BEETHOVEN'S PIANOFORTE SONATAS
Played by DOROTHY MOGGRIDGE
Sonata No. 26 in E Flat (Das Lebewobl)
(The Farewell)
1. Adagio: Allegro (Das Lebewohl ) (Farewell)
2. Andante espressivo (Die Abwesenhoit) (Absence); *3. Vivaccissimamente (Das Wiedersehen) (The Return)
Sonata No. 24 in F Sharp
Adagio cantabile-Allegro ma non troppo ; Allegro vivace
BEETHOVEN was not in the habit of writing works to a programme. especially those in the sonata form, much less did he give names to them except on rare occasions, such as when he appended the title ' Kroica ' to the third symphony. But in regard to the piano sonatas, the fanciful labels ' Moonlight,' ' Appassionata,' ' Pastoral,' and so forth are merely publishers' blurbs and Beethoven would have been the last to countenance them. However, Beethoven did himself give names to two of his pianoforte sonatas. One of them was the early Sonata Pathétique, which he so called because at the impressionable age of twenty-seven he persuaded himself that he was consciously experimenting in the use of pathos as an artistic medium, and he was really pleased with what, in this sonata, he had achieved in the way of introducing pathos. The other was the one being played today. Das Lebe wohl. This work has not only a title, but also a programme—the only one of the sonatas that has-though considered as programme it is altogether lacking in interest and substance. It was written for an occasion-as a musical tribute, in fact, to his patron the Archduke Rudolph , with whose political troubles Beethoven was in sympathy. Rudolph was under orders to leave Vienna, but it was hoped he would quickly return. The whole programme, therefore, is contained in the words departure, exile, and return. It is true some attempt has been made to illustrate the feelings conjured up by these words, but the sonata, as music, is not in the least affected by the pro-grammatical side issue.