Album // Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 "Appassionata" by Sviatoslav Richter
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Ludwig van Beethoven (17701827) Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 "Appassionata"
00:00 I. Allegro assai
10:46 II. Andante con moto
16:43 III. Allegro ma non troppo

Piano: Sviatoslav Richter
Recorded in 1960
New mastering in 2023 by A for CMRR
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** COMPLETE PRESENTATION: LOOK THE FIRST PINNED COMMENT **

Allegro assai. From the very beginning of the first movement, the "powers of darkness" make their appearance, and although the subsidiary theme in Aflat major has a softer character, it is subordinate to the main theme to the point that it cannot assert itself independently. Never had a sonata begun in such a mysterious way, with a pianissimo arpeggio, in an equivocal tempo (it could be mistaken for a slow introduction). The discourse is punctuated by silences, the harmony questioning, before the melodic line explodes into chords of unprecedented brutality. To create a change of color, the second theme shifts to Aflat major. Nevertheless, it borrows its contours from the initial motif, maintaining a sense of unity. Beethoven exploits the full range of the keyboard, contrasts registers, and multiplies nuances. At the end of the movement, the coda sinks into the extreme bass, triple piano, as if exhausted by the struggle.

Andante con moto. The Andante with variations brings some respite. It is a variation movement distinguished by the very simplicity of its notation, modulation, and overall musical structure. In the spirit of a chorale, its melody is almost static (in the first two phrases, it uses only two notes): the theme owes its expressiveness to harmony and the movement of inner voices. Throughout the variations, the rhythmic writing gives a sense of acceleration through the use of increasingly shorter note values; progress is also made in terms of register, which reaches the high notes. When the theme is reprised at the end of the movement, its conclusion evades, replaced by a tense and fortissimo chord that announces the finale.

Allegro ma non troppo presto. This second Allegro reconnects with the tragic tone of the first movement. A rare feature in form, the exposition is not repeated, while Beethoven insists on the need to resume the developmentrecapitulation block. An accelerando leads to the Presto coda, whose frenzy remains intact until the last note. It is in the "wildly agitated" character of this movement, according to Riemann's expression, that one has sought the connection that this sonata could have with Shakespeare's "The Tempest." However, the storm in the Appassionata does not end in a peaceful idyll: it is through the force of his will that Beethoven emerges victorious.

This is certainly the greatest "Appassionata" in recording history. Sviatoslav Richter is here at the peak of his art, an art that can be described as "visionary".

Album available // Beethoven: Piano Sonatas Op. 109, 110, 111 by Sviatoslav Richter
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Ludwig Van Beethoven PLAYLIST (reference recordings):    • Ludwig Van Beethoven (17701827)