Beethoven’s first movement of his sonata Op. 110 opens softly and simply – though stopping on a mini-cadenza in the fourth bar. This is an early warning of the liberties to come, as are the movement heading (Moderato cantabile molto espressivo) and the marking con amabilità. Changes of texture and figuration are as important as harmony in marking the structural pillars of this rhapsodic movement.
The second movement is a scherzo in the manner of the late Bagatelles, a highly charged joke of meter-jarring accents, odd gaps, and explosive dynamic contrasts.
Remarkable as these movements are, it is the extraordinary third movement that dominates discussion of this sonata. Beethoven combined slow movement and finale into a single piece, the principal elements of which are an Arioso dolente (lamenting song) and a three-voice fugue.
Listen now to the Russian pianist, Mr. Pletnev, as he performss this amazing work:
