Chopin, Piano Sonata No. 3 in B-minor, Op. 58, i. Allegro maestoso

CHOPIN, Piano Sonata No. 3 in B-minor, Op. 58, i. Allegro maestoso

What I found so interesting about this sonata, long before I even started to study it, was that musicologists almost unanimously agree it is one of Chopin’s most difficult works.

For me however, what concerns me more than the level of difficulty is the message of the work, and how best to convey it. Chopin really shows his mastery of the piano as an instrument in this sonata, so for me it was very important to not only try and bring out all of the depth he built into the composition, but to also emphasize the fact that he takes the listener on a real musical journey, while still observing all of the rules of form and structure that are very much a part of the sonata form.

Musicologists consider this movement a Sonata Allegro in terms of its overall structure, a form that is part of the Classical period, and one that was used not only for sonatas but other instrumental music, such as symphonies and concertos. Knowing that the basic structure involves the elements of exposition, development, and recapitulation, I wanted to make sure that each portion of the movement had as many distinct characteristics of interpretation as I could incorporate so that, like pearls in a necklace, the individual sections stood out on their own, while still remaining connected to the whole.

The first measures for me then became not just the statement of a theme, but a pronouncement, almost a kind of declaration: strong, direct, and sure, with everything that follows being a kind of restatement of the facts of the theme, a reinforcement of one basic truth which continues throughout the movement, majestically, as the tempo marking implies.

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