Beethoven's Moonlight

[inspired young pianist]

Having recently mastered Beethoven's Pathetique Sonata, I have now set my sights on getting the 3rd Movement of his Moonlight under my belt. Just wondering how many people have played this amazing movement, and if so, what other pieces were they playing at the time (i.e. what other pieces are similar in terms of difficulty, just so i know I'm not setting myself an impossible task).
Any hints or suggestions about the piece, and how it should be played would be much appreciated.
Thank you

[justliam]

If you can play the whole of pathetique that one movement shouldn't be a problem

[Motrax]

Don't rush! Take it easy and you'll do fine. What I think a lot of young, inspired musicians do with the 3rd movement is learn it with a lot of bad habits, and then spend the next year or two or ten cleaning it up. Make sure your fingerings are secure - if you aren't sure, ask your teacher (hopefully you have one). I ran into a lot of trouble with this myself when I learned it, as good fingerings will make certain "difficult" passages ease by effortlessly.

Don't practice fast either - take it easy, use a metronome, and be patient with it. It'll probably be slow going, as it's a good deal more difficult than the Pathetique, but if you practice in a disciplined manner your fingers will be flying soon enough.

Good luck!

- M

[sarahlein]

I heard an analysis of it (the complete sonata) in BBC Radio 3. Here's the link:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/discoveringmusic/audioarchive.shtml?focuswin

scroll down to "Beethoven" and you'll see it.

you might find it interesting

[tocca]

If you can play the whole of pathetique that one movement shouldn't be a problem

Sorry, but i can't agree with that. I have played the whole Pathetique, in my view, at an acceptable level. The third movement of Moonlight is another story though, i've practised it
a lot but it's still far from satisfactory.

It's not that hard to try if it's within your limits though, find one of the harder passages (a couple of bars) and practise them. You'll soon get a feel for if it's within reach.

[acha114]

I heard an analysis of it (the complete sonata) in BBC Radio 3. Here's the link:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/discoveringmusic/audioarchive.shtml?focuswin

scroll down to "Beethoven" and you'll see it.

you might find it interesting

Hey that is an excellent site. Contains a lot of interesting information on a lot of my favourite pieces. There's a lot of piano theory within these pieces which I'd never pick up if I played these pieces myself. It's like reading a novel and dissecting it in parts, explaining each part in detail to describe a setting, a scene or a plot. I think this kind of information could help with playing or interpreting these pieces.

[desordre]

Hey that is an excellent site. (...)

Hi there! If you want an advice that will not disapoint you, explore the BBC Radio 3 site, especially it's player. All programs remain stored a week long, so you can listen to a lot of great things. By the way, in this very precise days, the BBC Proms are on their way, and every night there are one or two live concerts, with the "creme de la creme" of international performance.
 Enjoy!
 Best wishes.

 https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/index.shtml

[desordre]

 By the way, about the topic, I agree with Mr. Motrax very indeed. Take your time. 

[chopinfan_22]

I also am wanting to learn the 3rd movement of the Moonlight Sonata. My instructor allows us to pick only one or two pieces of music to play for our recitals. I want to play the entire sonata. I've only been playing for about two years, and my repertoire isn't that great, but I think I can do it. My hands are big enough, and playing the notes is easy enough, it's just getting it up to speed. Not to mention that I've never tried playing something that long all the way through before.

[inspired young pianist]

How would u describe the general mood and emotion of this piece (3rd mvement & whole sonata) ??
x x x