Robert Greenberg
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Likened to Dante's Inferno and Shakespeare's King Lear, Sonata no. 23 in F Minor, op. 57 (Appassionata) is not only esteemed by audiences, it was also one of Beethoven's favorites among his piano works. With the Waldstein, it is a quintessential example of Beethoven's "heroic" style.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Piano Sonata no. 26 in E flat, op. 81a (Les Adieux) was dedicated to the Archduke Rudolph, an aristocratic patron and friend of Beethoven's who was fleeing Vienna ahead of Napoleon's armies, hence its name: the Farewell Sonata. We look at the piece as a mirror of contemporary events and as program music.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Professor Greenberg begins with a brief biography of Beethoven and the early history of the piano, followed by a discussion of the recordings of Beethoven's piano sonatas used throughout the series, performed by the distinguished pianist Claude Frank.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Beethoven's first four piano sonatas are four-movement works that are orchestral in scope, reflecting Beethoven's concept of the piano as a major instrument. We look at the second of his opus 2 set, Sonata no. 2 in A, as an example of these "grand sonatas."
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Focus almost entirely on the first movement of Piano Sonata no. 11 in B flat, op. 22, to understand Beethoven's developing compositional priorities and the influence of Bach on his music. Written in 1800, this work is in many ways Beethoven's farewell to the 18th-century Viennese Classical style.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Beethoven's music can be supple, light-hearted, quick-witted, and genuinely humorous, just as it can be heroic, magnificent, and spiritually profound. Beethoven's lighter side is delightfully on display in his two opus 14 piano sonatas: no. 9 in E and no. 10 in G.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Piano Sonata no. 6 in F, op. 10, no. 2 remained a special favorite of Beethoven's for many years after its composition. Examine the elements that make it seem so playful, before turning to the grander work that concludes the opus 10 set: Piano Sonata no. 7 in D.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Continuing your study of Beethoven's grand sonatas, examine Sonata no. 3 in C, no. 3, op. 2, and Sonata no. 4 in E flat, op. 7. In both these works, we see Beethoven's early artistic declaration that he was not interested in slavishly following the Classical tradition.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Beethoven’s 32 piano sonatas provide a window into his personal musical development and highlight the piano as an evolving instrument. Professor Robert Greenberg combines analysis of extensive musical excerpts with historical anecdotes, metaphors, and humor to show what goes on inside a musical composition and how Beethoven often broke all former rules to achieve a new, powerful effect.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
While the groundbreaking Third Symphony was Beethoven's public declaration of his "new path" as a composer, the piano sonatas were, collectively, his workshop for getting there. None more so than Sonata no. 17 in D Minor, op. 31, no. 2 (Tempest).
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
This episode explores the Classical style that Beethoven inherited from Haydn and Mozart, highlighting some of its more notable features. Then we look at Beethoven's Piano Sonata no. 1 in F Minor, op. 2, no. 1, from 1795, as both an homage to Mozart and an example of Beethoven's pianistic audacity.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Continuing your exploration of Beethoven's often overlooked piano sonatas, study no. 25 in G, op. 79, and no. 27 in E Minor, op. 90. The opening movement of op. 79 is a parody of Classically styled piano sonatas, while op. 90 opens with great pathos and tenderness.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Examine two Beethoven sonatas that deserve more attention than they are generally accorded: no. 22 in F, op. 54, and no. 24 in F sharp, op. 78. The former is an inspired, virtuosic, and genuinely experimental piece of music; the latter is one of the strangest and most adventurous works in the repertoire.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Beethoven completed his final piano sonata, no. 32 in C Minor, op. 111, five years before his death. Opus 111 seems obviously Beethoven's valedictory statement for the genre; it ties up loose ends, yet it is so stunningly original that it caps, rather than continues, the composer's run of 32 sonatas for piano.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Focus on one of Beethoven's most popular piano sonatas: no. 8 in C Minor, op. 13 (Pathetique). Professor Greenberg shows how time and popularity can trivialize even the most revolutionary creation, rendering us immune to what was once considered new and shocking.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Study two underappreciated works. Sonata no. 13 in E flat, op. 27, no. 1 continues Beethoven's assault on the Classical sonata template, while Sonata no. 15 in D, op. 28 (Pastoral) is a revolutionary work that elevates musical pastoral clichés to a high art.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Piano Sonata no. 28 in A, op. 101, is unique among Beethoven's 32 in that he had someone else's hands and spirit in mind when he composed it: namely his brilliant student Baroness Dorothea von Ertmann. It is also one of Beethoven's most rigorous and experimental works composed to that point in his life.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Piano Sonata no. 21 in C, op. 53 (Waldstein) is like no other music written by Beethoven or anyone else. We study this remarkable piece, from its unrelenting opening theme to its breathtaking prestissimo ("as fast as possible") conclusion.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2022.
Language
English
Description
Explore the other two opus 31 sonatas: no. 16 in G (which literally saved the life of pianist Claude Frank) and no. 18 in E flat. We also look at the opus 49 pair: no. 19 in G Minor and no. 20 in G; both were published against Beethoven's wishes and have since become favorites of young players.