Description
The three Piano Sonatas op. 2 are Beethoven’s first works of this genre, which he provided with an opus number and thus presented as particularly valuable compositions of the music world. They were written in Beethoven’s first years in Vienna and established him – as well as the Piano Trios op. 1 – as one of the most important composers of his time. All three sonatas are little masterpieces that increase in difficulty of execution and bravado. At the centre of the A major Sonata is the well-known, profound Largo Appassionato, whose staccato foundation is reminiscent of plucked double basses – in contrast to the light-footed Rondo Finale, whose theme is introduced at each repetition of increasingly sophisticated arabesques.
Henle Urtext Edition