Piano Sonata no. 5 c minor op. 10/1

Beethoven wrote his three Sonatas opp. 10 in 1795/98 and dedicated them to Countess von Browne-Camus. Compared with the Sonatas opp. 2, the composer takes another notable step forward with them, both with respect to piano technique as well as to the treatment of the sonata movement form.

The opening movement of the first sonata presented here recalls Mozart’s “Great” c minor K. 457. Perhaps his most emotional slow movement up to that time, the Adagio molto ends with an exuberant, assertive Prestissimo.