Beethoven Piano Sonatas Volume 8 Appassi

Even by Beethoven's own extraordinary standards, 'Op. 57' is one of his most striking and original works. Its intense emotion led to the unattributed nickname 'Appassionata' around 1838, but the name really only tells part of the story. The visceral power, the tragic atmosphere and the many unique structural features all combine with that intensity to make the 'Appassionata' arguably Beethoven's greatest and most-admired piano sonata. It is followed here by 'Les Adieux', Beethoven's personal and programmatic account of the departure, absence, and return of his friend and patron, Archduke Rudolph, who left Vienna with the rest of the Emperor's entourage when Napoleon's army invaded Austria in 1809. Finally, the 'Piano Sonata, Op. 101' brings us into the world of Beethoven's late works, with its special blend of grandeur and intimacy. The great fugal development in the final movement challenges the performer's command of counterpoint to the extreme, while building towards the clamactic unveiling of the newly expanded piano's low E.