As originally planned, I have now finished revisiting the piano sonatas I had worked on through No. 32, and compiled them into CDs under the title “Digitally Performed Classical Music,” as follows.
Vol. 1: The Final Three of 32 Pieces—"The Three Great Late Sonatas"
Track 1: Piano Sonata No. 30 in E Major, Op. 109
Track 2: Piano Sonata No. 31 in A-flat Major, Op. 110
Track 3: Piano Sonata No. 32 in C Minor, Op. 111
Vol. 2: From the Early Period to the Beginning of the Middle Period
Track 1: Piano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp Minor, Op. 27, No. 2, “Moonlight”
Track 2: Piano Sonata No. 17 in D Minor, Op. 31, No. 2, “The Tempest”
Track 3: Piano Sonata No. 8 in C Minor, Op. 13, “Pathétique”
Vol. 3: Mid-Term
Track 1: Piano Sonata No. 21 in C Major, Op. 53, “Waldstein”
Track 2: Piano Sonata No. 23 in F Minor, Op. 57, “Appassionata”
Vol. 4: Mid-Term
Track 1: Piano Sonata No. 24 in F-sharp Major, Op. 78, “À Thérèse”
Track 2: Piano Sonata No. 25 in G Major, Op. 79, “Cuckoo”
Track 3: Piano Sonata No. 26 in E-flat Major, Op. 81a, “Les Adieux”
Vol. 5: Second Semester
Track 1: Piano Sonata No. 27 in E Minor, Op. 90
Track 2: Piano Sonata No. 28 in A Major, Op. 101
Vol. 6: Special Edition—Second Half
Track 1: Piano Sonata No. 29 in B-flat Major, Op. 106, “Hammerklavier”
Conventional Tempo
Track 2: Piano Sonata No. 29 in B-flat Major, Op. 106, “Hammerklavier”
Beethoven's Metronome Tempo
Since then, I have been working on string quartets and other pieces, but somehow Beethoven’s piano sonatas keep drawing me back.
I thought about tackling some of the early sonatas I have not yet programmed, as well as some of the later ones I have not worked on before. But after thinking it over, I decided instead to return once again to the last three sonatas—Nos. 30, 31 and 32. They are my favorites, and they were also the first Beethoven sonatas I worked on.
I believe this will be my third time revisiting them.
Since my last revision, I have worked on many other pieces, and my recent work on the Hammerklavier made me think again, in particular, about polyphony. I have no idea yet how those experiences will affect the way I approach Nos. 30, 31 and 32 this time.
Well, I’m rather looking forward to seeing how they will change.