BEETHOVEN: Piano Sonata No. 6, Op. 10, No. 2

Sonata No. 6 in F major, Op. 10, No. 2 (1798)

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)

The Sonata in F major, Op. 10, No. 2 is one of Beethoven’s most compact such works and one of his sunniest. The scampering melodic fragments tossed off at the outset not only provide thematic material for the ensuing movement but also establish its playful mood. Though the second movement is titled Allegretto, it is really a scherzo, more reserved than Beethoven’s later examples of the form but nevertheless sharing their rhythmic energy and romantic nature. If the reports are true that Beethoven loved rough practical jokes, then that aspect of his personality finds its musical analogue in the finale. A little ditty of opera buffa jocularity is proposed as the subject for learned fugal treatment, but proves that it can support nothing more than some flying scales and clangorously repeated chords. The ditty, having shown itself impervious to fugue in the exposition, gets toured through a variety of keys in the development section before the pretense of erudition is abandoned in the recapitulation in favor of a simple, boisterous romp to the end.

BEETHOVEN: Piano Sonata No. 7, Op. 10, No. 3

Sonata No. 7 in D major, Op. 10, No. 3 (1798)

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)

The largest in scale and most prophetic in expression of Op. 10 is the D major Sonata No. 3. The sonata-form first movement opens with a unison gesture forged from equal parts mystery, promise and forceful energy, whose dynamic eruptions are balanced by a quiet, pathetic melody in a minor key. A dainty second theme is proposed for formal contrast, but the complex emotional state of the opening resumes before the end of the exposition. The development section expounds upon the mutability of the main theme’s materials before a full recapitulation rounds out the movement. The lamenting second movement, Largo e mesto (“sad”), is one of Beethoven’s most profound statements from his early years, “his first essay in tragedy” according to Sir Donald Tovey. The Menuetto provides a sunny foil to the preceding movement. The jolly rondo-finale is based on a humorous theme of off-beat motives and bemused silences.

BEETHOVEN: Piano Sonata No. 23, Appassionata

Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57, “Appassionata” (1804-1806)

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)

Beethoven spent the summer of 1804 in Döbling, an elegant suburb of Vienna nestled in the foothills of the Wienerwald north of the central city. He wrote to his brother Johann, a prosperous apothecary in Vienna, “Not on my life would I have believed that I could be so lazy as I am here. If it is followed by an outburst of industry, something worthwhile may be accomplished.” The country air and fizzy Heurigen wine of Döbling must have been inspiration to Beethoven, because during the following three years he had a remarkable burst of creativity that included the “Appassionata” Sonata (Op. 57). Its sobriquet was applied not by the composer but by the Hamburg publisher Cranz when he issued a two-piano version of the work in 1838.

The F minor Sonata is in three movements: two massive sonata-form essays anchor it at beginning and end, and surround a short, rapt set of variations in which Beethoven tried to make time itself stand still. When Glenn Gould’s recording of the “Appassionata” was issued in 1974, he provided for it a surprisingly curmudgeonly set of liner notes that, nevertheless, penetrate straight to the essence of Beethoven’s creative procedure in the outer movements of this composition: “The ‘Appassionata,’ in common with most of the works Beethoven wrote in the first decade of the 19th century, is a study in thematic tenacity. His conceit at this period was to create mammoth structures from material that, in lesser hands, would scarcely have afforded a good sixteen-bar introduction. The themes, as such, are usually of minimal interest but are often of such primal urgency that one wonders why it took a Beethoven to think them up.” The “Appassionata” Sonata stands upon the highest plateau of Beethoven’s achievement.

Yefim Bronfman, Piano

Internationally recognized as one of today's most acclaimed and admired pianists, Yefim Bronfman stands among a handful of artists regularly sought by festivals, orchestras, conductors and recital series. His commanding technique, power and exceptional lyrical gifts are consistently acknowledged by the press and audiences alike.

In celebration of the 80th birthday of Maestro Temirkanov, Mr. Bronfman’s 2018-19 season begins with a European tour with St. Petersburg Philharmonic. This is followed by a Scandinavian tour with The Royal Concertgebouw and Maestro Gatti with orchestral concerts in Europe during the season including Paris (Orchestre National de France), London (LPO), Cologne (WDR), Rome (Santa Cecilia), Berlin (Philharmonic), and Vienna Philharmonic on tour. In the US he will return to orchestras in Cleveland, New York, Los Angeles, Houston, St. Louis, Cincinnati, San Francisco and Dallas, and in recital can be heard in New York (Carnegie Hall), Berkeley, Stanford, Aspen, Madrid, Geneva, Cologne, Leipzig, Munich, Berlin, Naples, Rome and on tour in the spring with mezzo-soprano Magdalena Kozena.

He has also given numerous solo recitals in the leading halls of North America, Europe and the Far East, including acclaimed debuts at Carnegie Hall in 1989 and Avery Fisher Hall in 1993. In 1991 he gave a series of joint recitals with Isaac Stern in Russia, marking Mr. Bronfman's first public performances there since his emigration to Israel at age 15. That same year he was awarded the prestigious Avery Fisher Prize, one of the highest honors given to American instrumentalists. In 2010 he was honored as the recipient of the Jean Gimbel Lane prize in piano performance from Northwestern University.

Born in Tashkent in the Soviet Union, Yefim Bronfman immigrated to Israel with his family in 1973, where he studied with pianist Arie Vardi, head of the Rubin Academy of Music at Tel Aviv University. In the United States, he studied at The Juilliard School, Marlboro School of Music, and the Curtis Institute of Music, under Rudolf Firkusny, Leon Fleisher, and Rudolf Serkin. He is a 2015 recipient of an honorary doctorate from the Manhattan School of Music.

Yefim Bronfman became an American citizen in July 1989.

Photo: Dario Acosta