Composed between 1801 and 1802.
"The genie is made up of 2% talent and 98% constant perseverance." –L. V. Beethoven.
Info and RegistrationThe first sonata of Op.31 is by far the funniest of the 32 Beethoven sonatas, and it is a bit difficult to explain why it is not one of the most famous of all; all movements feature engaging melodies and brims with humor from subtle to ironically gross.
You’ve got the first movement, where the hands can’t play together and the development is built almost entirely around an apparently inconsequential motif, the second, which is a joyfully overlong and increasingly absurd parody of (bad) Italian opera, and the third, full of wily chromatic movement and wry counterpoint.
