Beethoven: The Revolution Begins (The Piano Sonatas Opus 2)
Beethoven’s debut on the music publishing scene came with the publication of the Three Piano Sonatas, Opus 2. Following the success of his great Three Piano Trios, Opus 1, it was long overdue for him to turn his attention to his instrument, the piano. Although a superb improviser, Beethoven had waited until he was 26 before assigning an opus number to his first piano sonatas. He delayed assigning his works opus numbers until he was certain they were worthy of the attention of the musically cultivated Viennese public. Vienna had become the epicentre of the international music stage in the late 18th century. The city nurtured two towering figures of the musical world: Joseph Haydn, the patriarchal composer, whose fame reached its zenith after highly acclaimed tours in England, and W.A. Mozart, the brilliant young composer whose extraordinarily prolific career had been tragically cut short by his premature death. As Beethoven moved from Bonn to settle in the Habsburg capital, the loss of Mozart was still felt, casting a long shadow over the city.
While the frontispiece of the Opus 2 Sonatas contains a dedication to Joseph Haydn, the music seems to suggest that the inscription was likely meant as a courteous salute to the much respected composer, rather than an acknowledgment of the Old Master’s influence on Beethoven’s highly individual style. There is plenty of evidence which indicates that Beethoven considered Haydn’s music out-of-date. The opening two movements of the F minor Sonata indeed sound somewhat Haydnesque and Mozartian, yet everything that ensues bears the mark of Beethoven’s distinct voice.
At the outset, we must acknowledge the considerable length of these sonatas. They are certainly longer than those of Mozart or Haydn, and in some cases, are even longer than Beethoven’s later sonatas. It seems that at the very start of his sonata-writing career, Beethoven is willing to initiate a small formal revolution, extending the classical triptych of the sonata form by adding a short Scherzo or Minuet before the final movement. Nonetheless, the true revolution is confined to the emotional realm, as Beethoven creates intricate melodies and themes that do not content themselves to simply pleasing the ears of his audience. These sonatas hint at an innovative musical language where individual movements cease to orbit static emotions. With his complex web of themes, Beethoven invites us to view individual movements as a dramatic discourse, a dynamic process that is omnipresent in his later works and which later becomes a feature of the subsequent generation of composers, the Romantics.
Listen to the tumultuous finale (Prestissimo) of the Piano Sonata in F minor, or the cycle of eerie harmonies and tragic declamations within the slow movement (Adagio) of the Piano Sonata in C major. They reveal an unshakable spirit, self-assured in its destiny and nurturing a huge ambition: to eclipse the legacy of both Mozart and Haydn.
L. Van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 2, No. 1 (1795-1796)
Allegro – Adagio – Menuetto: Allegretto – Prestissimo
The energetic Allegro unfolds from an upwards arpeggio gesture with obstinate interruptions and relentless harmonic folds that are reminiscent of Mozart's handling of dramatic devices in his sonatas in minor keys. The movement concludes with an emphatic sequence of crashing chords. A second movement ensues, a poignant Adagio imbued with long and sustained lines evocative of Mozart’s flair in crafting vocal melodies. This movement looks back to earlier 18th-century music composed in the galant style. It is followed by a gentle Menuetto-Trio movement. The real surprise is the opening of the final fourth movement, Prestissimo. Beethoven uses the crashing final chords from the conclusion of the first movement and transforms them into the most tumultuous movement of the Opus 2 Sonatas, a movement that clearly breaks with convention, yet is cleverly placed within the most restrained of these sonatas.
L. Van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 2 in A major, Op. 2, No. 2 (1795-1796)
Allegro vivace – Largo appassiona – Scherzo: Allegretto – Rondo: Grazioso
With the writing of the Piano Sonata in A major op. 2 no. 2, Beethoven turns the page and delves deeper into his own personal style, escaping most of the conventional gestures and styles of 18th-century music. Here the teachings of his mentor, Christian Neefe, spring to mind, on the real task of composers that is: to study human characters and passions and embody them in tones. The first movement, Allegro vivace, is built upon downward hops and scales, in a witty conversation between 'elemental' blocks that feature dramatic silences, unpredictable key changes and expansive expressive devices. The first movement ends unassumingly and sets the stage for a hauntingly beautiful Largo appassionato. Listen to the special texture created by juxtaposing long sustained notes with pizzicati notes in the bass. The third movement is a flighty Scherzo with a Schubertian Trio as a middle section. The resolute chords at the end of the Scherzo lead into a long, generous arpeggio in A-Major that becomes the theme of the Rondo, the final movement with its generous sonorities and a fiery middle section. The successive repeats of the theme become more and more varied – revealing Beethoven’s skills as a genial and dazzling improviser.
L. Van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 3 in C major, Op. 2, No. 3 (1795-1796)
Allegro con brio – Adagio – Scherzo: Allegro – Allegro assai
The cycle culminates in the virtuosic C major sonata, the most technically demanding of the three. Its expansive first movement rivals a concerto in brilliance – even featuring a solo cadenza at the end of the first movement. The theme of the Allegro con brio takes a slow trill in double-thirds as its main elemental block. This becomes the feature of the entire sonata, accompanying us all the way to the brilliant double trills in thirds at the end of the fourth movement. A soul-stirring Adagio opens with a luminous sonority in E major. This movement is probably the most radical of the set and foreshadows later piano sonatas, where Beethoven’s extraordinary sense of capturing the deepest human emotions inspires him to create otherworldly and eerie harmonies. If the opening of this movement is serene, the second theme is presented as stern, unshakeable octaves in the bass alternating with supplications in the right hand. Amidst all darkness there is a prevailing sense of light and hope. A radiant Scherzo follows, invoking traditional dances in character followed by a fiery Trio. The last movement of the Sonata op. 2 no. 3 is marked Allegro assai and features highly virtuosic glissandi in chords as the main theme. It is a cornucopia of joyous themes in various keys, conveying the kaleidoscopic nature of C major for Beethoven, a key that lies at the centre of tonality and a gateway to an abundance of possible characters and emotions.