Piano World Home Page Forums General Discussions Musicians Welcome! OK, Favorite Piano Sonata (single mvmt is OK)

My single favorite movement from a piano Sonata:

Beethoven Sonata #28 in A (first movement)--this is the most sublime music on the planet IMO---under 4 min long, but it has a lifetime of beauty in it!!

Prokofiev No. 7! I need not explain, need I?

So many of the Beethoven Sonatas! Lets try to narrow it down a bit:

Appassionata Sonata Mov. 3 and 1
Moonlight Sonata Mov. 3 (I actually got tired of hearing Mov. 1 of the Moonlight)
Waldstien Sonata ALL 3 Mov.
Pathetique Mov. 2 (only mov that I've heard of it)

But also, I like Mozart!

All of KV 331 (A Major)
K 545 1st mov (C Major)
K ? (Don't know K #, F Major)

Thats all that I can think of for now.

Beethoven's Tempest (op. 31, no 2): 1st and 3rd mvt's at least (not yet familiar with 2nd)
Chopin's (in B-flat minor?), opus 35 I think (the "Funeral March" sonata)

I love the Chopin Sonatas! I forgot all about them! They're great!

Beethovan for me! Favorite movements in order:
Moonlight #3
Pathetique #3
Moonlight #1
Pathetique#2
Appasionata#3
Pathetique #1

Probably not the first one.

Huh? Its too easy to forget that Chopin wrote sonatas. He didn't write very many of them. I do like them, though. When I tried to play the funeral march, I failed misserably. Oh well, someday.

jgoo,

I probably failed to make myself clear. I was responding to your 'They are great' and I thought the first one, IMO, is not. I totally agree that the other two do belong to the greatest piano sonatas ever penned by anyone.

Just curious. How did you 'failed miserably' when you played funeral march? Technically this march movement is quite manageable. Musically if one has a steady sense of rhythm one should be able to handle it. No?

My current favourite Beethoven sonata (all movements) is the Op. 27, No. 1, the lesser known twin of the Moonlight. I've worked on the Moonlight for quite a while, and I find this one a refreshing contrast to it.

Some of the chords give me trouble after the 15 measure, and I've still never been able to successfully pull of a left hand trill. I'm great at getting right hand trills, but still have problems with the left hand trills. I haven't attempted the piece for about half a year now, (sometime over last summer) so I guess that I'm ready to give it a shot again. I have improved in chords since then, but still have problems with those LH trills. Thats why I'm also having problems mastering Chopin's Prelude Op. 28 No. 9. If I could just do better with those LH trills, I'd be able to do that.

Beethoven:
Waldstein Sonata (all three movements, very fun to play also.)

Opus 111 Sonata (I like the first but the second movement is, in my opinion, the best piece of music Beethoven ever created, with the possible exception of the last movement of his Ninth Symphony.)

Opus 106 Sonata (all four movements; very gnarled and difficult piano sonata but I'm very intrigued by it.)

Alkan Grande Sonata Opus 33 (also known as "Le Quatre Ages." Each of the four movements in this piano sonata is supposed to depict man in four different stages of life. I especially like the second movement of this sonata.)

My ignorance of classical piano music will soon be obvious, but, here goes: This is NOT a piano piece. It's mostly played on a pipe organ, but Bach's 'Toccata and Fugue in D Minor' is unbelievable!

Well I've just got to jump in along side Mat. I too love the A Major, Opus 28. of Beethoven. Last week I heard yet another recording of the Chopin B Minor sonata. (I didn't like it at all) While I think all movements are wonderful; I'm particularly fond of the first one. This has just got to be put at the top of my list of "pieces to learn"......and SOON.

Good news! I tried the Funeral March again the other night and I did MUCH BETTER! It still needs some work, but I'm getting there. Hopefully, I'll have it mastered before long. But then again, it could take a while, depending on how much time that I decide I'm going to put into it. There is some other stuff that I want to work on as well. Last night, I played Mendelssohn's wedding march, and decided that I wanted to put time into learning that one a bit better as well. Its not that difficult of a piece, but I had never played it before (aside from a simplified version, which I don't consider actually have played the piece) and need to get to know its chords a bit better. It won't take long. Its pretty easy.

Charles,

If you can, find recordings of piano transcription of Bach Toccata & Fugue in D minor. Two very successful transcriptions (of course in my view) are those by Busoni and Tausig. You probably will like them...

I'd have to join the bandwagon here and go with Beethoven:

Waldstein
Moonlight (all three)
Pathetique (I'm rather partial to the first movement as well as the second).

i agree, waldstein and the pathetique are marvelous works along with the chopin no3

i never heard the schumann op 22 sonata, but i was wondering if it was harder than the waldstein. has anyone heard this piece or played it before?

I'm familiar with Schumann Sonata No.2 in Gm, Op.22. All three of his sonatas are major compositions. Most of Schumann's output is pianistically awkward writings. Yes, No.2 is quite difficult in an entirely different way than Waldstein. If you want, you can find a good recording in 2nd volume of GPTTC Martha Argerich.

I have not learned this sonata myself, BTW.

AndrewG

Dearest Andrew,
Hi! I want to personally thank you for your expertise in regards to available recordings. I have taken many of your suggestions literally, thanks again.