Discovering Beethoven’s
Piano Sonatas on
YouTube
Part 2
Allen Brown
© Allen Brown 2018
All rights reserved. No part of the written information in this
publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or
by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopy,
recording or any information storage and retrieval system
without the permission in writing from the author.
Disclaimer
Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy
of the written information in this publication, the author
hereby declaims any liability to any party for errors or
omissions.
Read this First
This is the second ebook in the series on Beethoven’s Piano
Sonatas which includes sonatas 9 to 16. As in the first book,
the first few bars of every movement are included, although
you may not be able to read music you should be able to
follow the music patterns from the audio.
When you come across a word in green, this is referred to in
the definition list in Part 1 where you will find many musical
definitions which are useful. The history of classical music is
full of terms many of them are obscure; several are in Italian
as the tradition in the northern countries of Europe was to
express tempo markings in Italian.
Accessing the YouTube Videos
At the end of each chapter you will find a green box with a
YouTube address (URL), either click or copy the address and
paste it into the URL field of your browser (usually right at the
top of the page) and YouTube video will appear. Depending
on your platform you may see a little finger icon on the web
address, just click and the video should play.
1
Contents
1. Sonata No.9 in E major ................................................... 3
1.1 Structure...................................................................... 3
2. Sonata No.10 in G major ................................................ 5
2.2 Structure...................................................................... 5
3. Sonata No.11 in B flat major .......................................... 7
3.1 Structure...................................................................... 7
4. Sonata No.12 in A flat major ......................................... 9
4.1 Structure.................................................................... 10
5. Sonata No.13 in E flat major ........................................ 12
5.1 Structure.................................................................... 12
6. Sonata No.14 in C♯ minor ............................................. 14
6.1 Structure.................................................................... 15
6.2 Keyboard Transcription ............................................. 16
7. Sonata No.15 in D major .............................................. 17
7.1 Structure.................................................................... 17
8. Sonata No.16 in G major .............................................. 19
8.1 Structure.................................................................... 19
2
1. Sonata No.9 in E major
Opus 14, one of
Beethoven’s lighter sonatas
with lots of scales and
interesting dynamics. Not
too challenging for the
competent pianist. Very
pleasant to listen to but do
not expect to find many
memorable melodies in this
sonata. In fact the second
movement is rather dull in
places, however there are
some memorable passages
in the third movement. It
can be said that Beethoven was showing his ability to
compose lighter music that is cheerful and is ideal salon
music. Goes well with a gin and tonic.
1.1 Structure
I. Allegro
3
II. Allegretto
III. Rondo: Allegro commodo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oNd38qBq7Y
Grigory Sokolov puts on a brave performance for this pleasant
sonata and brings out the only exciting passages rather well
in the third movement.
4
2. Sonata No.10 in G major
Opus 14 No.2, this sonata is
a real delight to listen to,
light but yet very engaging.
This is especially true for the
first movement. The second
movement is made up of
many staccato chords and
has some thrilling passages
in it. It has a wit and some
clever piano writing. The
third movement has lots of
charm and is almost Mozart
like in places. Lots of wit and
very pleasing to listen to.
You should enjoy listening to it.
2.2 Structure
I. Allegro
5
II. Andante
III. Scherzo: allegro assai
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcpEOtgSn-Y
Philip Fisher performs this sonata really well and shows his
own voice. Worth listening to a few times.
6
3. Sonata No.11 in B flat major
Opus 22, this sonata which
was composed in 1800 is not
one of the more memorable
of Beethoven’s Sonatas.
Although some musicologists
have held it in high regard. In
the first movement there are
some interesting key changes
and several chromatic scales.
The opening melody of the
second movement lacks a bit
of imagination although some
of the harmonies are very
original. The third movement
puts the pianist’s left hand through its paces especially in the
Minore. The final movement is by far the most interesting of
the four movements with some very lively passages for the
pianist to exercise their skills.
3.1 Structure
I. Allegro con brio –
7
II. Adagio con molt espressione -
III. Menuetto and Minore -
IV. Rondo: Allegretto -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ea3MHc6D58
8
4. Sonata No.12 in A flat major
Opus 26, the Funeral
Sonata. This is a really
fascinating work as the
first movement has five
variations. You can see
in the page on the left
the first variation starts
th
on the 6 line.
Sometimes it is difficult
to identify the original
theme in the variations.
The first movement is
generally slow and the
variations make it a very
contemplative work.
The second movement
is really brisk and moves at quite a lick. The third movement
is the Funeral March. It’s in a very dark key A flat Minor –
which has 7 flats (you can see this in the Structure below).
Although a grave composition, it doesn’t quite match
Chopin’s Funeral March. The forth movement is really quite
jolly and tears away at quite a lick – very clever writing.
9
4.1 Structure
I. Andante con Variazioni
II. Scherzo and Trio
III. Marcia Funebre
IV. Allegro
10
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LF0TPAWXV4
Jonathan Bliss performs this sonata extremely well and you
will not be disappointed with his playing. A really good forth
movement.
11
5. Sonata No.13 in E flat major
Opus 27 No.1, this
sonata starts quite
slowly and soon breaks
out into a fast allegro
tempo, but the original
theme returns within a
short time. Soon there is
another change to a
quicker tempo – listen
out for the tempo
changes. The second
movement is a slow and
graceful composition
which leads into the
third movement that
has lots of energy and is
very characteristic of Beethoven’s piano writing. Overall the
sonata has a good sense of fun about it.
5.1 Structure
I. Andante
12
II. Adagio con espressione
III. Allegro vivace
Takashi Sato puts on an exciting performance and gets into
the spirit of the piece.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwBW6Y2nfME
13
6. Sonata No.14 in C♯ minor
Opus 27 No.2, this is
known as the Moonlight
Sonata, not a name
given to it by Beethoven,
but by the music critic
Ludwig Rellstab who
likened the effect of the
first movement to
moonlight shining upon
Lake Lucerne. The key of
C♯ minor is a really dark,
but nonetheless the first
movement has always
been very popular. A
number of pianists tend
to play the first
movement too quickly causing the music to lose its ethereal
quality. The second movement is a bit of filler, jolly but
nothing too profound. Whereas the third movement is real
tempestuous piece that gallops away at a real pace. The
hands of the performer are on quite a journey from beginning
to end. Expect to hear lots of contrasts and some intricate
finger work from the performer.
14
6.1 Structure
I. Adagio sostenuto
II. Allegretto -
III. Presto Agitato
15
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsOUcikyGRk
Valentina Lisitsa puts on a very lively performance of this very
enjoyable sonata.
6.2 Keyboard Transcription
To see the keyboard notes for this sonata visit the following
YouTube websites.
First movement
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skFugVOqBM4
Third Movement
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WolqGAgiolM
16
7. Sonata No.15 in D major
Opus 28, in this sonata don’t
expect anything too dramatic.
It’s called the Pastoral,
however it’s not an obvious
first choice sonata to listen to,
but nonetheless it has some
interesting parts. The first
movement is quite light in
content but is unlikely to grab
the imagination. It is believed
that Beethoven had a great
fondness for the second
movement, it is attractive and
memorable. The third movement is rather quirky and moves
at a fast tempo. The fourth movement has been added on to
add a bit more substance to the sonata and has some
interesting rhythms in the left hand. In the YouTube video
Michael Brown puts on a convincing performance of this
sonata.
7.1 Structure
i. Allegro
17
ii. Andante
iii. Scherzo: Allegro vivace
iv. Rondo: Allegro ma non troppo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ApPTB9inyFw
18
8. Sonata No.16 in G major
Opus 31 No.1, the first
movement of this sonata
is real fun sonata and is a
favourite with young
pianists. It’s not too
demanding on the player
and has lots of scales to
impress the listener. The
second theme is often
played in the left hand.
The second movement is
pleasant enough to listen
to, it’s a bit lightweight
although it does liven up
towards the end. The
third movement requires good degree of dexterity in the left
hand and is a real joy to listen to. There is lots of wit in this
movement and the ending is very amusing.
8.1 Structure
i. Allegro Vivace
19
ii. Adagio grazioso
iii. Rondo: Allegretto
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ua99GTUwd5U
You will enjoy Drew Petersen’s performance, he has been able
to bring out much of the wit of this sonata.
20