In the mood for a Mozart sonata...

[kelly_kelly]

...which one? I've worked on K. 332 and K. 457. I really like K. 284, K. 310, K. 533, and K. 576. My reservations about each are:

K. 284 is rather long with the Theme and Variations, and therefore harder to program.
K. 310 I think would be more difficult for me to interpret than the others... also fairly popular.
K. 533... Somehow I don't quite feel that the last movement is as wonderful as the other two, though the entire sonata is still worth playing.
K. 576 is very beautiful and concise, but very often played...

Opinions?

[fleetfingers]

How about K330?

[thalbergmad]

How about Clementi?

Thal

[pianisten1989]

Go for the D-major, 284. Not only will you learn plenty of technical things in the variation, but it's also a very good sonata, and basically none plays it.

[redbaron]

I think K.310 is the best of the pieces you have listed. Although why is it's popularity an issue? Popular pieces are popular for a reason after all...

[kelly_kelly]

How about Clementi?

Thal

Hmm... which ones would you recommend?

[orangesodaking]

D Major, K. 311. It's a wonderful one!

[kelly_kelly]

How about K330?

D Major, K. 311. It's a wonderful one!

K. 311 is indeed wonderful, but I have to say any desire to learn it has been quashed by hearing someone at university playing it terribly on multiple occasions... very, very fast with too much pedal and missing notes, obviously no respect for the composer (and then went on to play Gaspard... I can't say I have much respect for his teacher ) I also love K. 330 and do intend to learn it eventually, but I thought that since I have learned K. 332 the ones I listed might have more "educational" value for me at this time. I was leaning towards K. 284, but I'm becoming increasingly persuaded by Clementi op. 40 no. 3... hmm...

EDIT: And now I'm listening to K. 330 after a long while and I'm even more confused! I'm also not working with a teacher at the moment, so am a little nervous about trying things which I might have trouble interpreting...

[becky8898]

Hi Kelly - K330 sounds like a great choice to me. Its such a cool piece of music. Its one of the few Mozart Sonata's where velocity  is hardly involved so you can really sit back and play with your dynamics and voicing and all kinds of other cool stuff.  It also has the great advantage of a Sonata you can go back to over and over again and discover new things about.  I first did this Sonata when I was 7, and have gone back to it several times over the last few years , each time having it grow with me. Im sure as the years go by that will continue.  To me this Sonata embodies Mozart. The fine trill work , the simple but incredibly delicious chord progressions.

Cheers, Becky

[kelly_kelly]

Hi Kelly - K330 sounds like a great choice to me. Its such a cool piece of music. Its one of the few Mozart Sonata's where velocity  is hardly involved so you can really sit back and play with your dynamics and voicing and all kinds of other cool stuff.  It also has the great advantage of a Sonata you can go back to over and over again and discover new things about.  I first did this Sonata when I was 7, and have gone back to it several times over the last few years , each time having it grow with me. Im sure as the years go by that will continue.  To me this Sonata embodies Mozart. The fine trill work , the simple but incredibly delicious chord progressions.

Cheers, Becky

You're very right about K. 330... If for some reason I had to judge pianists based on their performance of one piece, I would probably choose this sonata. But... I don't know. Too many sonatas, too little time! I'll just have to play them all eventually

I'm also going to take this opportunity to congratulate you on your maturity. I've read several of your posts and it seems like you are truly committed to music, and all of your advice seems well-reasoned. Especially compared some of the posts I made when I was 12... *shudder*