Beethoven Sonata Op.13, No.8 1st Movement

[jugular]

Been working on this for a bit and just wanted critique of my playing. Ignore the tuning of my school's piano, they're heavily neglected in that department...

[j_menz]

VERY hard to ignore that tuning - I have no idea how you can stand to play it!!

My two cents - you need to work quite a bit more on the Grave sections (though on that piano that may be difficult), you seem to be struggling with them, and the joins are very noticable.  The allegro sections seem OK note and tempo wise (though the note bit is only a guess, given the tuning).  I think it needs a greater dynamic range.  You also need to connect the Grave and allegro sections; you are playing them like they have nothing to do with each other.

Nice work, all up.

[iratior]

This was really good to hear.  I got out my Artur Schnabel edition of Beethoven sonatas to see if there was anything that might need discussion/research.   Beethoven may not have intended the first quarter-note chords of the first and second measures to be held so long;  there's no fermata over them.  But perhaps someone has researched this question and concluded that Beethoven did intend an implicit fermata over each chord (and similarly throughout the piece).  As for tempo of the allegro di molto sections -- the Artur Schnabel edition has a range of 168 to 176 half-notes per minute.  Once again, someone may have researched this question and concluded that Beethoven didn't intend that the tempo be that fast.  I especially liked the way the quarter-note chords for the right hand were done very distinctly and exactly and, as Beethoven seems to have wanted, without pedal.  I hope you get to play this on the Ellen DeGeneres show.

[jugular]

VERY hard to ignore that tuning - I have no idea how you can stand to play it!!

My two cents - you need to work quite a bit more on the Grave sections (though on that piano that may be difficult), you seem to be struggling with them, and the joins are very noticable.  The allegro sections seem OK note and tempo wise (though the note bit is only a guess, given the tuning).  I think it needs a greater dynamic range.  You also need to connect the Grave and allegro sections; you are playing them like they have nothing to do with each other.

Nice work, all up.

Yeah the grand's are really the only piano that get properly tuned because they're frequently performed on. Unfortunately I don't always get the priviledge of playing on them, so these uprights have to do.

Thanks for pointing this out to me. I admittedly do neglect the grave sections in my practice because they are technically not a problem, but I'll widen my narrow-minded view and incorporate them into the piece as a whole.

This was really good to hear.  I got out my Artur Schnabel edition of Beethoven sonatas to see if there was anything that might need discussion/research.   Beethoven may not have intended the first quarter-note chords of the first and second measures to be held so long;  there's no fermata over them.  But perhaps someone has researched this question and concluded that Beethoven did intend an implicit fermata over each chord (and similarly throughout the piece).  As for tempo of the allegro di molto sections -- the Artur Schnabel edition has a range of 168 to 176 half-notes per minute.  Once again, someone may have researched this question and concluded that Beethoven didn't intend that the tempo be that fast.  I especially liked the way the quarter-note chords for the right hand were done very distinctly and exactly and, as Beethoven seems to have wanted, without pedal.  I hope you get to play this on the Ellen DeGeneres show.

Yes I have listened to several recordings which use different editions of the sonata, and in regards to the first quarter note chords I have just decided myself that I prefer to treat it as a fermata (although it is always up for discussion).

Tempo wise the only recording I've listened to that follows Schnabel's edition is the Glenn Gould recording, which is indeed very fast! Probably around 168. But as you've said it's most likely been concluded that Beethoven wouldn't want it to be played so fast (thank goodness...).

Thank you for your compliments and critique, but I don't think Ellen would have a Beethoven sonata performed on her show

[iratior]

Well, agreed that Ellen DeGeneres might not have time for a whole sonata.  But I'm pretty sure she or some other host had a student on who did at least a cadenza from the Mozart Fantasia in D-minor.