Structure and pace of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata

Music Lesson: Structure and Pace of the First Movement

Today, we are going to talk about the structure and pace of the probably most famous movement in the sonata: the first movement.

Introduction

The first movement begins with a short introduction:

• Four bars of sempre pianissimo: Very, very, very slow and quiet soft.
• Note that we should not go too slow because we have the mark alla breve, meaning we should count in two (in halves) and not in four.

Chords and Harmonic Progression

• We start in C sharp minor.
• The bass moves to A major.
• Then we encounter the Neapolitan chord, a special chord dating back to the Neapolitan school of Alessandro Scarlatti and Cimarosa.

This chord can be found, for instance, on the second degree of C sharp minor. The first inversion would appear as D major. It is a very melancholic chord that Beethoven used quite a bit in this sonata.

Significance of the Neapolitan Chord

This is why we talk about this chord and the whole structure:

• There are instances where Beethoven repeats certain features like this chord.
• It then cadences back to C sharp minor.

Throughout the piece, we also have an ostinato triplet. We will explore how to play them in the next lessons, as this is quite a long movement.

• It spans three pages.
• In adagio sostenuto tempo, it takes several minutes.

We must maintain a calm, equal pace, with only a few crescendi and decrescendi, always returning to the pianissimo.

Structure Overview: ABA Form

The first movement exhibits an ABA form:

1. A Section: Starts in C sharp minor.

   • Beethoven develops this immediately into the parallel major key of E major.

2. Middle Section (B):

   • Beethoven changes to B minor, then immediately to B major, presenting a painful moment of dissonance.
   • In our Western tonal system, several grades of dissonant chords and intervals exist, with the most dissonant being the major seventh and minor ninth surrounding the octave.
   • For example, if we move B to A sharp, we create one dissonance, and if we move B a semitone higher to C, we create another.

After this very tonal opening, Beethoven introduces pain, followed by consonant B major again.

Insight into Harmonic Structure

When played without the triplets, this section almost sounds like a chorale, reminiscent of Baroque masters like Bach. Remember, Beethoven wrote this in 1801, published in 1802, marking the beginning of the Romantic period.

Returning to the A Section

After the A section, we return to the middle section:

• The pedal note G sharp appears in bars 28 to 40, changing to A at bar 40.
• Throughout the middle B section, we have interchanging harmonies.

This leads us back to C sharp minor and the famous motif as the A section returns.

Elevation Towards the End

• Here, Beethoven sticks to E major instead of reverting to E minor, giving the piece a sense of elevation, hope, and light leading to a crescendo and subito piano at bar 49.

Features and Coda

Another feature is the sudden surprise:

• After building up, there might be an unexpected break just before a big moment.

This will be further explored in our next lesson.

Brief Coda

• After returning to C sharp minor, the motif appears in the bass, leading us to conclude the piece in C sharp minor.
• We then have subito il segmente, meaning we should immediately transition to the next movement.

Enharmonic Transition

A fermata prolongs the very last chord:

• We are in C sharp minor but can also interpret it as enharmonic D flat major.
• This transition from C sharp minor to D flat major marks the beginning of a more cheerful second movement, which we will discuss next time.