Beethoven’s middle period piano sonatas consist of the sonatas from Op. 31 through Op. 90, twelve piano works composed between 1801 and 1814. This is Beethoven at his most recognisable, writing iconic sonatas like the Waldstein, the Appassionata, and the

Born in Odessa on 19 October 1916, Emil Gilels was universally admired for his superb technical control and polished tone. His extensive discography, according to Bryce Morrison, “details his development from early impulsiveness and heaven-storming bravura to readings that are

Over his career, Beethoven wrote thirty-two piano sonatas. The first fifteen – covering Op. 2 through Op. 28 – were composed between 1795 and 1801, a time known as his early period. These early period sonatas tell a story. His

Beethoven’s violin sonatas and concerto exist because of men he alternately charmed and infuriated. One was dedicated to a man he called incomprehensible and never played. Another had an illness and physical limitations reflected in the sonata Beethoven wrote for

Not all of Beethoven’s piano sonatas had dedications, but those that did were deeply meaningful. Some recipients were teachers, like Joseph Haydn. Others were patrons whose stipends kept Beethoven fed and housed, or aristocratic students he grew close to over

Over nearly thirty years, Beethoven wrote sixteen string quartets. Each one was unique, but they fall into three groups. The early quartets. The six quartets that make up Beethoven’s Op. 18 were written between 1798 and 1800. They are more

In the middle of Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony, a sudden downpour creeps up on us during our pleasant day in the country. At first, we hear a hint of timpani – something is coming! Then, on little cat feet, the rain

The 1994 film Immortal Beloved, about the mysterious woman Beethoven called his “Immortal Beloved”, is one of the more famous composer biopic movies. It begins with the death of Beethoven and follows the journey of his secretary, Anton Schindler, as