PractisPractis

Beethoven Moonlight Sonata

Sonata · in C♯ minor · Op. 27, No. 2

Ludwig van Beethoven 1770–1827
C♯ minor
Key
Sonata
Form
Op. 27, No. 2
Catalogue
Score
First page of Beethoven Moonlight Sonata

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Themes & character
Sonata quasi una fantasia·Nickname coined after his death·Storm in the finale·Composed 1801

At a glance

Catalogue
Op. 27, No. 2
Key
C♯ minor
Form
Sonata

Movements

I
Adagio sostenutoC♯ minor

The famous opening, marked to be played with the dampers raised throughout, its melody barely rising above a whisper over unbroken triplets.

II
AllegrettoD♭ major

A brief, gracious minuet and trio, the single moment of light between the shadowed outer movements.

III
Presto agitatoC♯ minor

A ferocious sonata-form finale of surging arpeggios and hammered chords, where the weight of the whole work lies.

About the piece

Beethoven published this sonata in 1802 marked Sonata quasi una fantasia, a sonata almost a fantasy, warning that it would not behave as expected. Rather than opening with a brisk Allegro it begins slowly and saves its fury for the end. The nickname came from the poet Ludwig Rellstab, who in 1832, five years after Beethoven's death, compared the first movement to moonlight on Lake Lucerne. Beethoven never used it and reportedly grew tired of a reputation built on his gentlest music. He dedicated the work to his pupil Countess Giulietta Guicciardi.

The composer

Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
1770–1827

Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer, conductor, and pianist. Regarded as one of the greatest composers in the history of Western music, he was mentored during the Classical period, and his musical style was a key driver of the transition to Romantic music, and the expansion of instrumental forms such as the symphony, the piano sonata and the string quartet. His compositions have attracted extraordinary casual and scholarly interest, and remain among the most performed in the world.

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