The Piano Sonata in E-flat minor is a musical work composed by
Paul Dukas
Paul Abraham Dukas ( 1 October 1865 – 17 May 1935) was a French composer, critic, scholar and teacher. A studious man of retiring personality, he was intensely self-critical, having abandoned and destroyed many of his compositions. His best-k ...
between 1899 and 1900, and published in 1901.
Structure
# Modérément vif (expressif et marqué) (
E-flat minor
E-flat minor is a minor scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature consists of six flats. Its relative key is G-flat major (or enharmonically F-sharp major) and its parallel key is E-flat major. ...
)
# Calme Рun peu lent Рtr̬s soutenu (
A-flat major
A-flat major is a major scale based on Aâ™ (musical note), A, with the pitches A, Bâ™ (musical note), B, C (musical note), C, Dâ™ (musical note), D, Eâ™ (musical note), E, F (musical note), F, and G (musical note), G. Its key signature has fou ...
)
# Vivement Рavec l̩g̬ret̩ (
B minor
B minor is a minor scale based on B, consisting of the pitches B, C, D, E, F, G, and A. Its key signature has two sharps. Its relative major is D major and its parallel major is B major.
The B natural minor scale is:
Changes need ...
)
# Très lent (E-flat minor →
E-flat major
E-flat major is a major scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has three flats. Its relative minor is C minor, and its parallel minor is E minor, (or enharmonically D minor).
The E-fla ...
)
Reception
In the first decade of the 20th century, following the immense success of his orchestral work ''
The Sorcerer's Apprentice
"The Sorcerer's Apprentice" () is a poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe written in 1797. The poem is a ballad in 14 stanzas.
Story
The poem begins as an old sorcerer departs his workshop, leaving his apprentice with chores to perform. Tired of ...
'', Dukas completed two complex and technically demanding large-scale works for solo piano: the Piano Sonata, dedicated to
Saint-Saëns, and ''
Variations, Interlude and Finale on a Theme by Rameau'' (1902). In Dukas's piano works critics have discerned the influence of Beethoven, or, "Beethoven as he was interpreted to the French mind by César Franck".
Both works were premiered by
Édouard Risler, a celebrated pianist of the era.
[Lockspeiser, p. 90]
In an analysis of the work in ''
The Musical Quarterly
''The Musical Quarterly'' is the oldest academic journal on music in America. Originally established in 1915 by Oscar Sonneck, the journal was edited by Sonneck until his death in 1928. Sonneck was succeeded by a number of editors, including C ...
'' in 1928, the critic Irving Schwerké wrote:
The Sonata, described by the critic
Edward Lockspeiser
Edward Lockspeiser (21 May 19053 Feb 1973) was an English musicologist, composer, art critic and radio broadcaster on music who specialized in the works and life of French composer Claude Debussy and was considered one of the few British authoriti ...
as "huge and somewhat recondite",
[Lockspeiser, p. 92] did not enter the mainstream repertoire, but it has more recently been championed by such pianists as
John Ogdon
John Andrew Howard Ogdon (27 January 1937 – 1 August 1989) was an English pianist and composer.
Biography Career
Ogdon was born in Mansfield Woodhouse, Nottinghamshire; his family moved to Manchester when he was eight. He attended the M ...
,
Marc-André Hamelin
Marc-André Hamelin, OC, OQ (born September 5, 1961) is a Canadian virtuoso pianist and composer who has received 11 Grammy Award nominations. He is on the faculty of the New England Conservatory of Music.
Biography
Born in Montreal, Quebec ...
,
Vincenzo Maltempo and
Margaret Fingerhut.
[Nicholas, p. 74.]
References
Sources
*
*Nicholas, Jeremy (July 2006). "Dukas". ''Gramophone''. p. 74.
*Schwerké, Irving (July 1928). "Paul Dukas: a Brief Appreciation". ''The Musical Quarterly''. Volume XIV.
External links
*
{{Authority control
Compositions by Paul Dukas
Dukas
1900 compositions
Compositions in E-flat minor