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Mozart's B-flat major sonata, K333

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first theme comes in the tonic, B-flat

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the theme goes nowhere

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it begins in b-flat major

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and ends in b-flat major

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it has no roll but to establish the tonality firmly

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and to be extremely beautiful

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second theme is established in the dominant F

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two roles

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establish the dominant

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contrast in character

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first theme is edgeless and lyrical

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second theme has a backbone and gallantry behind it

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the two oppositions are connected to one another

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we have left home harmonically, and there have been changes in the music as a result

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the sonata form is three part

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exposition

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the first and second themes almost always appear in the exposition and form its basis

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development

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the wilderness period

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very often the most fascinating part of the sonata movement

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because it is the least settled

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we inevitably begin away from home on the dominant where we left off from the exposition section

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then we go fishing around for the tonic

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we cycle through many keys, not just F-Major but F-Minor, C-Minor, G-Minor before finally resolving dominant tonic back home

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whatever happens in the development

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even though in Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven there is an enormously wide variety of harmonic events and developments

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no matter where we have been, we are reminded that the dominant is the chord that led us away in the first place

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recapitulation

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it does, literally, recapitulate the events in the exposition

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with one key difference: we do not leave the tonic

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this means that the first theme is unchanged from the exposition

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but the second theme which was initially in a foreign environment now returns home

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the arrival of the second theme in the home or correct key is what can be thought of as the exhale moment in the sonata form

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the moment when we feel a sense of security that the conflict has been resolved

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just in moving the key from dominant, where it originally was, back to the tonic, its character has been altered

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this is the miracle of diatonicism and the sonata form

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the sonata form has been called a pure invention of the classical era

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it's worth noting that the model of moving to the dominant and then going back to the tonic does not originate in the classical period

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nearly all the binary movements in baroque dance suites, allemandes, courant, saraband

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what is new is the business of hearing the first theme again not in the tonic but in the dominant

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the Mozart K333 example

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conservative in how it hues to the model

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undramatic in character

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listen to the first movement

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even in such a benevolent sounding work, notice how strong your need for that resolution is

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the fundamental psychological essence of how we hear a sonata is contained in that tonic/dominant relationship

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think of a sonata less in terms of psychology and more in terms of narrative

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one of the most critical components of a successful performance is to convey the sense of a story being told

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not a literal story, at least not typically, but any good performance will give the impression of events unfolding, of moving from one state into another

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and this stripped down form of sonata form also implies a stripped down story: we are home, we are lost, and finally we return home again

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this created a powerful framework for the classical masters

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they used it over and over again because it simultaneously provided an inherently dramatic basis, and yet gave them immense creative freedom to fill in the gaps

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Mozart: Alla Turca Sonata

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a spectacularly odd work which defies this plan

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Haydn occasionally wrote two rather than three-movement sonatas

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omit the standard first movement

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but by the time Beethoven comes along, the first movement of the sonata was defined very well, but also for:

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piano trios

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string quartettes

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symphonies

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early classical period

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the first movements are where the action is

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Haydn Sonata Hob.XVI No.50

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entirely traditional

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but introduces the movement in the extremely remote key of A-flat-major, and uses C-major

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simultaneously he asks the pianist to hold the sustaining pedal down, creating a blur effect

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an example of how harmony is color

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Mozart, K493

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the exposition is quite traditional although Mozart gives the piece a third theme

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which he often does when he wants to give the music a generosity and spaciousness

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this really isn't radical, the second and third themes are similar in character and form a thematic group which collectively contrast to the first theme

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but the second theme appears in no fewer than seven different keys culminating in an incredible four-voice canon where the instruments trade the theme back and forth

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through the constant harmonic movement, he creates a powerful sense of instability, not just harmonic instability, but emotional instability, because none of this is theoretical because harmony is the main currency of feeling in all music, at least prior to the 20th century

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Mozart, K515

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here here is an immensely long exposition

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the longest classical exposition of any piece prior to middle-period Beethoven

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he takes his sweet time establishing the dominant

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once he gets there, he includes not one, not two, but three themes on it

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rather than provide a long development to make the proportions work out

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he writes one which is only the fraction of the length of the exposition

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but by changing the style of writing so dramatically from chordal writing to intricate counterpoint, from long periods of harmonic stasis to constant harmonic motion

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he creates such a feeling of unrest, that the development more than holds up to the immensity that has preceded it

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Beethoven - Sonata No. 8 Opus 13

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contained with in this movement is a sonata in standard form albeit in a minor key

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but is preceded by a lengthy and slow introduction

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a bit unusual

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but Beethoven brings with material back in two dramatic junctures in the movement

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this serves to do is to create a sense of confusion-based agitation in the listener

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we no longer understand how the material from the introduction fits into the grand plan

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it's role is really entirely external to the sonata form

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but its repeated appearances are so jarring, they create an element of suspense in what would otherwise be a very straight-forward, dramatic movement