In music a sonata (; pl. ''sonate'') literally means a piece ''played'' as opposed to a

cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian language, Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal music, vocal Musical composition, composition with an musical instrument, instrumental accompaniment, ty ...

(Latin and Italian ''cantare'', "to sing"), a piece ''sung''. The term evolved through the

history of music Although definitions of music vary wildly throughout the world, every known culture partakes in it, and it is thus considered a cultural universal. The origins of music remain highly contentious; commentators often relate it to the origin of la ...

, designating a variety of forms until the Classical era, when it took on increasing importance. Sonata is a vague term, with varying meanings depending on the context and time period. By the early 19th century it came to represent a principle of composing large-scale works. It was applied to most instrumental genres and regarded—alongside the

fugue In classical music, a fugue (, from Latin ''fuga'', meaning "flight" or "escape""Fugue, ''n''." ''The Concise Oxford English Dictionary'', eleventh edition, revised, ed. Catherine Soanes and Angus Stevenson (Oxford and New York: Oxford Universit ...

—as one of two fundamental methods of organizing, interpreting and analyzing concert music. Though the musical style of sonatas has changed since the Classical era, most 20th- and 21st-century sonatas maintain the overarching structure. The term

sonatina A sonatina (French: “sonatine”, German: “Sonatine") is a small sonata. As a musical term, ''sonatina'' has no single strict definition; it is rather a title applied by the composer to a piece that is in basic sonata form, but is shorter and ...

, pl. ''sonatine'', the

diminutive A diminutive is a word obtained by modifying a root word to convey a slighter degree of its root meaning, either to convey the smallness of the object or quality named, or to convey a sense of intimacy or endearment, and sometimes to belittle s ...

form of sonata, is often used for a short or technically easy sonata.

Instrumentation

In the

Baroque period The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from the early 17th century until the 1750s. It followed Renaissance art and Mannerism and preceded the Rococo (in ...

, a sonata was for one or more instruments, almost always with continuo. After the Baroque period most works designated as sonatas specifically are performed by a solo instrument, most often a keyboard instrument, or by a solo instrument accompanied by a keyboard instrument. Sonatas for a solo instrument other than keyboard have been composed, as have sonatas for other combinations of instruments. There are some general guidelines a typical sonata might follow, however, it is important to acknowledge the term sonata still hadn’t taken shape yet in the 17th century because of the ''sinfonia'' conflating the term. A sinfonia were pieces played by multiple instruments together, upholding the characteristics of the imitative canzona. The sinfonia showed precursors to the introductory movement of sonata form today. As newer types of canzonas and concertos began to form (called ''stile moderno''), the sonata was still an ambiguous genre because many characteristics of other forms became entangled with early sonatas. The sonata finally began to become a separate entity starting in the 17th to 18th centuries when the canzona became less popular and the suite, concerto, and sonata all developed in different directions. In short, a suite is a sequence of movements based on dance movements, whereas sonatas do not possess complete dance like movements. Although it is important to note that sonatas can contain movements assembled from parts of dance movements, but the passages are not formal enough to be called a suite. Sonatas were standardized to either fall into being a ''sonata da camera'', “chamber sonata,” or a ''sonata da chiesa'', “church sonata.” Corelli’s twelve trio sonatas, Op. 2, were foundational to the development of the sonata and an example of 12 chamber trio sonatas, Op. 2, in 1685. Corelli’s prolific work in his trio sonatas inspired Bach, Vivaldi, Handel, and Telemann. The sonata and the suite were two forms that experienced overlap in France, Germany, and England; however, remained separate in Italy because the scoring criteria was different. Beste writes that during this time period, the keyboard repertoire evolved with the sonata as Bach was writing his keyboard suites, with BWV 825-30 being called “partitas.” Beste writes on the partita that “By the late seventeenth century, however, he partitahad come to denote a multi-movement instrumental cycle, either still as a set of variations or as a succession of dances. Only in its latter connotation does it overlap with the sonata, and only in a specific instrumental and geographical context: its widespread currency is limited to Germany, and to the solo keyboard repertoire (12). The overlap between sonata and partita are interesting to consider looking at Bach’s unaccompanied sonatas for violin, as Beste writes “they conform to the four-movement ‘church sonata’ pattern established by Corelli, for which no other generic term was available. The partitas, on the other hand, borrow their designation from the keyboard repertoire, as multi-movement dance cycles for solo instrument.”

History

Baroque

In the works of

Arcangelo Corelli Arcangelo Corelli (, also , ; ; 17 February 1653 – 8 January 1713) was an List of Italian composers, Italian composer and violinist of the middle Baroque music, Baroque era. His music was key in the development of the modern genres of Sonata a ...

and his contemporaries, two broad classes of sonata were established, and were first described by

Sébastien de Brossard Sébastien de Brossard (; 12 September 165510 August 1730) was a French music theorist, composer and collector. Life Brossard was born in Dompierre, Orne. After studying philosophy and theology at Caen, he studied music and established himself ...

in his ''Dictionaire de musique'' (third edition, Amsterdam, ca. 1710): the

sonata da chiesa ''Sonata da chiesa'' ( Italian: "church sonata") is a 17th-century genre of musical composition for one or more melody instruments and is regarded an antecedent of later forms of 18th century instrumental music. It generally comprises four movemen ...

(that is, suitable for use in church), which was the type "rightly known as ''Sonatas''", and the sonata da camera (proper for use at court), which consists of a prelude followed by a succession of dances, all in the same key. Although the four, five, or six movements of the sonata da chiesa are also most often in one key, one or two of the internal movements are sometimes in a contrasting tonality. The sonata da chiesa, generally for one or two

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

s and

basso continuo Basso continuo parts, almost universal in the Baroque era (1600–1750), provided the harmonic structure of the music by supplying a bassline and a chord progression. The phrase is often shortened to continuo, and the instrumentalists playing th ...

, consisted normally of a slow introduction, a loosely fugued

allegro Allegro may refer to: Common meanings * Allegro (music), a tempo marking that indicates to playing quickly and brightly (from Italian meaning ''cheerful'') * Allegro (ballet), brisk and lively movement Artistic works * L'Allegro (1645), a poem b ...

, a

cantabile Cantabile is a term in music meaning to perform in a singing style. The word is taken from the Italian language and literally means "singable" or "songlike". In instrumental music, it is a particular style of playing designed to imitate the human ...

slow movement, and a lively finale in some

binary form Binary form is a musical form in 2 related sections, both of which are usually repeated. Binary is also a structure used to choreograph dance. In music this is usually performed as A-A-B-B. Binary form was popular during the Baroque music, Baro ...

suggesting affinity with the dance-tunes of the suite. This scheme, however, was not very clearly defined, until the works of Arcangelo Corelli when it became the essential sonata and persisted as a tradition of Italian violin music. The sonata da camera consisted almost entirely of idealized dance-tunes. On the other hand, the features of ''sonata da chiesa'' and ''sonata da camera'' then tended to be freely intermixed. Although nearly half of

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...

's 1,100 surviving compositions, arrangements, and transcriptions are instrumental works, only about 4% are sonatas. The term ''sonata'' is also applied to the series of over 500 works for harpsichord solo, or sometimes for other keyboard instruments, by

Domenico Scarlatti Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti (26 October 1685 – 23 July 1757) was an Italian composer. He is classified primarily as a Baroque music, Baroque composer chronologically, although his music was influential in the development of the Classical peri ...

, originally published under the name ''Essercizi per il gravicembalo'' (Exercises for the Harpsichord). Most of these pieces are in one binary-form movement only, with two parts that are in the same tempo and use the same thematic material, though occasionally there will be changes in tempo within the sections. They are frequently virtuosic, and use more distant harmonic transitions and modulations than were common for other works of the time. They were admired for their great variety and invention. Both the solo and

trio sonata The trio sonata is a genre, typically consisting of several movements, with two melody instruments and basso continuo. It originated in the early 17th century and was a favorite chamber ensemble combination in the Baroque era. Basic structure T ...

s of

Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist, impresario of Baroque music and Roman Catholic priest. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lif ...

show parallels with the concerti he was writing at the same time. He composed over 70 sonatas, the great majority of which are of the solo type; most of the rest are trio sonatas, and a very small number are of the multivoice type. The sonatas of Domenico Paradies are mild and elongated works with a graceful and melodious little second movement included.

Classical period

The practice of the Classical period would become decisive for the sonata; the term moved from being one of many terms indicating genres or forms, to designating the fundamental form of organization for large-scale works. This evolution stretched over fifty years. The term came to apply both to the structure of individual movements (see

Sonata form The sonata form (also sonata-allegro form or first movement form) is a musical form, musical structure generally consisting of three main sections: an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. It has been used widely since the middle of t ...

and

History of sonata form Sonata form is one of the most influential ideas in the history of Western classical music. Since the establishment of the practice by composers like Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, C.P.E. Bach, Joseph Haydn, Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Mozart, Lu ...

) and to the layout of the movements in a multi-movement work. In the transition to the Classical period there were several names given to multimovement works, including

divertimento (; from the Italian '' divertire'' "to amuse") is a musical genre, with most of its examples from the 18th century. The mood of the '' divertimento'' is most often lighthearted (as a result of being played at social functions) and it is generally ...

serenade In music, a serenade (; also sometimes called a serenata, from the Italian) is a musical composition or performance delivered in honour of someone or something. Serenades are typically calm, light pieces of music. The term comes from the Ital ...

, and

partita Partita (also ''partie'', ''partia'', ''parthia'', or ''parthie'') closely resemble the dance suites of the Baroque music, Baroque Period (and are often used synonymously with Suite (music), suites) with the addition of a prelude movement at the ...

, many of which are now regarded effectively as sonatas. The usage of ''sonata'' as the standard term for such works began somewhere in the 1770s.

Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( ; ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

labels his first piano sonata as such in 1771, after which the term ''divertimento'' is used sparingly in his output. The term ''sonata'' was increasingly applied to either a work for keyboard alone (see

piano sonata A piano sonata is a sonata written for a solo piano. Piano sonatas are usually written in three or four movements, although some piano sonatas have been written with a single movement (Liszt, Scriabin, Medtner, Berg), others with two movemen ...

), or for keyboard and one other instrument, often the violin or cello. It was less and less frequently applied to works with more than two instrumentalists; for example, piano trios were not often labelled ''sonata for piano, violin, and cello.'' Initially the most common layout of movements was: # Allegro, which at the time was understood to mean not only a tempo, but also some degree of "working out", or development, of the theme. # A middle movement, most frequently a

slow movement Slow movement may refer to: *Slow movement (music) A slow movement is a form in a multi-Movement (music), movement musical piece. Generally, the second movement of a piece will be written as a slow movement, although composers occasionally write ...

: an Andante, an Adagio or a Largo; or less frequently a

Minuet A minuet (; also spelled menuet) is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually written in time. The English word was adapted from the Italian ''minuetto'' and the French ''menuet''. The term also describes the musical form tha ...

or Theme and Variations form. # A closing movement was generally an Allegro or a Presto, often labeled ''Finale''. The form was often a

Rondo The rondo or rondeau is a musical form that contains a principal theme (music), theme (sometimes called the "refrain") which alternates with one or more contrasting themes (generally called "episodes", but also referred to as "digressions" or "c ...

or Minuet. However, two-movement layouts also occur, a practice Haydn uses as late as the 1790s. There was also in the early Classical period the possibility of using four movements, with a dance movement inserted before the slow movement, as in Haydn's piano sonatas No. 6 and No. 8.

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

's sonatas were also primarily in three movements. Of the works that Haydn labelled ''piano sonata'', ''divertimento'', or ''partita'' in Hob XIV, seven are in two movements, thirty-five are in three, and three are in four; and there are several in three or four movements whose authenticity is listed as "doubtful." Composers such as Boccherini would publish sonatas for piano and obbligato instrument with an optional third movement—–in Boccherini's case, 28 cello sonatas. But increasingly instrumental works were laid out in four, not three movements, a practice seen first in

string quartet The term string quartet refers to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two Violin, violini ...

s and symphonies, and reaching the sonata proper in the early sonatas of

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

. But two- and three-movement sonatas continued to be written throughout the Classical period: Beethoven's opus 102 pair has a two-movement C major sonata and a three-movement D major sonata. Nevertheless, works with fewer or more than four movements were increasingly felt to be exceptions; they were labelled as having movements "omitted," or as having "extra" movements. The four-movement layout was by this point standard for the string quartet, and overwhelmingly the most common for the

symphony A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning c ...

. The usual order of the four movements was: # An allegro, which by this point was in what is called

sonata form The sonata form (also sonata-allegro form or first movement form) is a musical form, musical structure generally consisting of three main sections: an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. It has been used widely since the middle of t ...

, complete with exposition, development, and recapitulation. # A

: an andante, an adagio, or a largo. # A dance movement, frequently

minuet and trio A minuet (; also spelled menuet) is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually written in Triple metre, time. The English word was adapted from the Italian ''minuetto'' and the French ''menuet''. The term also describes the musi ...

or—especially later in the classical period—a scherzo and trio. # A finale in faster tempo, often in a sonata–rondo form. When movements appeared out of this order they would be described as "reversed", such as the scherzo coming before the slow movement in Beethoven's 9th Symphony. This usage would be noted by critics in the early 19th century, and it was codified into teaching soon thereafter. It is difficult to overstate the importance of Beethoven's output of sonatas: 32 piano sonatas, plus sonatas for cello and piano or violin and piano, forming a large body of music that would over time increasingly be thought essential for any serious instrumentalist to master.

Romantic period

In the early 19th century, the current usage of the term ''sonata'' was established, both as regards form ''per se'', and in the sense that a fully elaborated sonata serves as a norm for concert music in general, which other forms are seen in relation to. From this point forward, the word ''sonata'' in music theory labels as much the abstract musical form as particular works. Hence there are references to a symphony as a ''sonata for orchestra''. This is referred to by William Newman as the ''sonata idea''. Among works expressly labeled ''sonata'' for the piano, there are the three of

Frédéric Chopin Frédéric François Chopin (born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin; 1 March 181017 October 1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic period who wrote primarily for Piano solo, solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown ...

, those of

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic music, Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions inc ...

, the three of

Robert Schumann Robert Schumann (; ; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and music critic of the early Romantic music, Romantic era. He composed in all the main musical genres of the time, writing for solo piano, voice and piano, chamber ...

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic music, Romantic period. With a diverse List of compositions by Franz Liszt, body of work spanning more than six ...

's Sonata in B minor, and later the sonatas of

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; ; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period (music), Romantic period. His music is noted for its rhythmic vitality and freer treatment of dissonance, oft ...

and

Sergei Rachmaninoff Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and Conducting, conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a compos ...

. In the early 19th century, the

was defined, from a combination of previous practice and the works of important Classical composers, particularly Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, but composers such as Clementi also. It is during this period that the differences between the three- and the four-movement layouts became a subject of commentary, with emphasis on the concerto being laid out in three movements, and the symphony in four. Ernest Newman wrote in the essay "Brahms and the Serpent": :That, perhaps, will be the ideal of the instrumental music of the future; the way to it, indeed, seems at last to be opening out before modern composers in proportion as they discard the last tiresome vestiges of sonata form. This, from being what it was originally, the natural mode of expression of a certain eighteenth century way of thinking in music, became in the nineteenth century a drag upon both individual thinking and the free unfolding of the inner vital force of an idea, and is now simply a shop device by which a bad composer may persuade himself and the innocent reader of textbooks that he is a good one.

After the Romantic period

The role of the sonata as an extremely important form of extended musical argument would inspire composers such as Hindemith,

Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''. , group=n ( – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor who l ...

Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his Symphony No. 1 (Shostakovich), First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded ...

, Tailleferre, Ustvolskaya, and Williams to compose in sonata form, and works with traditional sonata structures continue to be composed and performed.

Scholarship and musicology

Sonata idea or principle

Research into the practice and meaning of sonata form, style, and structure has been the motivation for important theoretical works by

Heinrich Schenker Heinrich Schenker (19 June 1868 – 14 January 1935) was an Austrian music theory, music theorist #Theoretical writings, whose writings have had a profound influence on subsequent musical analysis. His approach, now termed Schenkerian analysis ...

Arnold Schoenberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian and American composer, music theorist, teacher and writer. He was among the first Modernism (music), modernists who transformed the practice of harmony in 20th-centu ...

, and Charles Rosen among others; and the pedagogy of music continued to rest on an understanding and application of the rules of sonata form as almost two centuries of development in practice and theory had codified it. The development of the classical style and its norms of composition formed the basis for much of the music theory of the 19th and 20th centuries. As an overarching formal principle, sonata was accorded the same central status as Baroque

; generations of composers, instrumentalists, and audiences were guided by this understanding of sonata as an enduring and dominant principle in Western music. The sonata idea begins before the term had taken on its present importance, along with the evolution of the Classical period's changing norms. The reasons for these changes, and how they relate to the evolving sense of a new formal order in music, is a matter to which research is devoted. Some common factors which were pointed to include: the shift of focus from vocal music to instrumental music; changes in performance practice, including the loss of the continuo. Crucial to most interpretations of the sonata form is the idea of a tonal center; and, as the ''Grove Concise Dictionary of Music'' puts it: "The main form of the group embodying the 'sonata principle', the most important principle of musical structure from the Classical period to the 20th century: that material first stated in a complementary key be restated in the home key".( The sonata idea has been thoroughly explored by William Newman in his monumental three-volume work ''Sonata in the Classic Era (A History of the Sonata Idea)'', begun in the 1950s and published in what has become the standard edition of all three volumes in 1972.

20th-century theory

Heinrich Schenker argued that there was an ''Urlinie'' or basic tonal melody, and a basic bass figuration. He held that when these two were present, there was basic structure, and that the sonata represented this basic structure in a whole work with a process known as ''interruption''. As a practical matter Schenker applied his ideas to the editing of the piano sonatas of Beethoven, using original manuscripts and his own theories to "correct" the available sources. The basic procedure was the use of tonal theory to infer meaning from available sources as part of the critical process, even to the extent of completing works left unfinished by their composers. While many of these changes were and are controversial, that procedure has a central role today in music theory, and is an essential part of the theory of sonata structure as taught in most music schools.

Notable sonatas

Baroque (c. 1600 – c. 1760)

** Sonatas for solo violin (BWV 1001, 1003 and 1005) ** Sonatas for violin and continuo (BWV 1021, 1023), and the doubtful 1024 ** Sonatas for flute and continuo ( BWV 1034,

1035 Year 1035 (Roman numerals, MXXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * March 23 – Battle of Cesar (near the village of Cesar, Portugal): The armies of Bermudo III, King of Ki ...

) **

Trio sonatas Trio may refer to: Music Groups * Trio (music), an ensemble of three performers, or a composition for such an ensemble ** Jazz trio, pianist, double bassist, drummer ** Minuet and trio, a form in classical music ** String trio, a group of three ...

: for organ (BWV 525–530); for violin and harpsichord (BWV 1014–1019); for viola da gamba and harpsichord (BWV 1027–1029); for flute and harpsichord ( BWV 1030, 1032); for flute, violin and continuo (''Sonata sopr'il Soggetto Reale'' included in '' The Musical Offering'') *

Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber correctly ''Biber von Bibern'' ( bapt. 12 August 1644, Stráž pod Ralskem – 3 May 1704, Salzburg) was a Bohemian-Austrian composer and violinist. Biber worked in Graz and Kroměříž before he illegally left ...

** Rosary Sonatas *

George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti. Born in Halle, Germany, H ...

** Sonata for Violin and Continuo in D major (HWV 371) *

Giuseppe Tartini Giuseppe Tartini (8 April 1692 – 26 February 1770) was an Italian composer and violinist of the Baroque era born in Pirano in the Republic of Venice (now Piran, Slovenia). Tartini was a prolific composer, composing over a hundred pieces for the ...

** Devil's Trill Sonata *

** 555 sonatas for harpsichord solo

Classical (c. 1760 – c. 1830)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

** Piano Sonata No. 8 in A minor (K. 310) ** Piano Sonata No. 11 in A major (K. 331/300i) ** Piano Sonata No. 12 in F major (K. 332) ** Piano Sonata No. 13 in B-flat major (K. 333) ** Piano Sonata No. 14 in C minor (K. 457) ** Piano Sonata No. 15 in F major (K. 533/494) ** Piano Sonata No. 16 in C major (K. 545) ** Sonata in A for Violin and Keyboard (K. 526) *

Franz Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( ; ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have led ...

** Sonata No. 1 in C major, Hob. XVI:1 – Piano Sonata No. 62, Hob.XVI:52 *

Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...

** Sonata in C minor, D. 958 ** Sonata in A major, D. 959 ** Sonata in B major, D. 960

Romantic (c. 1795 – c. 1900)

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

** Piano Sonata No. 8 "Pathétique" ** Piano Sonata No. 14 "Moonlight" (''Sonata quasi una fantasia'') ** Piano Sonata No. 17 "Tempest" ** Piano Sonata No. 19 "Leichte" ** Piano Sonata No. 21 "Waldstein" ** Piano Sonata No. 23 "Appassionata" ** Piano Sonata No. 29 "Hammerklavier" ** Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111 ** Violin Sonata No. 5 "Spring" ** Violin Sonata No. 9 "Kreutzer" ** Cello Sonata No. 1 in F major Op. 5 ** Cello Sonata No. 2 in G minor Op. 5 ** Cello Sonata No. 3 in A major Op. 69 *

** Cello Sonata No. 1 ** Cello Sonata No. 2 ** Clarinet Sonatas No. 1 and No.2 ** Violin Sonata No. 1 ** Violin Sonata No. 2 ** Violin Sonata No. 3 *

, Albert Dietrich, and

** 'F-A-E' Sonata *

** Piano Sonata No. 2 in B minor ** Piano Sonata No. 3 in B minor *

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 ...

** Piano Sonata in E-flat minor (1900) *

George Enescu George Enescu (; – 4 May 1955), known in France as Georges Enesco, was a Romanians, Romanian composer, violinist, pianist, conductor, teacher and statesman. He is regarded as one of the greatest musicians in Romanian history. Biography En ...

** Sonata No. 1 for violin and piano in D major, Op. 2 (1897) ** Sonata No. 2 for violin and piano in F minor, Op. 6 (1899) *

Edvard Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the leading Romantic music, Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwid ...

** Three sonatas for Violin and Piano *

** Sonata after a Reading of Dante (''Fantasia Quasi Sonata'') ** Sonata in B minor *

** Violin Sonata No. 1 in A minor, Op. 105

20th-century and contemporary (c. 1910–present)

Samuel Barber Samuel Osmond Barber II (March 9, 1910 – January 23, 1981) was an American composer, pianist, conductor (music), conductor, baritone, and music educator, and one of the most celebrated composers of the mid-20th century. Principally influenced ...

Cello Sonata A cello sonata is piece written sonata form, often with the instrumentation of a cello taking solo role with piano accompaniment. Some of the earliest cello sonatas were composed in the 18th century by Francesco Geminiani and Antonio Vivaldi, and ...

Op. 6 **

Piano Sonata A piano sonata is a sonata written for a solo piano. Piano sonatas are usually written in three or four movements, although some piano sonatas have been written with a single movement (Liszt, Scriabin, Medtner, Berg), others with two movemen ...

Op. 26 (1949) *

Jean Barraqué Jean-Henri-Alphonse Barraqué (17 January 1928 – 17 August 1973) was a French composer and music writer. His relatively small is known for its serialism. Life Barraqué was born in Puteaux, Hauts-de-Seine. In 1931, he moved with his family to P ...

(1950–52) *

Béla Bartók Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as Hunga ...

** Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion ** Sonata for Piano (1926) ** Sonata for Solo Violin ** Sonata No. 1 for Violin and Piano ** Sonata No. 2 for Violin and Piano *

Alban Berg Alban Maria Johannes Berg ( ; ; 9 February 1885 – 24 December 1935) was an Austrian composer of the Second Viennese School. His compositional style combined Romantic lyricism with the twelve-tone technique. Although he left a relatively sma ...

** Sonata for Piano, Op. 1 *

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; born Louis Bernstein; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was th ...

** Sonata for Clarinet and Piano *

Pierre Boulez Pierre Louis Joseph Boulez (; 26 March 19255 January 2016) was a French composer, conductor and writer, and the founder of several musical institutions. He was one of the dominant figures of post-war contemporary classical music. Born in Montb ...

** Piano Sonata No. 1 ** Piano Sonata No. 2 ** Piano Sonata No. 3 *

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, o ...

** Sonata for Cello and Piano, Op. 65 *

John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and Extended technique, non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one ...

** Sonata for Unaccompanied Clarinet **

Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano ''Sonatas and Interludes'' is a cycle of twenty pieces for prepared piano by American avant-garde composer John Cage (1912–1992). It was composed in 1946–48, shortly after Cage's introduction to Indian philosophy and the teachings of art hi ...

(1946–48) *

Claude Debussy Achille Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influe ...

** Sonata No. 1, for cello and piano (1915) ** Sonata No. 2, for flute, viola and harp (1915) ** Sonata No. 3, for violin and piano (1916–1917) *

** Sonata No. 3 for violin and piano, in A minor, ''dans le caractère populaire roumain'' Op. 25 (1926) ** Sonata No. 2 for cello and piano in C major, Op. 26, No. 2 (1935) ** Piano Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 24, No. 1 (1924) ** Piano Sonata No. 3 in D major, Op. 24, No. 3 (1933–1935) *

Karel Goeyvaerts Karel August Goeyvaerts (8 June 1923 – 3 February 1993) was a Belgian composer. Life Goeyvaerts was born in Antwerp, where he studied at the Royal Flemish Music Conservatory; he later studied composition in Paris with Darius Milhaud and analysi ...

** Sonata for Two Pianos, Op. 1 *

Hans Werner Henze Hans Werner Henze (1 July 1926 – 27 October 2012) was a German composer. His large List of compositions by Hans Werner Henze, oeuvre is extremely varied in style, having been influenced by serialism, atonality, Igor Stravinsky, Stravinsky, Mu ...

** '' Royal Winter Music'', Guitar Sonatas No. 1 and 2 *

Paul Hindemith Paul Hindemith ( ; ; 16 November 189528 December 1963) was a German and American composer, music theorist, teacher, violist and conductor. He founded the Amar Quartet in 1921, touring extensively in Europe. As a composer, he became a major advo ...

** Sonata for Viola and Piano, Op. 11, No. 4 (1919) *

Charles Ives Charles Edward Ives (; October 20, 1874May 19, 1954) was an American modernist composer, actuary and businessman. Ives was among the earliest renowned American composers to achieve recognition on a global scale. His music was largely ignored d ...

** Piano Sonata No. 2, Concord, Mass., 1840–60 *

Leoš Janáček Leoš Janáček (, 3 July 1854 – 12 August 1928) was a Czech composer, Music theory, music theorist, Folkloristics, folklorist, publicist, and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian folk music, Moravian and other Slavs, Slavic music, includin ...

** 1. X. 1905 (Janáček's Sonata for Piano) * Ben Johnston ** Sonata for Microtonal Piano *

György Ligeti György Sándor Ligeti (; ; 28 May 1923 – 12 June 2006) was a Hungarian-Austrian composer of contemporary classical music. He has been described as "one of the most important avant-garde music, avant-garde composers in the latter half of the ...

** Sonata, for solo cello (1948/1953) *

Nikolai Medtner Nikolai Karlovich Medtner (; – 13 November 1951) was a Russian composer and pianist. After a period of comparative obscurity in the 25 years immediately after his death, he is now becoming recognized as one of the most significant Russian com ...

** Piano Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 5 (1901-3) ** Piano Sonata No. 2 in A, Op. 11 (1904-7) ** Piano Sonata No. 3 in D minor, ''Sonate-Elegie'', Op. 11 (1904-7) ** Piano Sonata No. 4 in C, Op. 11 (1904-7) ** Piano Sonata No. 5 in G minor, Op. 22 (1909–10) ** Piano Sonata No. 6 in C minor, ''Sonata-Skazka'', Op. 22 (1910–11) ** Piano Sonata No. 7 in E minor, ''Night Wind'', Op. 22 (1910–11) ** Piano Sonata No. 8 in F, ''Sonata-Ballade'', Op. 27 (1912–14) ** Piano Sonata No. 9 in A minor, ''War Sonata'' , Op. 30 (1914–17) ** Piano Sonata No. 10 in A minor, ''Sonata-reminiscenza'', Op. 38 No. 1 (1920) ** Piano Sonata No. 11 in C minor, ''Sonata Tragica'', Op. 39, No. 5 (1920) ** Piano Sonata No. 12 in B minor, ''Romantica'', Op. 53 No. 1 (1930) ** Piano Sonata No. 13 in F minor, ''Minacciosa'', Op. 53, No. 2 (1930) ** Piano Sonata No. 14 in G, ''Sonata-Idyll'', Op. 56 (1937) *

Darius Milhaud Darius Milhaud (, ; 4 September 1892 – 22 June 1974) was a French composer, conductor, and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as ''The Group of Six''—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His composition ...

** Sonata for flute, oboe, clarinet, and piano, Op. 47 (1918) *

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''. , group=n ( – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor who l ...

** Piano Sonatas—six juvenile (1904, 1907, 1907, 1907–08, 1908, 1908–09) ** Piano Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 1 (1907–09) ** Piano Sonata No. 2 in D minor, Op. 14 (1912) ** Piano Sonata No. 3 in A minor, Op. 28 (1907–17) ** Piano Sonata No. 4 in C minor, Op. 29 (1917) ** Piano Sonata No. 5 in C major (original version), Op. 38 (1923) ** Violin Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 80 (1938–46) ** Piano Sonata No. 6 in A major, Op. 82 (1939–40) ** Piano Sonata No. 7 in B-flat major, ''Stalingrad'', Op. 83 (1939–42) ** Piano Sonata No. 8 in B-flat major, Op. 84 (1939–44) ** Flute Sonata in D major, Op. 94 (1943) ** Violin Sonata No. 2 in D major, Op. 94 bis (1943) ** Piano Sonata No. 9 in C major, Op. 103 (1947) ** Sonata for Solo Violin (Unison Violins) in D major, Op. 115 **

in C major, Op. 119 ** Sonata for Solo Cello in C-sharp minor, Op. 133 ** Piano Sonata No. 5 in C major (revised version), Op. 135 (1952–53) *

** Piano Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 36 (1913, revised in 1931) ** Sonata for Cello and Piano in G minor, Op. 19 (1901) *

Alexander Scriabin Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin, scientific transliteration: ''Aleksandr Nikolaevič Skrjabin''; also transliterated variously as Skriabin, Skryabin, and (in French) Scriabine. The composer himselused the French spelling "Scriabine" which was a ...

** Piano Sonata No. 2 (Sonata-Fantasy) ** Piano Sonata No. 3 ** Piano Sonata No. 4 ** Piano Sonata No. 5 ** Piano Sonata No. 6 ** Piano Sonata No. 7 "White Mass" ** Piano Sonata No. 8 ** Piano Sonata No. 9 "Black Mass" ** Piano Sonata No. 10 * Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji ** Piano Sonata No. 0 ** Piano Sonata No. 1 ** Piano Sonata No. 2 ** Piano Sonata No. 3 ** Piano Sonata No. 4 ** Piano Sonata No. 5 "Opus Archimagicum" *

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ( – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer and conductor with French citizenship (from 1934) and American citizenship (from 1945). He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century c ...

** Sonata for Two Pianos (1943) *

Eugène Ysaÿe Eugène-Auguste Ysaÿe (; 16 July 185812 May 1931) was a Belgian virtuoso violinist, composer, and conductor. He was regarded as "The King of the Violin", or, as Nathan Milstein put it, the "tsar". Early years Born in Liège, Ysaÿe began ...

** Six Sonatas for solo violin (1923)

Notes

References

Sources * * * * * *