The first movement of Beethoven’s Opus 27 No. 2 C# minor sonata was very popular in Beethoven’s day, to the point of exasperating the composer himself, who remarked to Czerny, ‘They are always talking about the C# minor Sonata surely I’ve written better things.’ Nearly two hundred years later, it still remains the most popular and downloaded piece of ‘classical’ music.
The title Moonlight Sonata actually didn’t come about until several years after Beethoven’s death. In 1836, German music critic, Ludwig Rellstab wrote that the sonata reminded him of the reflected moonlight off Lake Lucerne. Since then, Moonlight Sonata has remained the “official” unofficial title of the sonata.
‘Sonata quasi una fantasia’ is the title Beethoven gave his fourteenth sonata. Unlike the formal Sonata form of the classical period, Fantasia commonly describes a free-form classical musical piece. Marking the beginning of Beethoven’s second stylistic period, Opus 27 No. 2 does not follow the traditional sonata form. Beethoven additionally uses traditional musical mourning devices called Trauermusik, in a very untraditional way. Trauermusik consists of Lament Bass, repetitive accompaniment figures, and chant. Other famous examples of chant are Mozart’s Masonic Funeral Music and the Requium. Dotted monotone anacrusis permeate the first movement reminiscent of the tolling of funeral bells, recall the previous piano sonata Opus 26, Marcia sulla morte de’un eroe, which anticipates Chopin’s opus 35 Bb sonata’s famous ‘Marche Funebre’ and later the main theme of Beethoven’s ‘Eroica’ Symphony’s ‘Marcia Funebre’.
What changes in Beethoven’s life led to these transformations in his music?
In 1800-1802 Ludwig van Beethoven experienced devastating internal turmoil in trying to come to terms with his hearing loss. To the outside world, his life seemed to be ideal, with his success as a virtuoso pianist and as a successful, sought after composer in Vienna. He gradually began to withdraw from society and friends, however, as he felt it would be detrimental to his successful career as a musician if people found out he was going deaf. People felt he was being misanthropic, yet it was quite the opposite. Beethoven lived in a great deal of solitude and loneliness due to his impending and eventual complete deafness, which would eventually have a profound effect on his spiritual and creative growth as a composer and a musician. The years of 1800-1802 were a transformative period in Beethoven’s life, and marked the beginning of his second stylistic period. As Beethoven’s outer hearing deteriorated, his inner hearing continued to grow.
Beethoven sought treatment in the village of Heilgenstadt in the late spring of 1802 until October of that year. Full of despair over the unsuccessful treatment, he considered ending his life. In a famous letter known as the Heilgenstadt Testament written to his brothers, he wrote “Thanks…to my art I did not end my life by suicide.”
Over and over in Beethoven’s music themes of victory over tragedy abound. In the internal struggle he faced, his music often showed the greatest despair and sorrow, yet always transcended into triumphant victory. With that same inner struggle, Beethoven learned to transcend deafness and still be victorious in creating greater and greater masterpieces.
During the late 1790s, Beethoven’s music began to show changes, as well as enlargement of form. After the Heilgenstadt Testament, Beethoven expressed dissatisfaction with his compositions and according to Czerny was “determined to take a new path.” [1] The changes included strong links between sonata movements, intensified drama, harmonic instability and motivic elements affecting the larger form.
This Sonata could be interpreted as Beethoven beginning to come to terms with his impending eventual deafness. The mourning and loss of the Adagio Sostenuto with its modal changes, dissonances, rhythms and chants representative of Trauermusik followed by the rage of the stormy third movement, were his way of expressing how he felt about this affliction of deafness while writing the most extraordinary music and not being able to hear it.
Beethoven would live most of his life in a great deal of loneliness and despair with most of his life devoted to the development of his art and creativity. As this sonata was written towards the beginning of his second stylistic period many masterpieces would follow the ‘Sonata Quasi Una Fantasia’.
Jamila Sahar
[1] Timothy Jones, BEETHOVEN The “Moonlight” and other Sonatas, Op 27 and Op 31, p. 15
The Art of Piano Performance 
Good job…Like too Learn More…about music Notes….from the Artist in Chicago.
I do believe all the ideas you have introduced for your
post. They’re very convincing and will definitely work. Nonetheless, the posts are very brief for starters. Could you please lengthen them a bit from next time? Thank you for the post.
Many thanks for your commentary. I originally began writing these short blogs for my students to read and learn about various composers and some of their works. Thanks for your interest, I will enjoy writing more detailed articles in the future.
Thanks ☺️ I actually shortened this as well as all my posts quite a bit for the blog. Next one I will post the whole article. Many thanks for wanting to read more.
Finally, someone who share the same thoughts. I have never been able to to accept the idea that “Moonlight sonata” was written for the blind girl or for the girl he loved (Giulietta Guicciardi). I am not musician but I definitely have an ear for music. The melody sounds rather as despair, pain and great suffering than love drama. I think that “love” as a reason for creating this masterpiece could be approved only if it’s meant as a “love for music”. Losing that kind of love because of the hearing loss is definitely more painful than unrequited love. Everyone who read Beethoven’s letters will understand his music even better.
A letter to his friend: “Your Beethoven is very unhappy. You must know that the best part of me, my hearing, has became very weak…How sad is my life…I’m deaf. Had my profession been any other, things might still be bearable: but if it is, my situation is terrible…”
Another one: “How humiliated I have felt if somebody standing beside me heard the sound of a flute in the distance and I heard nothing… If not for my music, little more of this and I would have ended my life… I have been stranger to the trill of joy for so long. When, O God, when shall I feel joy once more?” But his powerful nature could not give up under the weight of his suffering: “My physical beneath improves always with the growth of my intellectual force… Yes, I can fell that my youth is only just beginning… O, if I were only free from my deafness I would embrace the world!… No rest! At least, none that I know of except sleep;… I will wage war against destiny.”
I play this song every day. I believe it is about love; its about love lost. I “see” the story while I play. Its about having the deepest love. Then losing it, watching it fall away. Its about living those last moments of bitter irony over and over again, and being left, alone in the dark (those last two chords, chords of almost anguish) forever.
Many thanks for your commentary. I love hearing each unique perspective of the story behind the music. For sure you can hear the profound sense of ‘loss’ in the composer. Loss of hearing, loss of love. Many thanks for sharing, I too never tire of hearing or playing this work. Hope to hear your playing one day. 🎹🎶😌
Greetings
Thanks for sharing the letter, yes what an iconic figure so inspiring and his quote; ‘I will seize fate by the throat’. He truly did, because the growth he experienced internally was because of the deterioration of the outer hearing. So in a sense many of Beethoven’s later masterpieces are a result of this fate of deafness. A beautiful and inspiring story for all mankind. Thanks for sharing 🎹🎶😌
His letters are so moving and special.
Beethoven is such an inspiration. I like the idea that his hearing loss spawned one of his most well know works, I couldn’t imagine what he went through.
Many thanks for stopping by. Beethoven is such an iconic figure indeed! I can actually feel his pain when playing this music. What are some of your Beethoven favorites?
Many thanks for stopping by, Beethoven is one of my biggest inspirations for his ‘Victory Over Defeat’ attitude even in the midst of the greatest despair. You can certainly feel his sentiments when actually playing his music.
Perry, they have made a CD at Beethoven Haus which shows how he would have heard his music over the years as his hearing got less- it is very poignant and gives us a small idea of what it was like for him.
Reblogged this on blackbileinme and commented:
Oh I see… good to know! 😀
Many thanks for stopping by
one of my earliest memories is the first movement,after hearing the second and third ,i felt that there was a story behind something so powerful. Thanks for telling it.
Many thanks for reading. I agree, for sure this Sonata is telling a story as well as many powerful human emotions of mourning and grief in the first movement which gives way peacefulness and acceptance in the second and rage in the finale. What a masterpiece this work is.
Many thanks for your insightful commentary.
Reblogged this on Small Town Music Lessons and commented:
Beautiful!
Thanks for your kind words, your blog is really awesome and inspiring.
Hi mates, its great post regarding educationand entirely explained, keep it
up all the time.
Many thanks for your kind words 😌
Many thanks! Look forward to reading your blog as well.
Great article. You might like my fictional “letter” about this Piano sonata.:)
https://edwardianpiano.wordpress.com/a-beethoven-themed-fiction/
It is under the introduction about The Art of Letter Writing.
Oh I meant to say I like the portrait of Beethoven a lot -I haven’t seen this one before.
Yes, it is an incredible portrait and I believe really captures the despair and profound sense of loss of hearing he was experiencing. Thanks for visiting my blog, look forward to reading your posts as well.
Thanks Jamila! How cruel it was that such a brilliant composer lost his hearing.
Greetings
Yes, that is why there is a quote of Beethoven where he says ‘ I am going to seize fate by the throat’ Supposedly, this motif of the fifth symphony is ‘fate’ knocking at his door and is also heard in the ‘Apassionata Sonata’. I can only imagine the torment he must of felt because music has been the anchor in my life I can’t imagine not being able to hear it. 😔😪 Your blog is amazing and very inspiring, thanks for sharing those wonderful quotes.
ᒍᗩᗰIᒪᗩ ᔕᗩᕼᗩᖇ http://www.theartofpianoperformance.com http://theartofpianoperformance.me
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Hi!! I love your page. I have my performance of Moonlight on my page. It was hard to do, it’s much easier to play when nobody is listening!! I also have my fav Tom Waits tune there. Would you please listen and tell me what you think? I would love your opinion.
Greetings,
Many thanks for your kind words. Yes, you are absolutely correct in saying Beethoven’s fourteenth Piano Sonata is full of technical challenges. I look forward to hearing your interpretation and checking out your blog. Thanks for writing.🎹🎶😌
Reblogged this on EdwardianPiano and commented:
Another great article from The Art of Piano Performance.
Many thanks for your kind words.
Your blog is amazing as well, and I’m looking forward to your posts. 🎹🎶
Reblogged this on I Write The Music.
I am pleased you like my blog Jamila- thank you! It is nice to share my love of Beethoven with wonderful people like yourself. 🙂 He is so inspiring, so courageous and amazing.
Yes! Beethoven’s theme is ‘Victory over Despair’, I find his music to be so very healing and even more so when learning and playing his music. What an iconic figure and you phrased it perfectly courageous and inspiring. Look forward to more of your great posts as well about Arts Education and Music. Thanks for sharing all those inspiring wonderful quotes. 🎹🎶😌
I agree- victory over despair- he reminds us to keep on with fortitude and seek within for our creativity and connection to Nature. I am going to see his 6th next month!
Thanks for your kind comments on my blog- I like blogging a lot! I have found yours very interesting!
Maybe you would like my Beethoven verse page…:)
Hi, does anybody knows who’s playing this?
Thanx
Greetings Patel, thanks for writing in, I will try to research that for you. 🎹🎶😌