OK
Technical Notice
| Classical Composer: | Beethoven, Ludwig van |
|---|---|
| Work: | Cello Sonata No. 4 in C Major, Op. 102, No. 1 |
| Year Composed: | 1815 |
| Instrumentation: | vc, pf |
| Publishers: |
Peters Edition, Ltd. Simrock Litolff Editions G. Henle Verlag |
| Duration: | 00:15:00 |
| Period: | Classical (1750-1830) |
| Work Category: | Chamber Music |
Work Information
Available Recording(s)
The last two cello sonatas of Beethoven belong in inspiration to his final creative period. Written in 1815, they were published in 1817 and finally both were dedicated to Countess Maria von Erdody, a woman whose patience Beethoven had tried sorely enough, in spite of her efforts to help him. There had been an earlier dedication to the visiting English pianist and cellist Charles Neate, a pupil of John Field, when it seemed possible there might be an English edition of the sonatas.
The first of the pair, Opus 102 No.1 in C major, was first performed in 1816 by the cellist of Prince Razumovsky's quartet, Joseph Linke, and the pianist Czerny. It is in two similar parts, the second slow-fast sequence balancing the first. A tranquilly meditative opening Andante leads to an Allegro vivace, in the unexpected key of A minor. Here a fiercely rhythmic statement in octaves is shared by cello and piano, in equal partnership. An E minor second subject follows, before the brusque rhythm of the first subject re-appears to open the brief central development section and the final recapitulation. A melancholy mood informs the Adagio, which leads to a brief Andante return of the material with which the sonata had opened. This constitutes a bridge, in form and mood, to the final C major Allegro vivace, a movement suddenly interrupted in its headlong course by a hushed E flat from the cello, to which the fifth is then added, before the piano comments with the opening figure of the principal theme, a figure that lends itself, as the movement progresses, to contrapuntal treatment.
Writer: Keith Anderson
| No. | Catalogue No. | Album Title | Label | Featured Artist |
|---|
