performed by Matti Raekallio, or below by Boris Berman It’s like a big, organized cadenza. In contrast with the second sonata, dedicated to Prokofiev’s friend who committed suicide, the third sonata interestingly seems to have less humor or sarcasm than its predecessor. Both … Continue reading Prokofiev Piano Sonata no. 3 in Am, op. 28
performed by an unknown pianist from some recording I acquired somehow, or below by Irina Emeliantseva Nikolai Andreevich Roslavets was born on January 4 1881 (23 December, 1880 in the Julian Calendar) (possibly) in the Chernigov Governorate (a day less than … Continue reading Nikolai Roslavets: Piano Sonata no. 1
performed by Matti Raekaillo, or below by Boris Berman The second sonata of Sergei Prokofiev was first performed on February 5, 1914 by the composer in Moscow. It is dedicated to Maximilian Schmidthof, to whom the composer’s second piano concerto (which … Continue reading Prokofiev Piano Sonata no. 2 in Dm, op. 14
performed by Santiago Rodriguez I’m quite glad we were able to discuss the Medtner sonata earlier this week, because today we’re discussing a work of equally epic pianistic and musical proportions, similarly Russian in nature, but also in many ways entirely … Continue reading Rachmaninoff Piano Sonata in Dm, op. 28
performed by Geoffrey Tozer In case you haven’t ever heard of Nikolai Medtner, I’d like to make the case that this, one of his earliest compositions, is undeniably one of the greatest things ever composed in the history of history. … Continue reading Nikolai Medtner: Piano sonata in f minor, op. 5
performed by Vladimir Ashkenazy (or for those of you to whom the above video is unavailable, another one here by Richter) Life is fearfully expensive, and the climate is rotten. The air in the areas where we could find an apartment … Continue reading Scriabin Piano Sonata no. 5, op. 53
performed by Vladimir Ashkenazy Well, it hasn’t been as long since we’ve visited Scriabin. He was part of the the Russian Symphony Series and the Symphonic Poem series, but aside from his multiple symphonies and other orchestral work, he arguably made his … Continue reading Scriabin Piano Sonata no. 4 in F-sharp major, Op. 30
performed by Sviatoslav Richter History does funny things to music. In the more famous cases (as we shall shortly see why), the world nearly forgot about something, or ignored it, or derided it, and it was only later generations or geniuses who … Continue reading Tchaikovsky Grand Piano Sonata in G, op. 37
performed (and premiered) by Maria Bachmann and Jon Klibonoff, second movement below The last work in our little series of pieces for the violin is a very recent work, having only been premiered in 2009. The piece was written specifically for Bachmann, and … Continue reading Glass Sonata for Violin and Piano
performed by David Oistrakh and Sviatoslav Richter Dmitri had been wanting to write a new, second concerto for me as a present for my 60th birthday. However, there was an error of one year in his timing. The concerto was … Continue reading Shostakovich Sonata for Violin and Piano in G, Op. 134
performed by David Oistrakh and Sviatoslav Richter, from the recital in the Grand Hall of Moscow Conservatory in 1972 I’d like to say I planned it, but I didn’t. Both of Bartok’s violin sonatas, written within a year or so … Continue reading Bartok Violin Sonata no. 1, Sz.75/BB 84
performed by Viktoria Mullova and Bruno Canino (more about Mullova below), or below by Renaud Capuçon and (the outstandingly lovely) Hélène Grimaud Who would have thought the first violin sonata we’d tackle on this blog (after almost three years of pretty dedicated listening … Continue reading Ravel: Violin Sonata No. 2 in G major
performed by Paavali Jumppanen (from his album of the three sonatas) or below by Pierre-Laurent Aimard (from Boulez’s Ouvres Completes box set), both fantastic performances We now jump forward a little bit in time to another of Boulez’s still-early works, the first … Continue reading Boulez Piano Sonata no. 1
performed by Jörg Demus and Norman Shetler, or below by Lucia Tiovis and Andrei Roth Piano four-hands. That’s different than two pianos, obviously, which is why it’s nice to watch the above video of two people sitting at the piano and working … Continue reading Beethoven Sonata for piano, 4 hands, in D, op. 6
performed by Martha Argerich The article from a few days ago about Liszt was to try to give a few of the highlights that I personally enjoyed about Liszt’s life. This virtuoso performer and composer is likely more known through … Continue reading Liszt: Piano Sonata in B minor, S. 178
performed by Krystian Zimerman Welcome back after our first three days of no posts since July 6 (or something). And who naturally follows the dear Mr. and Mrs. Schumann but their little protege of a composer, one Johannes Brahms? He’s … Continue reading Brahms piano sonata no. 1, op. 1
performed by Idil Biret I must admit, I didn’t care much for this piece the first many times I listened to it, but… Perhaps this isn’t necessarily the sonata’s fault. This piece is given the opus number 4, but … Continue reading Chopin Piano Sonata No. 1 in C minor, Op. 4
performed and discussed below by András Schiff, or in this live performance by Claudio Arrau in 1977 I started to feel with the articles on the piano trios that, as I stated there, we are (very obviously) entering a whole … Continue reading Beethoven piano sonata no. 3 in C, op. 2, no. 3
performed and introduced by András Schiff (or without explanation by Murray Perahia [with links to the other movements within]) As Schiff states, this sonata could hardly be more different from the one that precedes it. The overwhelming tone of the … Continue reading Beethoven piano sonata no. 2, op. 2, no. 2
performed by András Schiff (or here by Daniel Barenboim, without the talking) I had been listening to the box set of sonatas from The Complete Beethoven Edition, played by the great Wilhelm Kempff. The above presentation, with performances of the … Continue reading Beethoven Piano sonata no. 1 in Fm, op. 2, no. 1
performed by Mitsuko Uchida second movement third movement or also this very interesting performance of the first movement by Robert Levin on an actual fortepiano, similar to what Mozart would have played on This third of Mozart’s piano sonatas is … Continue reading Mozart Piano sonata no. 3 in Bb, K281
Fugue for Thought 