BEETHOVEN Cello Sonata No. 4 in C major (Op. 102, No. 1) Score

"The Sonatas for cello and piano No. 4 in C major, Op. 102, No. 1, and No. 5 in D major, Op. 102, No. 2, by Ludwig van Beethoven were composed simultaneously in 1815 and published, by Simrock, in 1817 or early 1818 with a dedication to the Countess Marie von Erdődy, a close friend and confidante of Beethoven.
The two sonatas were composed between May and December 1815. A first copy by Beethoven’s copyist Wenzel Rampl was made in late 1815 but was then subject to further alterations by Beethoven. A subsequent ‘good’ copy was supplied in February 1816 to Charles Neate for proposed, though unrealized, publication in London. Beethoven then made further small alterations prior to their eventual publication by Simrock in Bonn.
During the period 1812 to 1817 Beethoven, ailing and overcome by all sorts of difficulties, experienced a period of literal and figurative silence as his deafness became overwhelmingly profound and his productivity diminished. Following seven years after the A Major Sonata No. 3, the complexity of their composition and their visionary character marks (which they share with the subsequently completed piano sonata Op 101) the start of Beethoven's "third period".
The critics of the time, often perplexed by Beethoven's last compositions, described the sonatas in terms such as the following from the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung:
"They elicit the most unexpected and unusual reactions, not only by their form but by the use of the piano as well…We have never been able to warm up to the two sonatas; but these compositions are perhaps a necessary link in the chain of Beethoven's works in order to lead us there where the steady hand of the maestro wanted to lead us."
This short, almost enigmatic work demonstrates in concentrated form how Beethoven was becoming ready to challenge and even subvert the sonata structures he inherited from composers such as Haydn and Mozart. Its overall structure is very similar to the contemporary piano sonata Op. 101. Both movements recall the long-established convention of a slow introduction to a brisk main section in sonata form, but with significant modifications.
In the first movement the introductory portion entirely lacks the portentousness of a conventional slow introduction, consisting of a brief elegiac theme repeated several times without change of key and largely unvaried; it concludes with an elaborate cadence in C major that is then contradicted by the sonata portion being in the relative minor, largely avoiding the key of C major except at the opening of the development.
The second movement opens more in the manner of a traditional slow introduction, and eventually leads to a sonata-form portion in the 'correct' key of C. However, before this point is reached, the opening material of the sonata reappears for a final, almost ecstatic variation; a procedure paralleled elsewhere in Beethoven's work only in the drama of the fifth and ninth symphonies. "
- Wikipedia 2020
Performed by Mischa Maisky and Martha Argerich
Andante / Allegro vivace - 00:05
Adagio / Tempo d'andante / Allegro vivace - 07:54

[@alecrechtiene558]

Beautiful stuff. Can’t believe I just discovered this now as a late Beethoven junkie.

[@lionsbru]

Andante - Allegro vivace 0:00
Adagio - Tempo d'andante - Allegro vivace 7:55

[@jimk9290]

Amazing composition for any era. I only just recently got the Sonatas for my grandson, who plays the cello. This is the first one I've listened to, and it is an incredible piece.

[@dzinypinydoroviny]

This is Beethoven at one of his most romantic expressions.

[@wodzimierzwosimieta2758]

I've been looking forward to see this sonata with sheet music - thank you.

[@alecrechtiene558]

9:40 is beyond gorgeous

[@timward276]

This is similar to the op. 101 piano sonata in that not only does it start with a moderate-tempo movement, the movement starts on the dominant and takes a long time to find its way to C Major (like the op. 101 starting in E major instead of A)

[@FeonaLeeJones]

Urgently learning this piece ✨

[@hjo4104]

thank you very much, good work

[@vid4622]

チェロのための美しい旋律！！

[@Sam-tj9np]

12:20

[@Dylonely42]

Nice.

[@berkefeil5646]

Funny how air vibrations can turn into music with such emotional intensity and power

[@mirrors1]

Amazing e io piango come compositore davanti a questo. E anche alla n. 2

[@ClassicalMusic-ds9yt]

03:23

[@yuehchopin]

gut

[@olivierdrouin2701]

Je suis en général très favorable à l utilisation du piano forte pour beethoven.mais les deux sonates op 102 sont l exception.
Avec les variations OP 120 , peut être ?

[@pdr770]

מתחיל ב 4 ו4 ו3 ואז מסתיים ו2 ו2 לחלה ולנרות וב5 ו1 וסיום ב2 לחיים. ולשבת. עם סקילה למי שלא שומר.