoint, rhythm, timbre, orchestration or any combination of these.-Variation form:...
. In contrast, the remaining movements of the sonata proceed according to classical principles in fast-slow-fast
Sonata form
Sonata form is a large-scale musical structure used widely since the middle of the 18th century . While it is typically used in the first movement of multi-movement pieces, it is sometimes used in subsequent movements as well—particularly the final movement...
alternation. The third movement of this sonata incorporates a funeral march
Funeral march
A funeral march is a march, usually in a minor key, in a slow "simple duple" metre, imitating the solemn pace of a funeral procession. Some such marches are often considered appropriate for use during funerals and other sombre occasions, the most well-known being that of Chopin...
, clearly anticipating the watershed of the Eroica Symphony
Symphony No. 3 (Beethoven)
Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 in E flat major , also known as the Eroica , is a landmark musical work marking the full arrival of the composer's "middle-period," a series of unprecedented large scale works of emotional depth and structural rigor.The symphony is widely regarded as a mature...
that Beethoven wrote the following year. This is the only movement from his sonatas that Beethoven arranged for orchestra, and was played during Beethoven's own funeral march in 1827.
This sonata is also unusual in that none of its four movements is in sonata-allegro form.
In most of Beethoven's four-movement sonatas, the third movement is in 3/4 and in ternary form
Ternary form
Ternary form, sometimes called song form, is a three-part musical form, usually schematicized as A-B-A. The first and third parts are musically identical, or very nearly so, while the second part in some way provides a contrast with them...
, while the second movement is slow and in a different key from the other movements. In this sonata, the second and third movements have switched roles, where the second movement is the ternary scherzo and trio, while the third movement is the slow movement in the tonic minor.
The main theme of Schubert
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
's Impromptu in A-flat major, Op. 142 No. 2 is strikingly similar to the theme in the first movement of Beethoven's sonata. The four-bar phrases that open these pieces are almost identical in most musical aspects: key, harmony, voicing, register, and basic as well as harmonic rhythm. Another less immediate connection exists with the main theme, also in A-flat major, of the Adagio movement in Schubert's piano sonata in C minor, D. 958
Schubert's last sonatas
Franz Schubert's last three piano sonatas, numbered 958, 959 and 960 in Deutsch's catalogue of Schubert's complete works, are the composer's last major compositions for the piano. They were written during the last months of Schubert's life, between the spring and autumn of 1828, but were not...
. Indeed, Schubert may have borrowed these themes from Beethoven, as he often did in his compositions.
This sonata was greatly admired by Chopin
Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
, who repeated its basic sequence of scherzo, funeral march with trio, and animated, resolving finale, in his own Piano Sonata in B-flat minor. His first movement, however, is also animated and in sonata form, unlike Beethoven's Andante con variazioni.
Further reading
- Rosen, CharlesCharles RosenCharles Rosen is an American pianist and author on music.-Life and career:In his youth he studied piano with Moriz Rosenthal. Rosenthal, born in 1862, had been a student of Franz Liszt...
, Beethoven's Piano Sonatas - A Short Companion, 2002, Yale University Press, pp. 150-152. - Adolph Bernhard Marx,"Introduction to the Interpretation of Beethoven Piano Works", pp.110-113. IMSLP Books.
External links
- A lecture by András SchiffAndrás SchiffAndrás Schiff is a Hungarian-born British classical pianist, who has won a number of awards including the Grammy and made numerous recordings.- Biography :...
on Beethoven's piano sonata op. 26 - For a public domain recording of this sonata visit Musopen