The Piano Sonata in

B minor B minor is a minor scale based on B, consisting of the pitches B, C, D, E, F, G, and A. Its key signature has two sharps. Its relative major is D major and its parallel major is B major. The B natural minor scale is: : Changes need ...

, Op.5, was written by Richard Strauss in 1881–82 when he was 17 years old. The Sonata is in the Romantic style of his teenage years. The first recording of the piece was the last recording made by the Canadian pianist

Glenn Gould Glenn Herbert Gould (; né Gold; September 25, 1932October 4, 1982) was a Canadian classical pianist. He was one of the most famous and celebrated pianists of the 20th century, and was renowned as an interpreter of the keyboard works of Johann ...

Composition

The Piano Sonata is in four movements: # Allegro molto Appassionato # Adagio Cantabile # Scherzo Presto – Trio un poco piu Lento # Finale, Allegro vivo. The first movement and Finale are in

Sonata form Sonata form (also ''sonata-allegro form'' or ''first movement form'') is a musical structure generally consisting of three main sections: an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. It has been used widely since the middle of the 18th c ...

. The Adagio is in

Ternary form Ternary form, sometimes called song form, is a three-part musical form consisting of an opening section (A), a following section (B) and then a repetition of the first section (A). It is usually schematized as A–B–A. Prominent examples inclu ...

with an ABA structure; the

Scherzo A scherzo (, , ; plural scherzos or scherzi), in western classical music, is a short composition – sometimes a movement from a larger work such as a symphony or a sonata. The precise definition has varied over the years, but scherzo often re ...

is a "full fledged Scherzo in an expanded ABABA form . The first movement is notable for having the main theme based on the repeated note short-short-short long which echoes the rhythm of the Fate motif of

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

's Fifth symphony.Philip Ramey (1984), Liner notes to CD ''Richard Strauss-Glenn Gould–Sonata Op.5 and Five Piano Pieces'', CBS Masterworks – D 38659. Larry Todd states that:

The first movement appropriates its familiar four-note head motive from Beethoven's Fifth Symphony. The first movement is fairly saturated with the motive, which appears in the first theme, the bridge and the closing section of the
exposition Exposition (also the French for exhibition) may refer to: *Universal exposition or World's Fair * Expository writing ** Exposition (narrative) * Exposition (music) *Trade fair A trade fair, also known as trade show, trade exhibition, or trade e ...
. In addition, much of the development is devoted to a treatment of the motive, and in the closing bars of the movement we find a major key version of the close of Beethoven's first movement". .

In the three subsequent movements, "the reliance on

Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sym ...

comes more and more to the fore". In particular, Todd argues that Strauss' ''Adagio Cantabile'' is effectively a Mendelssohnian ''Lied ohne Worte'' (

Song without words ''Song Without Words: A Book of Engravings on Wood'' is a wordless novel of 1936 by American artist Lynd Ward (1905–1985). Executed in twenty-one wood engravings, it was the fifth and shortest of the six wordless novels Ward completed, produc ...

) . In the Scherzo and Finale, one can also find echoes of Mendelssohn, both in terms of structure, time signature and thematic material. The performance time is approximately 27 minutes. Strauss had been writing pieces for the piano since he was seven years old, but the Piano Sonata was the most significant one of three to which he gave an opus number (the other two being his ''Five piano pieces'', Op. 3, written in 1882, and ''Stimmungsbilder'', Op. 9, written in 1884). After 1884 his piano writing was either for piano and orchestra ('' Burleske in D minor'' (1886) and ''Parergon zur Symphonia Domestica'' (1925)) or as an accompaniment to the voice in ' or other instruments.

Recordings

The best known recording of the piano Sonata was also its first recording, being the last recording by Glenn Gould. (It was recorded between September 1–3, 1982 in New York City.) The recordings of the piece include:

References

Sources

* *

External links

* {{Portal bar, Classical music Strauss, Richard Compositions by Richard Strauss 1881 compositions Compositions in B minor