Beethoven Piano Sonatas, compositions by Ludwig van Beethoven. Although he was far from the first great composer to write multi-movement compositions for solo piano, he was, nonetheless, the first to show how much power and variety of expression could be drawn forth from this single instrument. For composers who came after him, notably, but not exclusively, Brahms, his sonatas became the standard of excellence.
When Beethoven was a youth in the late 18th century, the keyboard instrument of choice was the fortepiano. Also known as the pianoforte, it was an improvement on the earlier harpsichord in part because longer, sustained tones were now possible, rather than exclusively short staccato notes, allowing a wider range of expressive moods. The new instrument became widely popular not only in the recital hall, but also in the homes of amateur players, and solo keyboard works were required for both halves of that equation.
Piano sonatas of that time tended to be gracious and elegant in style, and Beethoven’s own early sonatas usually conform to that expectation. However, as he developed his own style and reputation, he began to bring greater drama into his sonatas. They became longer, more dramatic in character, and more demanding of technique, generally designed for Beethoven’s own formidable keyboard skills, rather than those of amateurs; so physical was his playing that his pianos had to be repaired or rebuilt during the composition of the pieces. Of his later piano sonatas, only numbers 24 and 25 would not be daunting for non-professional players, and some of the late sonatas, especially no. 29, the “Hammerklavier,” and the three that follow it, are formidable from any point of view. Numerous virtuoso players, such as Daniel Barenboim and András Schiff, have used the sonatas as demonstrations of their own skills, recording notable versions. The first pianist known to have recorded all of them (1932–1935), Artur Schnabel, remarked of the sonatas, “I am attracted only to music which I consider to be better than it can be performed.”
Why did Beethoven set about these radical changes in an established genre? One might suppose that, as his hearing declined after the turn of the century, he found more aggressively forceful music better suited to his new world view. However, it should also be noted that the new Sturm und Drang (Storm and Stress) movement had arisen in the arts, popularizing the expression of more outspoken moods. Moreover, the piano itself was undergoing evolution, becoming larger in size and range, as well as sturdier in construction. Early pianos, such as those Mozart would have known, required a certain amount of coddling to perform at their best; the Broadwood and Walter pianos that Beethoven came to prefer had an iron frame that was well suited to a stronger hand. Beethoven’s later sonatas were designed to take advantage of this technology, gradually becoming almost symphonic in their expressive power.
Of the several musical genres in which Beethoven worked, he maintained an interest in the sonata form throughout a long career. They are among his best-known and most beloved works: immediately recognizable today are pieces such as the “Moonlight Sonora,” “Pathétique,” and “Appassionata.” Hans von Bülow, the virtuoso pianist who is believed to have been the first to play all 32 sonatas in performance, remarked that collectively they had near-sacred significance: if Johann Sebastian Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier is the Old Testament, he said, then Beethoven’s piano sonatas are the New Testament.
A chronological list of the sonatas follows, along with the publication date (and composition date, if significantly earlier):