Beethoven Piano Sonatas Part 3 spans the profound “late period” Beethoven piano sonatas—beginning with the two movement op. 90 sonata in E minor and its Schubertian rondo and concluding with the two movement op. 111 sonata in C major and its transcendent “trill” variations.
As with his six late string quartets, Beethoven in these six late piano sonatas takes musical expression to a new and rarefied realm. Divisions between phrases, sections, and even movements blur. Ideas enter suddenly, often more as suggestions than elaborately developed themes. Counterpoint—the interrelation and combination of different melodies—rises to the foreground. Beethoven asks both piano and pianist to transcend “reasonable” limits. The “Hammerklavier” sonata op. 106 requires superhuman technique. In fact, all six sonatas demand a greater dynamic and expressive range than any piano music written before. Many times it seems Beethoven runs out of piano keys! Left and right hands are often far apart and each seem to want to extend beyond the instrument itself.
This is music so exciting and so challenging. In our sessions, we’ll slow it down, take it apart, and figure out how it all coheres. And yes, this will become some of your favorite music, if it isn’t already. You can attend individual sessions, but the power comes from your own listening evolution through the eight sessions.
Tuesdays October 24—December 12, 2023 from 4-6pm PT. Except session 2 on Wednesday October 31 (no session on Halloween Tuesday October 31)