I revisited Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 31. Among his 32 piano sonatas, I believe many people are particularly fond of this one. It is also frequently performed in concerts. However, it is quite a challenging piece—not only in terms of technical difficulty but also in how each movement and each section should be expressed and connected. That’s what makes it so difficult.
This was my third review of the piece, and my advisor’s feedback contained many detailed comments that would make perfect sense to those who follow the score closely or aspire to master this sonata. When I listen without looking at the score, I sometimes wonder what the issue might be—only to find that my advisor has pinpointed it exactly. As a result, I ended up spending a great deal of time refining my approach to the two Klagender Gesang ('song of lament') sections and the fugue in the third movement.
Amidst all this, my advisor made a brilliant comment regarding the handling of voices from a technical perspective, so I'd like to share it. For example, in the first movement, measure 47...
"It feels like sticking a toothpick into a daikon radish in an oden pot when it still has a firm core. In other words, in the right-hand part, which is split into two voices, the movement of the lower part doesn’t align smoothly with the phrasing of the upper part. The upper part is gradually diminishing with a half note, but since the lower part isn’t responding well to this, that core remains. The key is how to play the lower part. It’s the same in an orchestra—whether the violas are played well makes a big difference, and apparently, the Vienna Philharmonic is outstanding in this regard." Indeed, the oden analogy is quite fitting. This was about the subtle application of the hairpin decrescendo.
Title: Piano Sonata No. 31 in A-flat major, Op.110
Sound Library: Vienna Synchron Concert D-274
Audio file format: mp3(Stream directly on your PC)
YouTube: Beethoven Piano Sonata No.31
Now it's time to review Beethoven's final piano sonata, No. 32.