Verdi - Don Carlo, Grand Inquisitor Scene

Guiseppe Verdi's longest opera is Don Carlo, and was written in 1866 to a French libretto that was taken from a German play by Friedrich Schiller titled Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien (Don Carlos, Infante Of Spain) as well as elements from a contemporary play about Phillip II of Spain. As if that isn't enough rigamarole for an opera subject, the opera went through an Italian translation almost immediately as well as numerous changes and versions over the years. The original opera was in 5 acts and took almost 4 hours to perform, so Verdi himself made some of the changes to accommodate the action and the audience. 

The story is based on the conflicts of Don Carlos, Prince of Asturias, and his father King Phillip II of Spain. One of the main dramatic points of the opera was taken from the fact that the wedding plans for Don Carlos were changed by a peace treaty that demanded that the same woman marry his father instead! 

The opera had its French premiere in March of 1867 and was titled Don Carlos. The Italian version premiered not in Italy, but London in June of 1867 and was titled Don Carlo. With many version over the years, the opera was performed in the remainder of the 19th century but fell out of favor at the turn of the 20th century. It wasn't until the latter half of the 20th century that the work entered the repertoire in two main versions, both in Italian. 

There are some fine scenes in the opera, with one of the best being the Grand Inquisitor Scene. As with many grand opera plots, the only way to make any sense of a scene is to know what in the works is going on, so here's is a synopsis of the goings-on up until the scene:

King Phillip indeed marries Don Carlo's former fiancee, but he suspects that Don Carlo is having an affair with her. Don Carlo does tell his step-mother that he still loves her, but she refuses his advances. His friend Rodrigue, Marquis of Posa tries to convince Don Carlo to leave Spain and go to Flanders to engage in political work and forget his lovesickness. 

Another woman, Princess Eboli loves Don Carlos, and tries to blackmail him into marrying her by threatening to tell the King that his wife has been unfaithful with Don Carlo. (When he rejects her, she does just that. Meanwhile, preparations are being made by the monks for an auto-da-fé, the burning in public of heretics.) The public celebrates and King Phillip II tells them he will protect them. Don Carlo enters with envoys from Flanders that plead for their country's freedom. Don Carlo demands that that the King give him authority to rule Flanders, but the King scornfully refuses. Don Carlo draws his sword, but Posa takes it from him. The King is impressed with Posa's loyalty and considers him a friend, even when he knows the Grand Inquisitor is watching Posa because of his concern for the Flemish nation. Guards arrest Don Carlo as the wood is ignited and the heretics are burned alive.

The King can't sleep, and bemoans the fact that his new bride doesn't love him in an aria in his study Ella giammai m'amò. After his lament, the Grand Inquisitor scene begins. It is a duet for King Phillip and the Grand Inquisitor, both roles sung by a bass.

The blind, ninety-year-old Grand Inquisitor is announced and is lead into the King's apartment by two monks. When the King asks if the Church will object to him putting his own son to death, the Inquisitor replies that the King will be in good company: God sacrificed His own son. In return for his support, the Inquisitor demands that the King have Posa killed. The King refuses at first to kill his friend, whom he admires and likes. However, the Grand Inquisitor reminds the King that the Inquisition can take down any king; he has created and destroyed other rulers before. Frightened and overwhelmed, the King begs the Grand Inquisitor to forget about the past discussion. The latter replies – perhaps! – and leaves. The King bitterly muses on his helplessness to oppose the Church.

The first video of the scene has English subtitles, the libretto is at  the end of the post:

The next video is a great performance by Nicolai Ghiaurov as King Phillip, and Martti Talvela as the Grand Inquisitor:

The final video is from a production for German television with Josef Greindl as the King and Martti Talvela once again as the Inquisitor. It has been translated to German, and the performance is stunning.

The libretto for the scene:

COUNT LERMA
entering
The Grand Inquisitor!

Exit Lerma. The Grand Inquisitor, ninety years old and blind, enters, assisted by two Dominicans.

INQUISITOR
Am I before the King?

PHILIP
Yes, I need your help, my father, enlighten me.
Carlos has filled my heart with bitter sadness,
the Infante has rebelled in arms against his father.

INQUISITOR
What have you decided to do about him?

PHILIP
Everything … or nothing!

INQUISITOR
Explain yourself!

PHILIP
He must go away … or by the sword …

INQUISITOR
Well then?

PHILIP
If I strike down the Infante, will your hand absolve me?

INQUISITOR

The peace of the world is worth the blood of a son.

PHILIP
Can I as a Christian sacrifice my son to the world?

INQUISITOR
God sacrificed his own, to save us all.

PHILIP
Can you justify in all cases such a harsh faith?

INQUISITOR
Wherever a Christian follows the faith of Calvary.

PHILIP
Will the ties of nature and blood remain silent in me?

INQUISITOR
Everything bows and is silent when faith speaks!

PHILIP
It is well!

INQUISITOR
Philip II has nothing more to say to me?

PHILIP
No!

INQUISITOR
Then I shall speak to you, Sire!
In this beautiful land, untainted by heresy,
a man dares to undermine the divine order.
He is a friend of the King, his intimate confidant,
the tempting demon who is pushing him to the brink.
The criminal intent of which you accuse the Infante
is but child's play compared with his,
and I, the Inquisitor, I, as long as I raise
against obscure criminals the hand which wields the sword,
while forgoing my wrath against those with power in the world,
I let live in peace this great wrongdoer … and you!

PHILIP
To see us through the days of trial in which we live,
I have sought in my court, that vast desert of men,
a man, a sure friend … and I have found him!

INQUISITOR
Why
A man? And by what right do you call yourself King,
Sire, if you have equals?

PHILIP
Be quiet, priest!

INQUISITOR
The spirit of the reformers already enters your soul!
You wish to throw off with your feeble hand
the holy yoke which covers the Roman universe!
Return to your duty! The Church, like a good mother,
can still embrace a sincere penitent.
Deliver the Marquis of Posa to us!

PHILIP
No, never!

INQUISITOR
O King, if I were not here, in this palace
today, by the living God, tomorrow you yourself,
you would be before us at the supreme tribunal!

PHILIP
Priest! I have suffered your criminal audacity for too long!

INQUISITOR
Why do you evoke the shade of Samuel?
I have given two kings to this mighty empire,
my whole life's work, you want to destroy it …
What did I come here for? What do you want of me?

He starts to leave.

PHILIP
My father, may peace be restored between us.

INQUISITOR
continuing to move off
Peace?

PHILIP
Let the past be forgotten!

INQUISITOR
at the door, as he leaves
Perhaps!

PHILIP
The pride of the King withers before the pride of the priest!

Mussorgsky - Song Cycle 'Sunless'

Modest Mussorgsky was in many ways a musical dilettante, for while he was a naturally gifted musician, he had very little formal training.  This was not looked upon by his mentor Balakirev as a bad thing. On the contrary, a lack of formal training was considered something that would help free the creative artist to express himself without the artificial fetters of pedantic methods.

Mussorgsky's life was a struggle after he gave up the family tradition of professional military service for music. He had to accept a minor bureaucratic position to make ends meet financially. A recurring problem with alcohol (possibly obtained while he was in military cadet school) made nothing easier and eventually cost him his life in 1881 at the age of 42. His lack of formal musical training also led to struggles with his composing.  He had plenty of ideas, but with a few notable exceptions, he left many of his works incomplete, some consisting of only a few sketches. He was both blessed and cursed with an excellent memory, which led to reports of works that Mussorgsky played at the the piano that were never written down.

The most numerous works that Mussorgsky did write down are his songs for voice and piano. In this genre Mussorgsky excelled and he brought a new fusion of the Russian language and music.  Mussorgsky was a cultured, well-read man and as such could be very selective in the texts he set to music. The poet that he used for his two song cycles Songs And Dances Of Death and Sunless was his distant relative Arseny Golenishchev-Kutuzov.  The two impoverished men shared a small apartment together for about two years until Kutuzov married.

Sunless (also translated as Without Sun) was composed in 1874 at a low time in Mussorgsky's life. His opera Boris Gudonov had finally had its premiere early in 1874 after two other versions had been rejected. The opera was a success with the public but the critics were very hostile to the work. This, along with other setbacks and frustrations as well as his hatred of the boredom of his bureaucratic job, brought on depression that was made worse by excessive drinking.  There are six songs in the cycle that reflect Mussorgsky's mood during this time.

I want to thank Sergy Rybin for extending his kind permission to include his translation of the Russian texts:

Within Four Walls
All six songs of the cycle are highly introspective, and the slow moving piano accompaniment sets the stage for a song that conveighs the barren feelings of being alone with the four walls.

A tiny room, quiet and pleasant,

An impenetrable darkness, irresponsive darkness;

A deep thought, a sorrowful song;

A treasured hope in the beating heart;

Speedy flight of moment after moment;

A petrified glance at a far-away happiness;

Plenty of doubt, plenty of endurance.

Here it is, my night, night of solitude.
translation © Sergy Rybin http://www.lieder.net/

You Have Not Recognized Me In The Crowd
This song is ostensibly written in D major like the first song in the set, but the very first chord of the accompaniment takes the music to a different tonal landscape. Harmonies restlessly shift in this very short song that ends with a odd sounding chord that gives no feeling of resolution.

You have not recognized me in the crowd,

Your glance did not say anything.

But I felt wonder and fright

When I caught it:

It was only a moment;

But believe me, within it I re-lived again

All the delights of past love,

All the bitterness of oblivion and tears!
translation © Sergy Rybin http://www.lieder.net/

Over Is The Idle And Clamorous Day
Over is the idle and clamorous day;

Human life has fallen silent and a-slumber.

Everything is quiet. The shadow of the May night

Embraces the sleeping capital.

But sleep escapes from my eyes.

And by the rays of the next dawn

My imagination is leafing through

The pages of the lost years.

As if again breathing in the poison

Of spring's amorous dreams,

I resurrect in my soul the stream

Of hopes, surges, illusions...

Alas, those are only ghosts!

I am bored with this dead crowd,

And the noise of their old chatter

Already has no power over me.

Only one shadow, the only one of all,

Appeared to me, breathing with love, and,

Like a true friend of the past days,

Bent down by the bedstead.

And bravely I gave to her alone

All my soul in a silent tear,

Unseen by no one, full of happiness,

In a tear I saved for so long!
translation © Sergy Rybin http://www.lieder.net/

Be Bored
Perhaps Mussorgsky gave the listener a glimpse of his boring bureaucratic job in this pessimistic song.

Be bored. You were created for boredom.

Without burning feelings there is no joy,

As there is no reunion without separation,

As without struggle there are no victories.

Be bored. Be bored listening to words of love,

Immersed in the stillness of your empty heart,

Responding with a fake greeting

To the truth of an innocent dream.

Be bored. From birth to the grave

Your path is written beforehand:

Drop by drop you'll waste your powers,

Then you'll die, and God be with you...

And God be with you!
translation © Sergy Rybin http://www.lieder.net/

Elegy 
Passive and passionate alternate until the ultimate ending of death is reached with the quiet tolling of a distant bell played by the piano.

In the mist the night is in slumber. Silent star

Flickering, lonely, through the veil of clouds.

Sorrowfully ringing their bells in the distance,

Herds of grazing horses.

As night clouds my changing thoughts

Fly above me, disturbed and gloomy;

There are gleams of hopes in them, which were once dear,

Which are long lost, long dead.

There are regrets in them... and tears.

Thoughts rush along endlessly;

At times, transformed into features of a loved face,

They call for me, awakening in my soul former dreams again,

At times, merged into black darkness, full of silent threat,

Frighten my timid mind with the future's struggle, 

And I hear in the distance life's discordant noise,

Laughter of the soulless crowd, the muttering of treacherous feuding,

The irrepressible whisper of life's banality,

And the grim ringing of death!..

A rising star, as if full of shyness,

Is hiding her bright face in a joyless mist,

Like my future, mute and impenetrable.
translation © Sergy Rybin http://www.lieder.net/

Above The River
The text is reflected in the gently rolling thirds in the bass of the piano while the treble gives support to the melody of the singer. The contemplation of death being the only way out, whether brought on naturally or by suicide, is chilling.

Pensive moon crescent, far-away stars

Admiring the waters from a blue sky.

I look in silence at the deep waters;

My heart senses magical secrets in them.

They splash mysteriously, tender-caressing waves;

There is much mystical power in their muttering.

I hear boundless thoughts and passions...

Unknown voice, which stirs my soul,

Caresses, frightens, and evokes doubts.

When it commands me to listen -- I can't move;

When it drives me away -- I want to run in fear;

When it calls into the depths -- I want to jump without hesitation.
translation © Sergy Rybin http://www.lieder.net/

Bach - Brandenburg Concerto No. 4 In G Major, BWV 1049

 The 4th concerto in the set is written for 2 flutes, solo violin, strings and continuo.  Bach labels the flutes as 'flauti d'echo', and musicologists are not quite sure what specific instrument (or instrument technique) that Bach wanted. Since Bach called the two instruments flauto (flauti in the plural), many consider that it was the recorder that Bach wanted, as otherwise he would have put in the score flauto transverso, or side-blown flutes. Many modern performances use the recorder, but there are some that use the side-blown flute. It is rather a moot point, as the music shines no matter what instrument is used. 

I. Allegro - The recorders play without the solo violin to a sparse downbeat accompaniment as the first movement begins. They play without the solo violin for a considerable amount of time before the soloist enters and the three instruments weave together.  Later in the movement, the violin makes up for its silence in the beginning as it soars in virtuoso double stops, runs, and arpeggios. Based on this, this concerto could almost be considered a violin concerto. Bach's experiment with form and instrument uses makes for a hybrid form of concerto; a cross between a solo concerto and a concerto grosso.  

II. Andante - The slow movement of this concerto is the only one of the set that has all the instruments participate. It is the recorders that contribute the most, as the solo violin is reduced to playing an accompaniment to them. The movement is in E minor, the relative minor of G major. The movement ends with an unresolved chord that leads to the last movement.

III. Presto - The final movement begins with a fugue played by the strings. The solo violin enters and ushers in the recorders as ideas are bounced back and forth by the soloists and strings in contrapuntal style.  

This concerto was also converted to a concerto for harpsichord, recorders and strings, BWV 1057. It is interesting to note that many of Bach's harpsichord concertos were originally for violin. In this reworking, Bach transposes the music down to F major and gives the violin part of the original to the harpsichord. 

The first video is the original Brandenburg Concerto No. 4. The second video is the arrangement Bach made of it, the Harpsichord Concerto No. 6.

Arensky - Piano Trio No. 1 In D Minor

Both of Anton Arensky's parents were avid amateur musicians; his mother a pianist and his father a cellist. Arensky was musically precocious as a child and graduated in only three years from the St. Petersburg Conservatory with high honors in 1882. He became professor of harmony and counterpoint at the Moscow Conservatory shortly after graduation and returned to St. Petersburg and served in the Imperial Chapel from 1895 to 1901. He died in 1906. Arensky's music is for the most part forgotten, except for the Piano Trio No. 1 In D Minor which remains his best known work.  The trio was written in 1894 and dedicated to the memory of Karl Davidov, celebrated cellist and director of the St. Petersburg Conservatory.

The trio is in 4 movements:

I. Allegro moderato -  The first movement is in sonata form and begins with a theme for violin with piano accompaniment. The cello takes up the theme along with the violin after which the piano has its say with the theme. A change in tempo ushers in an interlude that acts as an introduction to the second theme which is played by the cello, violin and piano in turn. This leads to another short interlude that ushers in a third theme that has the piano playing full chord interruptions to its rippling accompaniment of the two strings. The exposition is repeated. The development begins with parts of the first two themes played after each other after which there is an increase in drama until the recapitulation begins. The themes from the exposition return until a tempo change to adagio begins a short coda that has the first theme quietly and poignantly end the movement.

II.  Scherzo, Allegro molto -  This is the only movement in the trio that is in a major key, D major.  A stuttering figure in the violin is accompanied by soft chords from the piano, after which the violin and cello play pizzicato while the piano plays runs up and down the keyboard. The stuttering figure of a quarter note, eighth rest, two sixteenth notes occurs throughout the scherzo's first and second parts. The trio is a romantic waltz in B-flat major. A short transition brings the scherzo back for a repeat. A short coda alternated the stuttering figure in the violin and cello. The piano makes one last solo run up the keyboard and the movement ends in a wisp.

III. Elegia - Adagio - A tribute to the dedicatee of the trio is played by the muted cello, a somber sad theme that is taken up also by the muted violin. A middle section adds a brief respite to the sorrow,  but the sad theme returns with a piano accompaniment of full chords in a subdued dynamic. The movement ends in a hush of long notes in the strings and pianissimo chords in the piano.

IV. Finale - Allegro non troppo -  The beginning of the finale is dramatic, but amid the drama Arensky revisits themes already heard. The middle section from the third movement appears like a ghostly reminder of things past, and the initial theme from the first movement also makes an appearance to further remind the listener of the past.  A coda built from the opening of the fourth movement ends the trio.

Tchaikovsky - Piano Concerto No. 2 In G Major

 The immense popularity of Tchaikovsky's piano concerto in B-flat minor has caused his other two concertos to be somewhat overlooked. This has changed in the past few years as more performances and recordings of the other two concertos have been occuring. While the third concerto exists in but one movement and was published posthumously, the second concerto is a full-fledged Romantic concerto with three movements.

Tchaikovsky wrote the concerto in 1879-1880, and the world premiere was in New York City in 1881. 

I. Allegro brillante e molto vivace - Tchaikovsky had told a friend years earlier that he would never write a piano concerto because he disliked the sound of the piano with orchestra, but he worked out his initial dislike of the sonority in his first piano concerto. With the second, he created an atmosphere where the piano interjects many solo sections within the framework.  The orchestra opens the movement with a march-like theme that is soon taken up by the piano.  This is soon followed by a virtuosic cadenza for soloist. After this, the clarinet heralds the second theme that is presented by the piano, and is developed by the piano and flute. The orchestra takes up the second theme while the piano plays accompaniment figures. The development of the second theme continues with octaves in the piano with interjections by the orchestra. The second theme is played in a variant by the orchestra, and slowly winds down to the beginning of the development section. 

The piano and flute take up the second theme until the piano has another cadenza. The orchestra plays a section in the development until there is another piano cadenza, this one very virtuosic. This leads to the recapitulation which begins with the orchestra. A stunning coda brings  the movement to a close.

II. Andante non troppo - The concerto was published in 1881, but Tchaikovsky was disappointed by the unpopular reception the concerto received after the first performances. He thought it was one of his best compositions. He made some cuts and alterations in it, and in 1888 his publisher suggested that it be reprinted. Alexander Siloti, one of Tchaikovsky's pupils, suggested some cuts in the work, mainly in the second movement. Tchaikovsky rejected most of these suggestions, but the concerto was reprinted after his death in 1893 with all of Siloti's cuts and edits. This edition of the concerto was the dominant version played for many years until the complete works of Tchaikovsky were printed in 1955.  The sections cut in Siloti's version of the second movement were the solo sections for violin and cello, which reduced the movement to around 7 minutes duration, roughly half the time of the original. 

The movement begins with a short introduction by the orchestra that leads to a solo violin that plays along until a solo cello joins it in a duet. The soloist is silent for an extended time in the beginning of the movement, so that along with the total performance time of about 45 minutes prompted Siloti to make the cuts. Why anyone would think that they knew better than the composer in this matter is a mystery, but it was a time before the more modern era of urtext editions and the thought that what the composer had written was sacrosanct. The piano enters and plays its version of the music. slowly tension builds until the cello and violin return to play a duet that brings the movement back to the mood of the beginning. The piano joins them in a mostly secondary role until it has a short solo before the orchestra and piano bring the movement to a close. 

III. Allegro con fuoco - The soloist is the only star in the finale with fleet fingerwork and octaves. The movement has two main themes, the first heard straight away and the second soon after. Near the ned of the movement, the pianist thunders away, and then slowly gets softer and softer, until there is a momentary silence before the orchestra loudly begins the music anew, until with a thunder of chords and arpeggios, the soloist and orchestra end the concerto.

Bach - Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 In F Major, BWV 1046

Musicians in Bach's era were treated much as any other servant by many of the royals that employed them.  So it was inevitable that a musician such as Bach would have his share of difficulties. Sometimes it was not the royals that gave him as much trouble as the city councils in the towns he was employed. Bach could be headstrong, as his focus was on giving the best music performances possible, while many members of the city councils couldn't understand why he couldn't make do with what the previous head musician in their employ did. But Bach proved to be shrewd as well as headstrong in his desire to get and keep the musical reputation he strove for. He prevailed more often as not. 

He had a wide reputation as the most knowledgeable musician concerning the organ. He earned extra money by traveling and assessing organs and what was needed to repair theme, as well as working as a consultant when new organs were being built. In the process, he would demonstrate by playing the organ in question, and as he was known as the best organist in the area, his reputation grew. He made contacts which aided him in his negotiation for future positions.

Bach also knew how to talk the talk of the era to royals. He sent the set of 6 concertos
(in his own handwriting) that are now called The Brandenburg Concertos to Christian Ludwig, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt in 1721, while he was still employed by Leopold, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen. Bach had been hired by the Prince in 1717, and as the Prince was a lover of music, Bach did well there. But when the Prince got married in 1720 to a woman that didn't care for music, the importance of music in the court began to diminish. So Bach went job hunting, and along with the 6 concertos (a quite impressive resume), he sent along a dedication to the Margrave originally in French:

Since I had a few years ago, the good luck of being heard by Your Royal Highness, by virtue of his command, & that I observed then, that He took some pleasure in the small talents that Heaven gave me for Music, & that in taking leave of Your Royal Highness, He wished to make me the honor of ordering to send Him some pieces of my Composition: I therefore according to his very gracious orders, took the liberty of giving my very-humble respects to Your Royal Highness, by the present Concertos, which I have arranged for several Instruments; praying Him very-humbly to not want to judge their imperfection, according to the severity of fine and delicate taste, that everyone knows that He has for musical pieces... 

It took two years from the time the Margrave ordered Bach to send him some compositions until they were sent, and they weren't specially composed for the Margrave. There is musicological evidence that shows the concertos had been written earlier. Whether Bach was honestly considered for the job or not is not known. What is known is that Bach took the job of Cantor in Leipzig in 1723, and stayed there the rest of his life. Whether the Margrave acknowledged the gift or had them performed isn't known. 

There was no standardized orchestra in Bach's time. He would write for the instruments that were available to him. The instrumentation for this concerto is 3 oboes, bassoon, 2 horns (natural horns with no valves), violino piccolo, violin I and II, viola, cello, violone (double bass of the viol family of stringed instruments) and continuo. This is the only concerto of the set that is in 4 movements.

I. Allegro -  This movement, along with the second movement was used in 1713. Bach rewrote the movement to include the violino piccolo. The movement begins with the hunting horns playing traditional hunting calls as the rest of the orchestra plays. Instruments take their turn in presenting themes while the horns punctuate the background with triplets. But the horns are more than an accompaniment; they have their time in the spotlight presenting themes as well, and never fade in the background much. One of the most distinguishing characteristics of this movement is the role the horns play in the ensemble, and even in the disruption of it.

II. Adagio -  A solo oboe begins this movement, followed by the violino piccolo, a small violin that was tuned a minor third above a standard violin. These two instruments play off each other in a duet that is accompanied by the orchestra, minus horns. At the end, the falling notes of the bass alternate with the oboes and strings.

III. Allegro - The violino piccolo has solo material throughout this movement with a wonderful chugging rhythm in the bass. A distinctive touch is when the music comes to a slowdown with two bars of adagio tempo before the music resumes its original speed. Some musicologists believe this music first turned up in a previous cantata. 

IV. Menuet - Trio, Menuet da capo: Polacca, Menuet da capo: Trio II, Menuet da capo - In writing technique, all the movements are in the mood of the concerto grosso, but in form they resemble the multiple orchestral suites of the time. The final movement is a graceful minuet, and after the trio for bassoon and oboes is done, a reprise of the menuet would usually end the movement. But Bach adds two more sections; a Polacca (Italian for Polonaise, a Polish dance) for strings, a reprise of the minuet, and a second trio for horns and oboes. One more reprise of the minuet brings the concerto to an end.

Schubert - Piano Sonata No. 19 In C Minor, D.958

The last months of Franz Schubert's life were times of great physical illness matched with great musical creativity. But for most of his short life, Schubert was not anything if not prolific, as he wrote more than 1,500 works by the time of his death in 1828 at the age of 31.  The final three piano sonatas were but a part of the works composed in his final months, and it wasn't until Schubert was ten years dead that they were published. Even then, it took many years for these last sonatas and most of Schubert's piano music to escape the neglect of the 19th century. 

The Piano Sonata No. 19 In C Minor, D.958 is the first of this set of sonatas, and while all three of them have some similarities in structure, it is the C minor that is different in mood and character. 

I. Allegro - As other authors have mentioned, the comparison with this sonata to those of Beethoven has been made many times. It does share the key of C minor with the powerful works of Beethoven in the same key. But Schubert's piano sonatas may have suffered in reputation by comparison to Beethoven's. What composer's wouldn't? But in the latter half of the 20th century, Schubert's sonatas were taken on their own terms, which is a good tactic to use for any music lover. This first movement begins with the starkness of a C minor chord, that shortly makes its way to a downward A-flat major scale, an example of Schubert's ear for combining differing harmonies. The C minor theme is repeated in a variation with a moving bass line that soon shifts keys to E-flat, relative major of C minor. Indeed, E-flat major is the key of the second theme which at first hearing, is calmer in nature, but upon the repetition this theme is varied by playing in octaves while the accompaniment is in triplets. This adds underlying tension to the music. Then there is a section that adds to the tension with shifting harmonies such as E-flat minor and A-flat minor. A final section of the exposition brings back the second theme, again with shifting harmonies. The exposition is repeated.

The key of A-flat major returns with the chord that leads off the development section, music that could have played a role in the development of Brahms, as the beginning sounds similar to the music of Brahms, who was an editor of some of Schubert's music. Most of the development deals with more shifting harmonies and a restless base.

The recapitulation begins with the first theme, along with variations in the next sections until the second theme is reached, which in this repetition is in C major, parallel key of C minor. The coda winds down the music with the second theme being in C minor, and the movement ends pianissimo.

II. Adagio - It was rare for Schubert to use the designation adagio for a movement, and it begins in A-flat major. The second theme shifts the key to A minor, and is much more agitated. The first theme is played again, with changes in harmony that change its benign mood into something darker. Once again, the second theme begins and darkens the mood. The first theme returns one last time and with changing keys, sounds somewhat deflated from before. It tries one last time to return to what it was before, but it quietly ends. 

III. Menuetto: Allegro - Trio -  Tranquility is in this movement more so than the preceding, but as incongruous as it may be to say, a disquietude is displayed with the bars of rest that interrupt the theme. The theme is in E-flat, but drifts into C minor and other keys. The key of A-flat major makes an appearance in the trio, with appearances of E-flat minor and other keys. 

IV. Allegro - The final movement is in 6/8 time and is in the style of a tarantella. The music is in sonata form and begins in the home key of C minor for the first theme. The music drifts into other keys until a variant of this theme is played in C major. As this theme temporarily runs itself out, a transitional section in D-flat leads to the next theme in C-sharp minor. This theme is punctuated by a resounding rhythm in the left hand as the right hand crosses over it to play the theme. This theme continues to develop with modulations to A minor, E-flat major, E-flat minor, and leads to a third theme in E-flat major. 

After this theme, a rest of two measures for the music to catch its breath brings a section in B major which leads to a development section that maintains the chromaticism of the sonata as it dances its way until a fermata over an eighth rest that signals the recapitulation. 

The first theme is heard in the home key, the second theme changes key to B-flat minor, the third theme repeats in C major. A section in A-flat major leads to the coda with the first theme. Previous material is heard in different keys until the key of C minor takes off on two-note figures that outline the C minor triad (with a few accidentals that belong to G major) for 5 octaves while the bass plays a broken C minor chord (with a few accidentals that belong to G major). This 5-octave descent decreases the volume over its course until it reaches pianissimo. The music ends fortissimo the way it started; with a C minor chord.